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Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics

Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2020

17-2051 Civil Engineers

Perform engineering duties in planning, designing, and overseeing construction and maintenance of building structures and facilities, such as roads, railroads, airports, bridges, harbors, channels, dams, irrigation projects, pipelines, power plants, and water and sewage systems. Includes architectural, structural, traffic, and geotechnical engineers. Excludes "Hydrologists" (19-2043).


National estimates for Civil Engineers
Industry profile for Civil Engineers
Geographic profile for Civil Engineers

National estimates for Civil Engineers:

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Civil Engineers:

Employment (1) Employment
RSE (3)
Mean hourly
wage
Mean annual
wage (2)
Wage RSE (3)
300,850 1.0 % $ 45.88 $ 95,440 0.4 %

Percentile wage estimates for Civil Engineers:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median)
75% 90%
Hourly Wage $ 27.00 $ 33.22 $ 42.58 $ 55.34 $ 69.62
Annual Wage (2) $ 56,160 $ 69,100 $ 88,570 $ 115,110 $ 144,810


Industry profile for Civil Engineers:

Industries with the highest published employment and wages for Civil Engineers are provided. For a list of all industries with employment in Civil Engineers, see the Create Customized Tables function.

Industries with the highest levels of employment in Civil Engineers:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services 162,110 10.79 $ 46.76 $ 97,260
State Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OEWS Designation) 35,900 1.63 $ 42.74 $ 88,890
Local Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OEWS Designation) 30,160 0.56 $ 47.53 $ 98,870
Nonresidential Building Construction 18,620 2.31 $ 39.76 $ 82,710
Federal Executive Branch (OEWS Designation) 9,600 0.46 $ 47.29 $ 98,370

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Civil Engineers:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services 162,110 10.79 $ 46.76 $ 97,260
Nonresidential Building Construction 18,620 2.31 $ 39.76 $ 82,710
Other Heavy and Civil Engineering Construction 2,180 1.81 $ 43.36 $ 90,190
State Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OEWS Designation) 35,900 1.63 $ 42.74 $ 88,890
Pipeline Transportation of Natural Gas 400 1.29 $ 46.07 $ 95,820

Top paying industries for Civil Engineers:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Waste Treatment and Disposal 220 0.22 $ 61.08 $ 127,050
Oil and Gas Extraction 620 0.50 $ 59.94 $ 124,670
Social Advocacy Organizations 150 0.07 $ 58.34 $ 121,360
Computer Systems Design and Related Services 390 0.02 $ 55.23 $ 114,890
Management of Companies and Enterprises 3,610 0.15 $ 54.89 $ 114,170


Geographic profile for Civil Engineers:

States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for Civil Engineers are provided. For a list of all areas with employment in Civil Engineers, see the Create Customized Tables function.





States with the highest employment level in Civil Engineers:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
California 45,900 2.79 1.29 $ 54.42 $ 113,200
Texas 28,990 2.40 1.11 $ 45.32 $ 94,270
Florida 16,250 1.93 0.89 $ 42.83 $ 89,090
New York 14,670 1.69 0.78 $ 50.58 $ 105,210
Colorado 11,190 4.34 2.01 $ 47.36 $ 98,520




States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Civil Engineers:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Alaska 1,580 5.32 2.46 $ 48.16 $ 100,160
Colorado 11,190 4.34 2.01 $ 47.36 $ 98,520
Hawaii 2,230 3.88 1.80 $ 42.86 $ 89,140
Washington 11,150 3.49 1.61 $ 45.21 $ 94,030
Wyoming 900 3.45 1.59 $ 44.00 $ 91,520




Top paying states for Civil Engineers:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
California 45,900 2.79 1.29 $ 54.42 $ 113,200
New York 14,670 1.69 0.78 $ 50.58 $ 105,210
New Jersey 7,050 1.86 0.86 $ 48.41 $ 100,690
Alaska 1,580 5.32 2.46 $ 48.16 $ 100,160
Oklahoma 2,020 1.29 0.60 $ 47.57 $ 98,940





Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Civil Engineers:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA 14,140 1.60 0.74 $ 51.94 $ 108,040
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA 13,820 2.37 1.10 $ 53.86 $ 112,030
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX 10,780 3.63 1.68 $ 47.99 $ 99,830
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA 9,830 4.22 1.95 $ 57.62 $ 119,860
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV 9,540 3.16 1.46 $ 48.32 $ 100,510
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI 7,860 1.80 0.83 $ 44.44 $ 92,430
Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO 7,850 5.39 2.49 $ 47.91 $ 99,640
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA 7,120 3.64 1.68 $ 46.22 $ 96,130
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX 6,260 1.74 0.81 $ 50.12 $ 104,250
Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH 6,100 2.35 1.08 $ 46.93 $ 97,610




Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Civil Engineers:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Fairbanks, AK 330 10.82 5.00 $ 46.01 $ 95,700
Carson City, NV 310 10.61 4.90 $ 35.69 $ 74,230
Yuba City, CA 420 9.45 4.37 $ 51.75 $ 107,640
Walla Walla, WA 210 8.40 3.88 $ 47.92 $ 99,670
Bismarck, ND 480 7.00 3.24 $ 42.47 $ 88,330
Olympia-Tumwater, WA 740 6.83 3.16 $ 43.80 $ 91,100
Raleigh, NC 4,180 6.73 3.11 $ 43.63 $ 90,750
Trenton, NJ 1,520 6.61 3.05 $ 44.73 $ 93,040
Anchorage, AK 940 5.69 2.63 $ 50.35 $ 104,720
Kennewick-Richland, WA 630 5.51 2.55 $ 44.84 $ 93,260




Top paying metropolitan areas for Civil Engineers:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
New Orleans-Metairie, LA 1,060 2.06 0.95 $ 60.53 $ 125,910
Sacramento--Roseville--Arden-Arcade, CA 4,800 4.95 2.29 $ 58.64 $ 121,970
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA 9,830 4.22 1.95 $ 57.62 $ 119,860
Redding, CA 280 4.37 2.02 $ 57.33 $ 119,250
Naples-Immokalee-Marco Island, FL 150 1.05 0.49 $ 56.79 $ 118,110
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA 2,490 2.26 1.05 $ 55.93 $ 116,330
Fresno, CA 870 2.33 1.08 $ 55.31 $ 115,040
Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA 2,990 2.00 0.93 $ 54.97 $ 114,330
Lincoln, NE 530 3.06 1.41 $ 54.77 $ 113,930
Stockton-Lodi, CA 400 1.60 0.74 $ 54.43 $ 113,210

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest employment in Civil Engineers:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Southwest Montana nonmetropolitan area 630 4.65 2.15 $ 35.41 $ 73,650
Northwest Colorado nonmetropolitan area 480 4.19 1.94 $ 52.10 $ 108,370
Southwest Mississippi nonmetropolitan area 440 6.39 2.95 $ 51.29 $ 106,680
North Texas Region of Texas nonmetropolitan area 380 1.43 0.66 $ 34.98 $ 72,750
Central Kentucky nonmetropolitan area 370 2.20 1.02 $ 38.85 $ 80,810

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Civil Engineers:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Southwest Mississippi nonmetropolitan area 440 6.39 2.95 $ 51.29 $ 106,680
West South Dakota nonmetropolitan area 280 4.80 2.22 $ 35.15 $ 73,120
Southwest Montana nonmetropolitan area 630 4.65 2.15 $ 35.41 $ 73,650
Northwest Colorado nonmetropolitan area 480 4.19 1.94 $ 52.10 $ 108,370
Northern Vermont nonmetropolitan area 250 3.89 1.80 $ 37.26 $ 77,500

Top paying nonmetropolitan areas for Civil Engineers:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Central Louisiana nonmetropolitan area 30 0.46 0.21 $ 53.37 $ 111,010
Northwest Colorado nonmetropolitan area 480 4.19 1.94 $ 52.10 $ 108,370
Nevada nonmetropolitan area 270 2.93 1.35 $ 52.03 $ 108,220
Southwest Mississippi nonmetropolitan area 440 6.39 2.95 $ 51.29 $ 106,680
North Coast Region of California nonmetropolitan area 290 2.97 1.37 $ 50.21 $ 104,430


About May 2020 National, State, Metropolitan, and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

These estimates are calculated with data collected from employers in all industry sectors, all metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas, and all states and the District of Columbia. The top employment and wage figures are provided above. The complete list is available in the downloadable XLS files.

The percentile wage estimate is the value of a wage below which a certain percent of workers fall. The median wage is the 50th percentile wage estimate—50 percent of workers earn less than the median and 50 percent of workers earn more than the median. More about percentile wages.


(1) Estimates for detailed occupations do not sum to the totals because the totals include occupations not shown separately. Estimates do not include self-employed workers.

(2) Annual wages have been calculated by multiplying the hourly mean wage by a "year-round, full-time" hours figure of 2,080 hours; for those occupations where there is not an hourly wage published, the annual wage has been directly calculated from the reported survey data.

(3) The relative standard error (RSE) is a measure of the reliability of a survey statistic. The smaller the relative standard error, the more precise the estimate.

(9) The location quotient is the ratio of the area concentration of occupational employment to the national average concentration. A location quotient greater than one indicates the occupation has a higher share of employment than average, and a location quotient less than one indicates the occupation is less prevalent in the area than average.


Other OEWS estimates and related information:

May 2020 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2020 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2020 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2020 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2020 Occupation Profiles

Technical Notes

 

Last Modified Date: March 31, 2021