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Pay from SpaceX's own postings

SpaceX Mechanical Engineer Salary

SpaceX's 118 open roles for mechanical engineers post a median $130k/yr, typically $120k–$180k/yr, from 60 distinct pay figures, read from its own job board every hour.

See the roles and their payEvery SpaceX salary →Space jobs for mechanical engineers →How to apply to SpaceX →

Against other pay

Every SpaceX role
median $138k/yr
SpaceX's mechanical engineers: 6% below it
Mechanical engineers at every space company
median $145k/yr
SpaceX: 10% below it
All US mechanical engineers, May 2025
median $104k/yr
SpaceX's postings: 25% above it
Highest posted top
$190k/yr
Sr. Mechanical Engineer (HVAC)

Typical pay is the 25th percentile of what roles pay (the middle of each posted range, as a year's pay: an hourly rate counts at 2,080 hours, 40 a week for 52 weeks) to the 90th-percentile posted top. Pay is compared as a year's pay: an hourly rate counts at 2,080 hours (40 a week for 52 weeks), a weekly one at 52 weeks, a monthly one at 12 months. A posting that names only a ceiling ("up to $X") is left out of the figures.

SpaceX mechanical engineer pay by level

Level the title namesOpen rolesMedianTypical pay
Entry, associate or level I5Too few figures
Senior24$155k/yr$155k–$190k/yr
Lead2Too few figures
Principal or fellow2Too few figures
Title names no level85$120k/yr$110k–$165k/yr

A level is read from the title, the first that applies from an internship to a director (the reading of our research on career levels and pay). A figure needs three distinct posted rates.

Where SpaceX hires mechanical engineers

  • Hawthorne, CA37 roles, median $130k/yr
  • Bastrop, TX29 roles
  • Starbase, TX20 roles
  • Redmond, WA18 roles, median $126k/yr
  • McGregor, TX5 roles
  • Cape Canaveral, FL4 roles
  • Woodinville, WA4 roles, median $126k/yr
  • Vandenberg, CA1 role

Open SpaceX roles for mechanical engineers, highest pay first

Updated 31 Oct 2026, 01:02 UTC

All 118 SpaceX roles for mechanical engineers, with their pay

More SpaceX salaries by profession

Mechanical Engineer salaries at other space companies

Every open SpaceX role

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Questions about SpaceX pay for mechanical engineers

How much does SpaceX pay mechanical engineers?

SpaceX's open roles for mechanical engineers post a median $130k/yr, typically $120k–$180k/yr, from 60 distinct pay figures in 60 of its 118 postings. Typical pay here is the 25th percentile of what roles pay (the middle of each posted range, as a year's pay: an hourly rate counts at 2,080 hours, 40 a week for 52 weeks) to the 90th-percentile posted top. The highest posted top is $190k/yr, for Sr. Mechanical Engineer (HVAC).

What does SpaceX pay mechanical engineers at each level?

By the level each title names: senior: a median $155k/yr (24 roles). A level is read from the title ("Engineer II", "Senior", "Lead"); titles that name none are left out of this answer.

Does SpaceX pay mechanical engineers more than other space companies?

SpaceX's median, $130k/yr, is 10% below the $145k/yr median of the 1,111 open roles for mechanical engineers at every space company we read (SpaceX's among them).

Do mechanical engineers earn more than other roles at SpaceX?

SpaceX's roles for mechanical engineers post a median $130k/yr, 6% below the $138k/yr median of all its open roles that state pay (SpaceX salaries compares every kind of work).

How does SpaceX's pay for mechanical engineers compare with the national wage?

The Bureau of Labor Statistics puts the national median wage of mechanical engineers at $104k/yr (May 2025); SpaceX's posted median, $130k/yr, is 25% above it. A posting states what a new hire is offered, the national figure what everyone in the occupation earns, so the two measure different people. Source: BLS wage estimates by state (OEWS, May 2025), read through O*NET OnLine, CC BY 4.0.

Where does SpaceX hire mechanical engineers?

Its open roles for mechanical engineers are in Hawthorne, CA (37), Bastrop, TX (29), Starbase, TX (20), Redmond, WA (18) and McGregor, TX (5). By place, they post a median of $130k/yr in Hawthorne, CA, $126k/yr in Redmond, WA and $126k/yr in Woodinville, WA.