The ASCE 2024 Civil Engineering Salary Report offers a mostly sunny picture of the industry’s compensation trends, even if a few clouds are visible on the horizon.
The report found that the median pre-tax income from all sources for civil engineers was $135,000 in 2023 – up $7,000 from 2022. Meanwhile, median pre-tax income from primary sources (meaning salary, commissions, bonuses, and net self-employment) was $130,000, up from $124,000 last year.
Starting salaries for entry-level civil engineers increased to a median of $76,000. Civil engineering employers continue to provide a wide range of non-salary benefits, with the vast majority of respondents reporting employer-sponsored health insurance, retirement plans buoyed by employer contributions, ASCE membership dues covered, paid attendance at professional development conferences, and flexible working hours.
“Civil engineers are in high demand right now as projects to improve America’s infrastructure move from funding to design and construction,” said ASCE 2024 President Marsia Geldert-Murphey, P.E., F.ASCE. “Based on what I learned in my undergraduate macroeconomics class, those rising salaries mean our profession is strong, and demand is growing.”
The question of how much or how quickly those salaries are rising is where the picture grows a bit cloudier. The report showed that base salaries rose by 5% over last year, which sounds good until you realize it’s a smaller jump than the 7% increase from 2022 to 2023 and the 6% increase from 2021 to 2022.
Elsewhere in the report, job satisfaction metrics ticked down slightly: 34.2% of respondents said they were “very satisfied” with their jobs, down from 37.7% last year; 63.8% of respondents reported satisfaction with their compensation, down from 66.3% last year.
“We need to provide the compensation necessary to both attract more people to our profession and retain the seasoned expertise we have now,” Geldert-Murphey said.
Other notable numbers
The ASCE Salary Report is built each year from a survey of members about their salaries and job benefits. This year’s report is derived from survey responses by 2,975 Society members.
The report found that licensure remains a key differentiator in civil engineering compensation. This year’s numbers showed that those civil engineers with their Professional Engineer (P.E.) license earn about $140,000 a year, nearly $42,000 more than those without a license or certification. Various certifications also appear to correlate directly to salary. Respondents with Professional Management Professional certifications had $165,000 median salaries; registered geotechnical engineers boasted $178,000 average salaries.
Broadly speaking, larger firms equated to larger salaries, according to the report data. Those working for employers with more than 10,000 employees made a median income of approximately $141,000. Those working at firms of 1-10 employees had a median income of roughly $112,000.
Civil engineers working in manufacturing enjoyed a median pre-tax income of $166,000, followed closely by those in the aerospace field at $161,000 and those working in facilities engineering at $155,000.
The utilities sector proved to be the most well-compensated sector for civil engineers with a median income of nearly $140,000. State government was the lowest ranked among sectors, though the median income was still $121,000.
“We have reached another watershed moment in our history where we need civil engineering professionals to help us reach a better path,” Geldert-Murphey said. “So it’s important that these professionals providing essential services are fairly compensated. That not only supports the individuals who dedicate their time and expertise to serve others but also fosters a vibrant and sustainable economic ecosystem.”
Learn more about how to access the 2024 ASCE Civil Engineering Salary Report, including unlimited access to searchable survey data, as well as the ASCE Salary Calculator, which allows users to assess how their salary compares with others. ASCE members get five free uses of the calculator and searchable data.
