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Materials and processes

Space Jobs for Materials Engineers

, SpaceJobs.Now lists 92 open roles for materials engineers and chemists on , including Inversion Space, Xona Space Systems and Apex; typical pay across them is $124k to $224k a year (median $130k), topped by $252k a year advertised at Stoke Space.

See 18 roles for materials engineers and chemists
$124k–$224k/yrtypical paylive median $130k/yrup to $252k/yr at Stoke Space

Measured from 33 distinct posted rates, across 9 employers, each as a year's pay (an hourly rate × 2,080 hours). 59 of the 92 listings open here post no pay at all.

Space companies hire materials engineers and chemists to choose, qualify and test the metals, composites and chemicals their vehicles are made of and run on. Each listing here is re-verified on the employer's own job board once an hour.

Live roles for materials engineers and chemists

Updated 29 Oct 2026, 18:01 UTC

Showing the 18 roles that ask for at least a bachelor's, every country. See every role

A few of our links carry a referral code. When one leads to a hire, the employer may pay us a fee; you pay nothing, and the salary on offer stays the same.

Metallurgy and metals

1 open

Alloys, heat treatment, joining and failure analysis for engines, tanks and structures.

Composites, polymers and coatings

4 open

Composite structures, polymers, adhesives, coatings and thermal protection materials.

Chemistry and propellants

3 open

Propellants, cleanliness and contamination control, and the chemistry of materials that fly.

Materials and processes engineers

10 open

Choose and qualify materials and the processes that make parts from them.

Before you apply

Space hardware is built, tested and flown in person, so many roles name a factory, a test site, a launch site or a control room, and each listing states its location. US roles that touch export-controlled technology (ITAR or EAR) can ask that you be a U.S. person, and some ask for a security clearance. A real employer never charges you to apply, never interviews you only by chat app and never asks you to buy equipment.

Pay by specialty

Every specialty gets its typical band from its own open roles, computed by the same method as the rest of the site (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). A specialty is listed once three or more distinct rates have been posted.

SpecialtyOpen rolesTypical payHighest rate
Metallurgy and metals13$119k–$192k/yr$220k/yr
Composites, polymers and coatings9$124k–$160k/yr$160k/yr
Chemistry and propellants14$90k–$181k/yr$192k/yr
Materials and processes engineers56$129k–$235k/yr$252k/yr

What the roles ask for

Drawn from the requirement lines of 21 out of 92 open roles for materials engineers and chemists, the same lines each role's pop-up quotes from its posting. Each role is counted once, at the lowest degree it will accept.

0

Ask for a PhD

1

Ask for a master's

18

Ask for at least a bachelor's

2

Name no degree

  • Name years of experience18
  • Name u.S. person status (ITAR or EAR)2
  • Ask for a professional license1
  • Set a residency or work-authorization condition1

Where a posting states years of experience, the median ask is 5 years.

Who hires materials engineers and chemists in the space industry

EmployerOpen rolesPay stated
Inversion Space logoInversion Space2$175k–$244k/yr
Xona Space Systems logoXona Space Systems1$173k–$197k/yr
Apex logoApex4$121k–$225k/yr
Stoke Space logoStoke Space1$129k–$252k/yr
Firefly Aerospace logoFirefly Aerospace1Not stated
Blue Origin logoBlue Origin27Not stated
Axiom Space logoAxiom Space3Not stated
The Exploration Company logoThe Exploration Company1Not stated
SpaceX logoSpaceX38$100k–$220k/yr
AST SpaceMobile logoAST SpaceMobile1Not stated
Voyager Technologies logoVoyager Technologies2$56.2k–$105k/yr
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory logoNASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory1$119k–$143k/yr
Relativity Space logoRelativity Space8$90k–$150k/yr
Vast logoVast2$86.1k–$123k/yr

Sorted by the expected value of an application (acceptance odds times posted pay). Employers with a referral agreement get a boost in this order, which has no effect on the salary they offer.

Where these roles are posted

Two groupings: roles posted for a single country, and roles with a language in the title. A place name leads to its own page, and a count lists the matching roles.

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Frequently asked questions

How much do materials engineers and chemists earn in the space industry?

Going by the 33 distinct salaries currently posted for roles for materials engineers and chemists (each put on a full-time year), the typical range is $124k–$224k/yr and the median is $130k/yr. The top posted figure is $252k/yr, at Stoke Space. 59 of the 92 open roles for materials engineers and chemists state no pay, so check each listing.

What degree do materials roles ask for?

Usually a degree in materials science, metallurgy, chemical engineering or chemistry, and for senior roles a master's or PhD. Each listing states the degree, the experience and the location it asks for. Of the 21 open roles for materials engineers and chemists whose requirements we read, 1 a master's, 18 at least a bachelor's and 2 name no degree.

What does a materials engineer or chemist do at a space company?

A materials engineer at a space company decides what a part is made of and how it is made, then proves it: testing alloys and composites, writing the process specifications for heat treating, bonding and coating, and finding the cause when a part fails.

How do space companies hire materials engineers and chemists?

Each employer runs its own hiring, and each listing says what it asks for: the degree or the hands-on experience, the location, and for export-controlled work in the US, often U.S. person status.

Are these jobs real?

Every role here is read from a space employer's own careers page or job board (Inversion Space, Xona Space Systems, Apex and Stoke Space among them), and each employer's page here covers who they are and how they hire. A real employer never charges you to apply, never asks you to buy equipment and never interviews you only by chat app.

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