Test engineer salary
Space employers offer test engineers a median of $144k a year, and the middle half of their postings sits at $125k–$169k. That comes from 357 jobs at 60 employers whose own postings name a salary.
- 25th percentile$125,000/hr
- Median (50th)$144,000/hr
- 75th percentile$169,050/hr
- Distinct posted rates357
- Jobs stating an hourly rate357
- Employers60
The median is the middle of the 357 distinct rates they post, and the middle half, $125,000–$169,050 an hour, runs from their 25th percentile to their 75th: half of the rates fall between them. Each range counts at its midpoint, and a job posted many times at one rate counts once, so no employer's posting volume sets the figure.
- 25th percentile$125,000/hr
- Median (50th)$144,000/hr
- 75th percentile$169,050/hr
- Distinct posted rates357
- Jobs stating an hourly rate357
- Employers60
The median is the middle of the 357 distinct rates they post, and the middle half, $125,000–$169,050 an hour, runs from their 25th percentile to their 75th: half of the rates fall between them. Each range counts at its midpoint, and a job posted many times at one rate counts once, so no employer's posting volume sets the figure.
- Median posted pay, a year$144,000
- Hours in a full-time year2,080
- The same per hour, full time$69.23/hr
Every figure here is a year's pay: a job that posts pay counts at 2,080 hours (40 a week for 52 weeks). Rounded to the nearest $100.
- Amazon Leo41 jobs
- SpaceX41 jobs
- Relativity Space19 jobs
- Northrop Grumman18 jobs
- Lockheed Martin18 jobs
- Vast14 jobs
- Impulse Space14 jobs
- K2 Space13 jobs
- Rocket Lab13 jobs
- Muon Space10 jobs
Jobs stating pay, the employers with the most first: 201 at the 10 shown and 156 at 50 other employers, 357 in all.
The jobs themselves: Test engineer jobs
What test engineers are paid
How many postings fall in each salary step, a range counted at its midpoint; the darker bars are the middle half of what employers offer.
Median $144k a year. Middle half $125k to $169k. Point at a bar for its count. Tap a bar for its count.
Posted on open jobs
Middle half of 357 distinct posted rates (a job posted many times at one rate counted once), median $144k. 74% of the 482 open test engineer jobs state pay.
Test alerts
Test: new openings every week
Every week we gather the newest Test openings from the space companies we follow, straight from their careers sites. Free, stop anytime.
Only job openings in your inbox. Leave anytime with one click.
Test engineer pay by employer
What each employer posts for test engineers, the employers with the most jobs stating pay first. An employer with at least 5 such jobs has a page of its own with every range it posts.
Median of each employer's own jobs (a range at its midpoint), and the lowest and highest rate it posts. Jobs stating pay link to the employer's open jobs.
Test engineer pay by state
States where at least 8 open jobs from 3 employers state pay, highest median first. Each opens the state's own page, with its towns and employers.
| State | Median posted | Middle half | BLS median | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maryland | $155k | $135k–$211k | n/a | 9 |
| California | $155k | $135k–$177k | n/a | 179 |
| Arizona | $155k | $123k–$165k | n/a | 21 |
| Washington | $152k | $133k–$162k | n/a | 57 |
| Colorado | $133k | $115k–$158k | n/a | 58 |
| Virginia | $120k | $109k–$151k | n/a | 10 |
Median and middle half of employers' rates in the state. BLS medians are for the occupation's main SOC code in the state (latest release).
Best-paid open test engineer jobs
The current postings with the highest stated salaries, no more than two per employer.
$269,175–$376,844/yr
$178,500–$331,500/yr
$240,000–$265,000/yr
$184,100–$276,100/yr- $184,100–$276,100/yr
- $213,000–$237,000/yr
$176,598–$269,442/yr
$185,200–$250,000/yr
$183,065–$251,465/yr
$200,000–$230,000/yr
$165,000–$265,000/yr
$176,800–$239,200/yr
Every open job: Test engineer jobs
Questions about test engineer pay in space
What do space companies pay test engineers?
Postings that state a salary put the median at $144k a year and the middle half at $125k–$169k, across 357 postings from 60 employers (one employer's repeated posting counted once). Full time, the median is about $69.23/hr an hour.
Where do test engineers earn the most?
Ranked by the median salary in each state's postings: Maryland ($155k), California ($155k) and Arizona ($155k) come first, Virginia ($120k), Colorado ($133k) and Washington ($152k) last. A state's own salary page splits its figure by town and employer.
Which space companies pay test engineers the most?
Of the employers that state a salary on at least 5 postings: Muon Space ($196k), Blue Origin ($167k) and Inversion Space ($165k). The employer table covers the 40 with the most postings that state pay.
Where do these figures come from?
From the salaries in space companies' own postings, read every night: 357 of 482 current test engineer postings (74%) state one. Nothing is estimated for a posting without pay, "up to" ceilings are set aside, and an hourly rate counts as 2,080 hours.
Salaries in systems & test
Sources and method
- SpaceJobs.Now: salaries stated in space companies' own postings, read every night, published 7 Nov 2026
Cite this page
SpaceJobs.Now. (2026). Test engineer salary. Data as of 7 Nov 2026. https://spacejobs.now/salaries/test-engineers