how much does electrical engineers make
how much does electrical engineers make Electrical engineers play a crucial role in society, designing, developing, testing and supervising the manufacture of electrical equipment. The industries they are employed in vary widely, including manufacturing, telecommunications, research and development, the federal government and, of course, engineering services. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ (BLS) Occupational Outlook Handbook, employment of electrical engineers is projected to increase, however, at a slower rate than average, with approximately 8,000 electrical engineer jobs being added from 2018 to 2028, an increase of 2%.
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Using occupational data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, we’ve analyzed and compiled a round-up of the average electrical engineer salary by state in the U.S. Read on for a full breakdown of where electrical engineers make the most money, and where they’re making the least.
10 States Where Electrical Engineers Earn the Most Money
The national average annual wage of an electrical engineer is $101,600, according to the BLS, just around double the average annual salary for all occupations, $51,960. Geography has a major impact on electrical engineer salaries. The state that has the lowest average electrical engineer salary is about $20,000 less than the national average. The best-paying state has an average electrical engineer salary that’s only $8,000 higher than the U.S. average.
Below is a list of the top-10 highest-paying states for electrical engineers.
- Alaska average electrical engineer salary: $119,130
- New Jersey average electrical engineer salary: $118,120
- Maryland average electrical engineer salary: $116,560
- Vermont average electrical engineer salary: $115,460
- California average electrical engineer salary: $114,170
- Massachusetts average electrical engineer salary: $113,920
- Washington average electrical engineer salary: $113,540
- New Mexico average electrical engineer salary: $113,050
- Rhode Island average electrical engineer salary: $110,360
- Virginia average electrical engineer salary: $109,690
Supply and demand tend to influence occupations and their wages. With electrical engineers, this only partially holds. For example, there are only 350 electrical engineers in Alaska, which is where they earn the most on average. However, Massachusetts and Virginia have 7,520 and 6,880 electrical engineers, respectively, and yet they’re among the 10 highest-paying states. New Mexico is an interesting entry on the top-10 list since its household incomes tend to be much lower than the national median
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10 States Where Electrical Engineers Earn the Least Money
The bottom-10 states where electrical engineers make the least money are a geographically largely composed of states in the South and Midwest. Hawaii is a notable outlier, being in the U.S. West. Here’s a look at the 10 states where electrical engineers make the least money.
- Arkansas average electrical engineer salary: $82,200
- South Dakota average electrical engineer salary: $84,710
- Ohio average electrical engineer salary: $85,320
- Wisconsin average electrical engineer salary: $86,020
- Indiana average electrical engineer salary: $86,100
- Iowa average electrical engineer salary: $87,700
- Georgia average electrical engineer salary: $87,850
- West Virginia average electrical engineer salary: $88,640
- North Dakota average electrical engineer salary: $89,680
- Hawaii average electrical engineer salary: $89,720
There is only one state in the U.S. in which electrical engineer salaries have outright declined from 2013 to 2018: Louisiana. Yet, Louisiana managed to avoid being among the 10 worst states. In Georgia, the 7th worst state, electrical engineer salaries have only risen by 2.4% over the last five years, which is the third-worst growth rate in the country. Interestingly, in California, the wage growth was even lower, with electrical engineer salaries only rising by 1.8%.
How Much Do Electrical Engineers Make in Each State
Below you’ll find the average annual wage for electrical engineers in all 50 states from 2013 to 2018. The state with the most dramatic growth in electrical engineer salaries is Vermont: The average annual wage increased by 36.3%, from $84,690 in 2013 to $115,460 in 2018. In Louisiana, salaries fell from a recent high of $102,300 in 2014, down to $94,090 currently.
