Where the work is
Space Jobs by Metro Area
Space companies build in the towns around a city more than in the city itself: Hawthorne, El Segundo and Long Beach for Los Angeles, Redmond and Kent for Seattle, Westminster and Centennial for Denver. Each area below is a metropolitan statistical area as the Census Bureau draws it, with every open role that names a town in it, read from the employers' own job boards every hour. The states have pages of their own. The last column is the public record for reference: the aerospace engineers working in the area, in any industry, and their median wage (BLS, May 2025).
| Metro area | Open roles | Employers | Where in it | Aerospace engineers (BLS) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Los Angeles areaLos Angeles and Orange counties | 3,499 | 43 | Long Beach, Hawthorne, El Segundo, Los Angeles, and 20 more | 5,200median $163k/yr |
| The Seattle areaKing, Pierce and Snohomish counties | 1,618 | 15 | Redmond, Bellevue, Kent, Woodinville, and 7 more | 5,480median $164k/yr |
| The Denver areaAdams, Arapahoe, Broomfield, Clear Creek, Denver, Douglas, Elbert, Gilpin, Jefferson and Park counties | 1,070 | 33 | Denver, Westminster, Littleton, Centennial, and 8 more | 2,010median $156k/yr |
| The Space CoastBrevard County | 754 | 21 | Cape Canaveral, Palm Bay, Kennedy Space Center, Melbourne, and 6 more | 1,360median $132k/yr |
| The Washington, DC areaAlexandria city, Arlington County, Charles County, Clarke County, Culpeper County, District of Columbia, Fairfax city, Fairfax County, Falls Church city, Fauquier County, Frederick County, Fredericksburg city, Jefferson County, Loudoun County, Manassas city, Manassas Park city, Montgomery County, Prince George's County, Prince William County, Rappahannock County, Spotsylvania County, Stafford County and Warren County | 751 | 57 | Chantilly, Washington, Herndon, Dulles, and 23 more | 2,420median $166k/yr |
| The Austin areaBastrop, Caldwell, Hays, Travis and Williamson counties | 650 | 5 | Bastrop, Austin, Cedar Park, Hutto | 390median $123k/yr |
| The San Francisco areaAlameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Francisco and San Mateo counties | 401 | 12 | San Francisco, Burlingame, Redwood City, Alameda, and 3 more | 510median $191k/yr |
| The San Jose areaSan Benito and Santa Clara counties | 401 | 13 | Palo Alto, San Jose, Sunnyvale, Saratoga, and 4 more | 930median $182k/yr |
| The Houston areaAustin, Brazoria, Chambers, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Liberty, Montgomery, San Jacinto and Waller counties | 355 | 15 | Houston, Webster, Johnson Space Center | 1,890median $134k/yr |
| The Brownsville areaCameron County | 310 | 1 | Starbase | – |
| The Huntsville areaLimestone and Madison counties | 279 | 17 | Huntsville, Redstone Arsenal | 4,880median $131k/yr |
| The Boulder areaBoulder County | 277 | 16 | Boulder, Louisville, Longmont, Lafayette | 800median $167k/yr |
| The Colorado Springs areaEl Paso and Teller counties | 211 | 22 | Colorado Springs, Schriever AFB, Peterson AFB, Schriever SFB | 990median $152k/yr |
| The Phoenix areaMaricopa and Pinal counties | 188 | 8 | Tempe, Chandler, Phoenix, Gilbert, and 2 more | 1,360median $130k/yr |
| The San Diego areaSan Diego County | 173 | 7 | Carlsbad, San Diego, Oceanside | 800median $135k/yr |
| The Midland, TX areaMartin and Midland counties | 129 | 1 | Midland | – |
| The Fort Collins areaLarimer County | 97 | 1 | Berthoud | 150median $133k/yr |
| The Santa Maria areaSanta Barbara County | 90 | 14 | Vandenberg, Goleta, Santa Maria, Lompoc | 100median $131k/yr |
| The Baltimore areaAnne Arundel County, Baltimore city, Baltimore County, Carroll County, Harford County, Howard County and Queen Anne's County | 86 | 7 | Middle River, Linthicum, Glen Burnie, Baltimore, and 5 more | 1,220median $167k/yr |
| The Dallas areaCollin, Dallas, Denton, Ellis, Hunt, Johnson, Kaufman, Parker, Rockwall, Tarrant and Wise counties | 75 | 5 | Arlington, Dallas, Garland, Greenville | 3,430median $135k/yr |
