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Space hiring brief

November 2026 to date in space industry hiring

Figures for space industry hiring through 1 Nov 2026, drawn from the employer job boards we check daily. This month is not over yet, so the numbers run to date and refresh daily.

The market, 1 Nov 2026

Open roles on 1 Nov 2026
18,244, up 158 from 18,086 on 31 Oct 2026
Employers hiring
149, unchanged from 149 on 31 Oct 2026
Roles opened, 1 Nov 2026
Not counted yet: every employer is in its first week in our records, whose roles were already up when we began reading its board
Roles closed, 1 Nov 2026
55

Who added and who cut

Added the most open roles

Cut the most open roles

  • Boeing: -59 open roles, from 201 to 142 (none posted, none taken down)
  • Northrop Grumman: -30 open roles, from 829 to 799 (none posted, 5 taken down)
  • Outpost: -14 open roles, from 28 to 14 (none posted, none taken down)

Salaries by discipline as of 1 Nov 2026

  • Propulsion & Engines386 open roles; median $149k/yr, unchanged from $149k/yr a month before, typical $119k–$250k/yr (255 salaries, posted by 38 companies)
  • Mechanical, Structures & Thermal1,563 open roles; median $145k/yr, unchanged from $145k/yr a month before, typical $120k–$233k/yr (977 salaries, posted by 73 companies)
  • Avionics & Electrical1,327 open roles; median $160k/yr, unchanged from $160k/yr a month before, typical $132k–$259k/yr (891 salaries, posted by 72 companies)
  • RF, Communications & Payloads721 open roles; median $171k/yr, unchanged from $171k/yr a month before, typical $140k–$280k/yr (424 salaries, posted by 54 companies)
  • Flight Software & GNC937 open roles; median $169k/yr, unchanged from $169k/yr a month before, typical $140k–$270k/yr (607 salaries, posted by 70 companies)
  • Ground Software & IT2,261 open roles; median $162k/yr, unchanged from $162k/yr a month before, typical $135k–$268k/yr (1,329 salaries, posted by 76 companies)
  • Systems, Integration & Test2,340 open roles; median $150k/yr, unchanged from $150k/yr a month before, typical $123k–$252k/yr (1,439 salaries, posted by 86 companies)
  • Manufacturing & Technicians2,377 open roles; median $91.5k/yr, unchanged from $91.5k/yr a month before, typical $72.8k–$195k/yr (1,249 salaries, posted by 69 companies)
  • Launch & Mission Operations564 open roles; median $135k/yr, unchanged from $135k/yr a month before, typical $111k–$220k/yr (319 salaries, posted by 59 companies)
  • Quality & Mission Assurance1,001 open roles; median $123k/yr, unchanged from $123k/yr a month before, typical $90.3k–$215k/yr (540 salaries, posted by 60 companies)
  • Science, Imaging & Earth Data400 open roles; median $159k/yr, unchanged from $159k/yr a month before, typical $127k–$254k/yr (181 salaries, posted by 36 companies)
  • Supply Chain & Facilities1,347 open roles; median $114k/yr, unchanged from $114k/yr a month before, typical $81.4k–$201k/yr (685 salaries, posted by 67 companies)
  • Programs & Business2,942 open roles; median $148k/yr, unchanged from $148k/yr a month before, typical $116k–$255k/yr (1,630 salaries, posted by 91 companies)

The posting-level data under this brief (salary, location, open and close dates for each role) is available as files through the Hiring radar.

Method

Method: open roles and hiring companies are counted from that day's capture of every space employer board we track. A role counts as opened the day it first appears (not during a company's first week of coverage) and as closed on its last day online. Salaries come from the postings online on 1 Nov 2026: we give the median and a typical band (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), and only where at least 3 distinct salaries were posted.

Month-to-date figures as of 1 Nov 2026, 07:15 UTC. They refresh daily while the month runs, and lock when the edition goes out.

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