Average Electrical Engineer Salary in 50 States
Average annual wage for electrical engineers in every U.S. state, 2013-2018
Rank State 2018 Average Salary 2017 Average Salary 2016 Average Salary 2015 Average Salary 2014 Average Salary 2013 Average Salary 5-Year Change
22 Alabama $97,310 $97,840 $96,960 $95,770 $93,180 $91,040 6.9%
1 Alaska $119,130 $115,950 $122,050 $115,810 $111,540 $107,250 11.1%
13 Arizona $106,260 $105,330 $104,680 $100,340 $100,220 $94,940 11.9%
50 Arkansas $82,200 $84,860 $82,430 $85,400 $77,360 $74,820 9.9%
5 California $114,170 $113,140 $115,290 $115,960 $114,730 $112,100 1.8%
16 Colorado $100,550 $95,340 $99,310 $97,370 $97,340 $90,270 11.4%
18 Connecticut $98,310 $94,120 $93,090 $90,760 $90,410 $88,550 11.0%
11 Delaware $108,900 $98,640 $100,900 $97,210 $94,680 $92,510 17.7%
25 Florida $94,250 $90,380 $89,240 $86,160 $87,350 $84,270 11.8%
44 Georgia $87,850 $91,950 $89,240 $89,150 $87,080 $85,760 2.4%
41 Hawaii $89,720 $87,210 $87,020 $85,020 $86,010 $83,860 7.0%
30 Idaho $93,080 $92,290 $92,330 $87,830 $91,490 $91,430 1.8%
24 Illinois $94,700 $91,870 $91,080 $93,770 $93,260 $88,370 7.2%
46 Indiana $86,100 $81,890 $79,120 $78,160 $79,890 $80,520 6.9%
45 Iowa $87,700 $87,740 $87,620 $82,880 $77,130 $74,370 17.9%
34 Kansas $90,880 $88,190 $92,010 $90,040 $90,740 $83,850 8.4%
40 Kentucky $89,780 $89,790 $87,640 $84,400 $83,560 $82,570 8.7%
27 Louisiana $94,090 $91,600 $92,240 $101,630 $102,300 $99,390 -5.3%
39 Maine $89,860 $88,580 $83,110 $82,350 $79,920 $80,290 11.9%
3 Maryland $116,560 $109,380 $106,090 $99,340 $100,750 $98,720 18.1%
6 Massachusetts $113,920 $114,200 $108,990 $107,820 $103,660 $102,280 11.4%
35 Michigan $90,700 $88,250 $87,610 $87,640 $85,880 $86,210 5.2%
19 Minnesota $98,120 $94,390 $93,370 $92,450 $91,390 $89,250 9.9%
28 Mississippi $93,740 $95,320 $95,690 $92,780 $88,070 $81,970 14.4%
20 Missouri $97,750 $94,530 $95,280 $94,830 $93,930 $88,510 10.4%
33 Montana $92,120 $82,420 $76,620 $74,530 $74,140 $74,030 24.4%
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36 Nebraska $90,180 $88,370 $87,760 $82,710 $82,540 $79,680 13.2%
32 Nevada $92,540 $97,270 $93,450 $90,250 $87,410 $84,270 9.8%
12 New Hampshire $107,790 $105,960 $101,470 $98,150 $96,800 $97,570 10.5%
2 New Jersey $118,120 $107,370 $106,110 $102,480 $101,040 $95,690 23.4%
8 New Mexico $113,050 $101,780 $97,140 $93,840 $101,230 $97,170 16.3%
15 New York $103,740 $101,740 $98,660 $98,430 $96,680 $95,020 9.2%
21 North Carolina $97,490 $103,260 $104,170 $100,070 $89,730 $87,480 11.4%
42 North Dakota $89,680 $84,300 $88,280 $88,320 $87,200 $81,250 10.4%
48 Ohio $85,320 $84,280 $82,570 $79,220 $79,160 $77,770 9.7%
17 Oklahoma $98,950 $92,770 $91,460 $87,540 $82,610 $78,020 26.8%
37 Oregon $90,140 $94,710 $92,380 $91,220 $86,970 $83,320 8.2%
23 Pennsylvania $94,870 $94,000 $93,780 $91,280 $89,980 $88,890 6.7%
9 Rhode Island $110,360 $105,880 $106,900 $101,140 $95,280 $95,230 15.9%
38 South Carolina $90,140 $88,190 $88,180 $83,760 $82,450 $80,340 12.2%
49 South Dakota $84,710 $79,580 $78,140 $77,710 $74,490 $73,280 15.6%
29 Tennessee $93,180 $90,650 $87,610 $86,940 $87,670 $87,260 6.8%
14 Texas $106,260 $104,670 $104,070 $103,560 $101,130 $98,030 8.4%
26 Utah $94,200 $87,940 $88,140 $91,600 $88,850 $90,930 3.6%
4 Vermont $115,460 $101,950 $92,750 $95,110 $89,330 $84,690 36.3%
10 Virginia $109,690 $106,090 $100,000 $100,080 $95,810 $94,760 15.8%
7 Washington $113,540 $110,360 $106,550 $104,690 $102,750 $98,270 15.5%
43 West Virginia $88,640 $91,430 $90,600 $87,840 $83,610 $82,850 7.0%
47 Wisconsin $86,020 $84,320 $84,240 $83,080 $79,330 $76,470 12.5%
31 Wyoming $92,960 $89,690 $85,720