| The Albuquerque areaBernalillo, Sandoval, Torrance and Valencia counties | 74 | 9 | Albuquerque, Kirtland AFB | 290median $133k/yr |
| The Gulfport areaHancock, Harrison, Jackson and Stone counties | 60 | 6 | Stennis Space Center | 40median $126k/yr |
| The Decatur, AL areaLawrence and Morgan counties | 50 | 2 | Decatur, Courtland | 100median $138k/yr |
| The Waco areaBosque, Falls and McLennan counties | 50 | 1 | McGregor | – |
| The Philadelphia areaBucks, Burlington, Camden, Cecil, Chester, Delaware, Gloucester, Montgomery, New Castle, Philadelphia and Salem counties | 49 | 4 | King of Prussia, Elkton, Montgomeryville, Pottstown | – |
| The Oxnard areaVentura County | 44 | 3 | Camarillo, Simi Valley, Moorpark, Oxnard, and 1 more | 110median $129k/yr |
| The Tucson areaPima County | 44 | 2 | Tucson | 1,720median $107k/yr |
| The Pueblo areaPueblo County | 41 | 3 | Pueblo | – |
| The Jacksonville, FL areaBaker, Clay, Duval, Nassau and St. Johns counties | 40 | 1 | Jacksonville | 360median $119k/yr |
| The Fort Wayne areaAllen, Wells and Whitley counties | 37 | 1 | Fort Wayne | – |
| The Memphis areaBenton, Crittenden, DeSoto, Fayette, Marshall, Shelby, Tate, Tipton and Tunica counties | 36 | 1 | Memphis | 130median $130k/yr |
| The Sacramento areaEl Dorado, Placer, Sacramento and Yolo counties | 35 | 1 | Folsom | 200median $132k/yr |
| The Bakersfield areaKern County | 34 | 7 | Mojave, Edwards AFB | 700median $129k/yr |
| The Reno areaLyon, Storey and Washoe counties | 29 | 1 | Reno | 50median $89.5k/yr |
| The Pittsburgh areaAllegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Butler, Fayette, Lawrence, Washington and Westmoreland counties | 26 | 4 | Pittsburgh, Smithfield, Freeport | 90median $128k/yr |
| The Boston areaEssex, Middlesex, Norfolk, Plymouth, Rockingham, Strafford and Suffolk counties | 25 | 7 | Marlborough, Wilmington, Boston, Waltham, and 2 more | 960median $149k/yr |
| The Dayton areaGreene, Miami and Montgomery counties | 19 | 7 | Beavercreek Township, Beavercreek, Dayton, Wright-Patterson AFB, and 1 more | 1,400median $129k/yr |
| The Rochester, NY areaLivingston, Monroe, Ontario, Orleans and Wayne counties | 19 | 2 | Canandaigua, Rochester | 30median $128k/yr |
| The Miami areaBroward, Miami-Dade and Palm Beach counties | 18 | 3 | Homestead, Miami, Sunrise, Palm Beach | 460median $131k/yr |
| The Orlando areaLake, Orange, Osceola and Seminole counties | 17 | 3 | Orlando, Apopka | 240median $124k/yr |
| The Ogden areaDavis, Morgan and Weber counties | 15 | 2 | Roy, Clearfield, Ogden | 550median $134k/yr |
| The Salt Lake City areaSalt Lake and Tooele counties | 13 | 2 | Magna, Salt Lake City, West Valley City | 210median $141k/yr |
| The Madison areaColumbia, Dane, Green and Iowa counties | 12 | 1 | Madison, Middleton | – |
| The Kansas City areaBates, Caldwell, Cass, Clay, Clinton, Jackson, Johnson, Lafayette, Leavenworth, Linn, Miami, Platte, Ray and Wyandotte counties | 11 | 1 | Grandview | 300median $106k/yr |
| The St. Louis areaBond County, Calhoun County, Clinton County, Franklin County, Jefferson County, Jersey County, Lincoln County, Macoupin County, Madison County, Monroe County, St. Charles County, St. Clair County, St. Louis city, St. Louis County and Warren County | 11 | 1 | Berkeley | 440 |
| The Buffalo areaErie and Niagara counties | 9 | 1 | Buffalo | 30median $101k/yr |
| The Chicago areaCook, DeKalb, DuPage, Grundy, Jasper, Kane, Kendall, Lake, Lake, McHenry, Newton, Porter and Will counties | 8 | 3 | Rolling Meadows, Chicago | 120median $135k/yr |
| The Bremerton areaKitsap County | 6 | 1 | Silverdale | – |
| The Bridgeport areaGreater Bridgeport Planning Region and Western Connecticut Planning Region | 6 | 1 | Danbury | – |
| The Burlington, VT areaChittenden, Franklin and Grand Isle counties | 6 | 1 | Burlington | – |
| The College Station areaBrazos, Burleson and Robertson counties | 6 | 1 | College Station | – |
