Environmental Engineers Salary: $131,201 Median Pay (2026 stats)
TL;DR
About 37,950 environmental engineers nationally earn a mean of $131,201. Employment in the series shown fell about 19% from the first to the last year; projections imply about 0.7% annual decline.
Key Statistics
Environmental Engineers: what the data shows
Common questions about environmental engineers careers, answered from BLS OEWS and O*NET in this repository.
What is a environmental engineers?
Environmental Engineers is tracked by the Bureau of Labor Statistics under SOC 17-2081.
U.S. employment in our OEWS extract is about 37,950 workers.
What does a environmental engineers do?
O*NET work activities rated highest for this occupation include Making Decisions and Solving Problems, Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards, Analyzing Data or Information, Getting Information, Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates, Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings, and related tasks. See Work Activities for the full list.
How much does a environmental engineers make?
BLS national median annual wage: $104,170 (May 2024 in our extract).
Mean annual wage in our occupational extract: $131,201 — higher than the median, which often reflects top earners in the distribution.
Wage percentiles below are from the California OEWS extract (not national unless noted).
| Wage percentile | Annual wage |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $83,735 |
| 25th percentile | $103,416 |
| Median (50th) | $131,129 |
| 75th percentile | $151,098 |
| 90th percentile | $177,168 |
What education do you need?
For Environmental Engineers, O*NET incumbent surveys in our extract most often report: Some college (29%), High School or Equivalent (27%), Bachelors Degree (22%).
These are education levels of current workers, not minimum legal requirements.
What skills do you need?
O*NET ratings for this occupation emphasize skills such as Writing, Critical Thinking, Reading Comprehension, Active Listening, Complex Problem Solving, Speaking, and knowledge areas including Engineering and Technology, Mathematics, Chemistry, English Language. See Education & Skills for detail.
Is environmental engineers in demand?
Historical employment trend in our series implies about 0.7% annual decline (compound rate in the extract).
Five-year projected employment change: -3.6%.
Ten-year projected employment change: -7.1%.
Current U.S. headcount: 37,950.
We report federal series only—compare wages, growth, and openings against your target market.
Where do environmental engineerss work?
Top industries by employment share in our OEWS industry extract:
| Industry | Employment | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Cross-industry | 37,950 | 18.1% |
| Cross-industry, Private Ownership only | 25,890 | 12.4% |
| Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 17,720 | 8.5% |
| Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 17,720 | 8.5% |
| Federal, State, and Local Government, including State and Local Government Schools and Hospitals and the U.S. Postal Service (OEWS Designation) | 12,060 | 5.8% |
| Federal, State, and Local Government, excluding State and Local Government Schools and Hospitals and the U.S. Postal Service (OEWS Designation) | 11,790 | 5.6% |
See Industry for charts.
What degrees lead to this career?
Common majors for Environmental Engineers in O*NET:
See Related degrees.
What careers are related?
Other occupations linked through shared degree pathways in our mapping:
| Occupation | U.S. employment | Median wage |
|---|---|---|
| Biological Scientists, All Other | 59,710 | $93,330 |
| Soil and Plant Scientists | 16,600 | $71,410 |
| Environmental Scientists and Specialists, Including Health | 84,930 | $80,060 |
| Conservation Scientists | 25,590 | $67,950 |
| Animal Scientists | 2,470 | $79,120 |
| Geography Teachers, Postsecondary | 3,290 | $86,730 |
| Environmental Science Teachers, Postsecondary | 7,130 | $87,710 |
Employment
Employment and salary information for the Environmental Engineers workforce.
Employment Over Time
37,950 Workforce in 2023
The Environmental Engineers workforce has been growing over time.
Historical employment trends for Environmental Engineers.
Yearly Wage Ranking
$131,201 Average Wage
In 2023, Environmental Engineers earned an average of $131,201.
Wage ranking compared to other occupations.
Wage Distribution
This chart shows the distribution of average salaries by income buckets for Environmental Engineers.
Salary distribution for Environmental Engineers.
Employment Growth Projections
-0.7% Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR)
17,963 Projected Employment (5 years)
Projected growth: -3.6%
17,311 Projected Employment (10 years)
Projected growth: -7.1%
This occupation is experiencing a decline. Consider related fields with better growth prospects.
Historical employment trends and future projections for Environmental Engineers.
Industry
Information on the industries that employ Environmental Engineers and on wages for those in the field.
Occupations by Industries
This graphic shows the share of Environmental Engineers employed by various industries.
Industry distribution for Environmental Engineers.
Wage Trends by Industry
4.3% Average Annual Wage Growth Rate
Historical wage growth trends by industry for Environmental Engineers.
Geographic Distribution
Employment and wage information by geographic location for Environmental Engineers.
