Civil Engineers: salary, outlook & degrees
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.
Middle half $79,930–$129,680. 367,840 jobs.
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025
94% hold a bachelor's or higher. Those with one: $89,375.
Census ACS 2020-2024 microdata, workers with at least a high school diploma; EducationGuide calculation
About 22,700 openings a year, including replacements.
BLS Employment Projections 2025-35
Considerable preparation (usually a bachelor's).
BLS; O*NET 31.0 job zone
Degrees that lead to this career
What workers ages 25-34 in this job studied, among those with a bachelor's or higher. This is what people actually did, not a requirement.
| Field of bachelor's degree | Share | Degree pages |
|---|---|---|
| Civil Engineering | 41% | Civil Engineering |
| Mechanical Engineering | 11% | Mechanical Engineering |
| General Engineering | 8% | Engineering |
| Electrical Engineering | 4% | Electrical Engineering |
| Construction Services | 2% | — |
| Chemical Engineering | 2% | Chemical Engineering |
| Environmental Engineering | 2% | Environmental Engineering |
| Miscellaneous Engineering | 1% | — |
| Business Management And Administration | 1% | Business Administration |
| Aerospace Engineering | 1% | Aerospace, Aeronautical, and Astronautical / Space Engineering |
Census ACS 2020-2024 microdata (ages 25-34, employed, bachelor's or higher; top 10 fields); EducationGuide calculation.
Education workers say the job requires
O*NET 31.0 survey of workers (“required level of education”); small samples, so treat shares as approximate.
Pay by state and metro
| State | Median wage |
|---|---|
| California | $122,500 |
| Alaska | $114,730 |
| Washington | $110,000 |
| Massachusetts | $106,730 |
| Louisiana | $105,380 |
| Oregon | $105,250 |
| New Jersey | $104,660 |
| Nevada | $104,310 |
| New Mexico | $103,900 |
| District of Columbia | $103,880 |
| New York | $103,760 |
| Connecticut | $103,150 |
| Nebraska | $103,150 |
| South Carolina | $101,600 |
| Minnesota | $101,480 |
| Colorado | $101,420 |
| Kentucky | $100,930 |
| North Carolina | $100,730 |
| Maryland | $100,680 |
| Delaware | $100,220 |
| Mississippi | $100,170 |
| Illinois | $99,760 |
| Rhode Island | $99,300 |
| Alabama | $99,010 |
| Oklahoma | $98,760 |
| New Hampshire | $98,710 |
| South Dakota | $98,700 |
| Florida | $98,570 |
| Indiana | $98,270 |
| North Dakota | $98,190 |
| Idaho | $98,030 |
| Pennsylvania | $97,850 |
| Maine | $97,820 |
| Virginia | $97,120 |
| Kansas | $96,880 |
| Texas | $96,860 |
| Utah | $96,830 |
| Iowa | $96,430 |
| Ohio | $96,220 |
| Tennessee | $95,910 |
| Vermont | $95,600 |
| Wisconsin | $94,600 |
| Hawaii | $94,280 |
| Montana | $93,070 |
| Missouri | $92,750 |
| Michigan | $92,100 |
| Wyoming | $90,590 |
| Arizona | $89,660 |
| West Virginia | $86,930 |
| Arkansas | $85,020 |
| Georgia | $84,240 |
| GU | $67,410 |
| PR | $61,060 |
Florida metro areas
- Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach$83,750
- Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater$100,570
- Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford$100,740
- Jacksonville$102,280
- Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville$100,640
- Cape Coral-Fort Myers$84,990
- Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin$101,820
- Lakeland-Winter Haven$81,840
Virginia metro areas
- Washington-Arlington-Alexandria$101,780
- Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk$94,680
- Richmond$91,300
- Roanoke$90,720
- Kingsport-Bristol$87,510
- Lynchburg$96,100
- Winchester$100,920
- Staunton-Stuarts Draft$97,530
California metro areas
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim$108,640
- San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont$130,160
- San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad$108,900
- Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom$130,150
- Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario$115,120
- San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara$130,280
- Fresno$119,720
- Bakersfield-Delano$99,300
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025: median annual wage, all workers in the job. Metro areas: the largest by employment.
What the work takes
Top skills
- Active Listening
- Reading Comprehension
- Speaking
- Mathematics
- Critical Thinking
Knowledge used
- Design
- Engineering and Technology
- Building and Construction
- Mathematics
- English Language
Work styles
- Dependability
- Attention to Detail
- Cautiousness
- Integrity
- Intellectual Curiosity
People in this job tend to have Realistic (hands-on), Investigative (analytical), Conventional (organizing) interests.
O*NET 31.0 (U.S. Department of Labor, CC BY 4.0): skills and knowledge by importance; work styles; interest high points.
Civil Engineers: questions
How much do civil Engineers make?
Civil Engineers earn a U.S. median $100,840 a year; the middle half earn $79,930 to $129,680 (BLS, May 2025). Workers ages 25-34 in this job earn a median $88,300 (Census ACS 2020-2024).
Is civil Engineers a growing field?
BLS projects growth of 6.4% from 2025 to 2035, with about 22,700 openings a year, including replacements.
What degree do you need to be a civil Engineer?
BLS lists the typical entry education as bachelor's degree. In O*NET's survey, 100% of workers say a bachelor's or higher is required. Among workers ages 25-34 with a bachelor's, the most common field of degree is civil Engineering (41%).
How much do civil Engineers make in Florida?
The median in Florida is $98,570 a year (BLS, May 2025), compared with $100,840 nationally.
Sources: Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2025; Employment Projections 2025-35); O*NET 31.0 (U.S. Department of Labor, CC BY 4.0); U.S. Census Bureau ACS microdata. SOC 17-2051. Method
Data: JSON · Markdown · all careers
Cite this: “Civil Engineers: salary, outlook and degrees,” EducationGuide.com, https://educationguide.com/careers/civil-engineers.