| The Tampa areaHernando, Hillsborough, Pasco and Pinellas counties | 6 | 3 | Tampa, Largo | 140median $127k/yr |
| The Tulsa areaCreek, Okmulgee, Osage, Pawnee, Rogers, Tulsa and Wagoner counties | 5 | 1 | Tulsa | 190median $107k/yr |
| The Cleveland, OH areaAshtabula, Cuyahoga, Geauga, Lake, Lorain and Medina counties | 4 | 3 | Cleveland, Independence | 460median $143k/yr |
| The Grand Forks areaGrand Forks and Polk counties | 4 | 2 | Grand Forks AFB, Grand Forks | – |
| The Las Cruces areaDoña Ana County | 4 | 2 | Las Cruces | 70median $137k/yr |
| The New York, NY areaBergen, Bronx, Essex, Hudson, Hunterdon, Kings, Middlesex, Monmouth, Morris, Nassau, New York, Ocean, Passaic, Putnam, Queens, Richmond, Rockland, Somerset, Suffolk, Sussex, Union and Westchester counties | 4 | 3 | Florham Park, New York, Uniondale | 770median $127k/yr |
| The Oklahoma City areaCanadian, Cleveland, Grady, Lincoln, Logan, McClain and Oklahoma counties | 4 | 1 | Oklahoma City | 740median $130k/yr |
| The San Antonio areaAtascosa, Bandera, Bexar, Comal, Guadalupe, Kendall, Medina and Wilson counties | 4 | 3 | Randolph AFB, Lackland AFB, San Antonio | 300median $128k/yr |
| The Urban Honolulu areaHonolulu County | 4 | 4 | Honolulu, Haleiwa, Waialua | – |
| The Durham areaChatham, Durham, Orange and Person counties | 3 | 1 | Durham | – |
| The Worcester areaWorcester County | 3 | 1 | Devens | – |
| The Blacksburg areaFloyd County, Giles County, Montgomery County, Pulaski County and Radford city | 2 | 1 | Blacksburg | – |
| The Greeley areaWeld County | 2 | 1 | Windsor | 50median $141k/yr |
| The Sioux Falls areaLincoln, McCook, Minnehaha, Rock and Turner counties | 2 | 1 | Sioux Falls | – |
| The Stockton areaSan Joaquin County | 2 | 1 | Tracy | – |
| The Virginia Beach areaCamden County, Chesapeake city, Currituck County, Gates County, Gloucester County, Hampton city, Isle of Wight County, James City County, Mathews County, Newport News city, Norfolk city, Poquoson city, Portsmouth city, Suffolk city, Surry County, Virginia Beach city, Williamsburg city and York County | 2 | 2 | Hampton | 800median $139k/yr |
| The Youngstown areaMahoning and Trumbull counties | 2 | 1 | Youngstown | – |
| The Ann Arbor areaWashtenaw County | 1 | 1 | Ypsilanti | 100median $102k/yr |
| The Bozeman areaGallatin County | 1 | 1 | Bozeman | – |
| The Charlottesville areaAlbemarle County, Charlottesville city, Fluvanna County, Greene County and Nelson County | 1 | 1 | Charlottesville | 30median $123k/yr |
| The Cincinnati areaBoone, Bracken, Brown, Butler, Campbell, Clermont, Dearborn, Franklin, Gallatin, Grant, Hamilton, Kenton, Ohio, Pendleton and Warren counties | 1 | 1 | Cincinnati | – |
| The Crestview areaOkaloosa and Walton counties | 1 | 1 | Eglin AFB | 190median $128k/yr |
| The Kahului areaKalawao and Maui counties | 1 | 1 | Kihei | – |
| The Lawrence areaDouglas County | 1 | 1 | Lawrence | – |
| The Logan areaCache and Franklin counties | 1 | 1 | North Logan | – |
| The Manchester areaHillsborough County | 1 | 1 | Hudson | – |
| The Merced areaMerced County | 1 | 1 | Atwater | – |
| The New Orleans areaJefferson Parish, Orleans Parish, Plaquemines Parish, St. Bernard Parish, St. Charles Parish, St. James Parish and St. John the Baptist Parish | 1 | 1 | New Orleans | 40median $149k/yr |
| The North Port areaManatee and Sarasota counties | 1 | 1 | Sarasota | – |
| The Omaha areaCass, Douglas, Harrison, Mills, Pottawattamie, Sarpy, Saunders and Washington counties | 1 | 1 | Offutt AFB | – |
| The Pensacola areaEscambia and Santa Rosa counties | 1 | 1 | Pensacola | – |
| The Portland, OR areaClackamas, Clark, Columbia, Multnomah, Skamania, Washington and Yamhill counties | 1 | 1 | Wilsonville | 110median $139k/yr |
| The Raleigh areaFranklin, Johnston and Wake counties | 1 | 1 | Morrisville | – |
| The Riverside areaRiverside and San Bernardino counties | 1 | 1 | Fort Irwin | 120median $130k/yr |
| The Rockford areaBoone and Winnebago counties | 1 | 1 | Rockford | – |