State employment and wages are from the U.S. BLS OEWS May 2024 state extract. Metropolitan areas use the national MSA file when available.
Top States by Employment
Top States by Employment:
- CA: 4,770 employees, $127,730 avg wage
- NY: 2,560 employees, $105,520 avg wage
- TX: 1,710 employees, $118,660 avg wage
- CO: 1,660 employees, $102,890 avg wage
- PA: 1,420 employees, $100,250 avg wage
- FL: 1,410 employees, $94,840 avg wage
- MA: 1,410 employees, $118,880 avg wage
- IL: 1,410 employees, $123,650 avg wage
- WA: 1,330 employees, $120,750 avg wage
- VA: 1,240 employees, $114,560 avg wage
Top 10 states by employment for Environmental Engineers.
Top Metropolitan Areas
Top Metropolitan Areas:
- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ: 1,610 employees, $117,020 avg wage
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA: 1,270 employees, $124,970 avg wage
- Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA: 1,200 employees, $133,510 avg wage
- Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH: 1,170 employees, $116,950 avg wage
- Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN: 1,050 employees, $124,260 avg wage
- Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO: 1,050 employees, $108,490 avg wage
- Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV: 930 employees, $129,330 avg wage
- Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD: 760 employees, $108,780 avg wage
- Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD: 740 employees, $103,100 avg wage
- Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI: 660 employees, $109,250 avg wage
Top 10 metropolitan statistical areas by employment for Environmental Engineers.
Diversity
Demographic information on Environmental Engineers in the US.
Gender and Age
The workforce of Environmental Engineers in 2023 was 37,950 people, with 62.0% women and 38.0% men.
Gender and age distribution for Environmental Engineers.
Races
Racial and ethnic shares when present in the career dataset. If the chart area shows a notice instead, occupational race/ethnicity fields are not yet populated for this extract.
Race and ethnicity distribution for Environmental Engineers.
Education & Skills
Data on higher education choices and required skills for Environmental Engineers.
Majors
The most common majors achieved by Environmental Engineers in 2023 were Environmental Science, Engineering, Biology.
Common majors for Environmental Engineers.
Education Levels
The main educational levels achieved by Environmental Engineers workers.
Education level distribution for Environmental Engineers.
Skills
Environmental Engineers need many skills, but most especially Writing, Critical Thinking, Reading Comprehension, Active Listening, Complex Problem Solving.
Required skills for Environmental Engineers.
Knowledge & Abilities
Knowledge areas and abilities required for Environmental Engineers.
Knowledge Areas
The most important knowledge areas for Environmental Engineers include Engineering and Technology, Mathematics, Chemistry, English Language, Design.
Knowledge areas required for Environmental Engineers.
Abilities
Key abilities needed for Environmental Engineers include Written Comprehension, Written Expression, Inductive Reasoning, Deductive Reasoning, Oral Expression.
Required abilities for Environmental Engineers.
Work Activities
Common work activities performed by Environmental Engineers.
Daily Activities
Environmental Engineers spend their time on activities such as Making Decisions and Solving Problems, Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards, Analyzing Data or Information, Getting Information, Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates.
Most important work activities for Environmental Engineers.
About
Environmental Engineers
The average yearly wage for Environmental Engineers was $131,201 in 2023.
SOC Code
17-2081 - Environmental Engineers
Insights and Analysis
High earnings profile: Environmental Engineers reports an average salary of $131,201, placing it among stronger-paying occupations.
Labor market presence: The current workforce is approximately 37,950 workers, indicating sustained demand.
Forward outlook: Projected annual decline is -0.7%, which should inform long-term career planning.
Data Sources
This page uses data from the following sources:
- College Scorecard - U.S. Department of Education
- Institutional characteristics, costs, completion rates, and earnings data
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: collegescorecard.ed.gov
- Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS)
- Employment and wage data by occupation
- Latest data: May 2024
- Source: bls.gov/oes
- O*NET Online - U.S. Department of Labor
- Occupational skills, knowledge, abilities, and work activities
- Database version: 28.0 (August 2023)
- Source: onetcenter.org
- IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) - National Center for Education Statistics
- Institutional data, completions, enrollment, and financial aid
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: nces.ed.gov/ipeds
- Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS)
- Demographic and workforce data
- Latest data: 2023 ACS 5-Year Estimates
- Source: census.gov/acs
Data Processing: All data has been processed, cleaned, and aggregated for presentation. Where specific data points are unavailable, estimates are based on available data and clearly marked.
Last Updated: Data reflects the most recent available information as of January 2025.
Methodology
Data for this profile is sourced from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS), and O*NET Online.
All wage figures represent annual averages and may vary by location, industry, and experience level.