Engines and thrusters
Space Jobs for Propulsion Engineers
, SpaceJobs.Now lists 309 open roles for propulsion engineers on 22 space industry employers, including Inversion Space, Varda Space Industries and K2 Space; typical pay across them is $110k to $200k a year (median $130k), topped by $328k a year advertised at Stoke Space.
Senior Spacecraft Propulsion Components Engineer II (opens the job details)
Rocket Lab · Propulsion · Long Beach, CA, United States· todayDetails
$132,000/yrSpacecraft Propulsion Systems Engineer I (opens the job details)
Rocket Lab · Propulsion · Long Beach, CA, United States· todayDetails
$82,400/yrSpacecraft Propulsion Components Engineer I (opens the job details)
Rocket Lab · Propulsion · Long Beach, CA, United States· todayDetails
$82,400/yr
Measured from 160 distinct posted rates, across 14 employers, each as a year's pay (an hourly rate × 2,080 hours). 149 of the 309 listings open here post no pay at all.
Launch companies and spacecraft makers hire propulsion engineers to design, build and test rocket engines, thrusters and the fluid systems that feed them. Each listing here is re-verified on the employer's own job board once an hour.
Live roles for propulsion engineers
Updated 29 Oct 2026, 16:01 UTCShowing the 9 roles that name a security clearance, 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.
Engines, turbomachinery and combustion
4 openDesign and develop liquid rocket engines and their parts: turbopumps, combustion devices, injectors and nozzles, from analysis to hardware.
Propulsion Engineer I (New Grad) (opens the job details)
True Anomaly · Propulsion · Denver, CO, United States· 1w agoDetails
$90,000/yr
Senior Design Engineer, Solid Rocket Motor Ignition Systems (opens the job details)
Ursa Major · Propulsion · Berthoud, Colorado, United States· 3w agoDetails
$120,720–$150,900/yrSenior Propulsion Engineer, Design (Combustion Devices) (opens the job details)
True Anomaly · Propulsion · Denver, CO or Long Beach +2 more· 3w agoDetails
Staff Propulsion Analyst, Engine Performance (opens the job details)
True Anomaly · Propulsion · Denver, CO or Long Beach +2 more· 3w agoDetails
In-space and electric propulsion
5 openThrusters and propulsion systems for satellites and spacecraft, chemical and electric, that keep a vehicle on orbit and move it between orbits.
Senior Spacecraft Propulsion Components Engineer II (opens the job details)
Rocket Lab · Propulsion · Long Beach, CA, United States· todayDetails
$132,000/yrSpacecraft Propulsion Systems Engineer I (opens the job details)
Rocket Lab · Propulsion · Long Beach, CA, United States· todayDetails
$82,400/yrSpacecraft Propulsion Components Engineer I (opens the job details)
Rocket Lab · Propulsion · Long Beach, CA, United States· todayDetails
$82,400/yrSenior Spacecraft Propulsion Systems Engineer II - Secret Clearance (opens the job details)
Rocket Lab · Propulsion · Long Beach, CA, United States· todayDetails
$132,000/yrSenior Spacecraft Propulsion Systems Engineer I - Secret Clearance (opens the job details)
Rocket Lab · Propulsion · Long Beach, CA, United States· todayDetails
$115,200/yr
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.
| Specialty | Open roles | Typical pay | Highest rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Propulsion and engine test | 41 | $109k–$160k/yr | $215k/yr |
| Engines, turbomachinery and combustion | 234 | $113k–$195k/yr | $328k/yr |
| In-space and electric propulsion | 24 | $110k–$222k/yr | $226k/yr |
| Fluid and feed systems | 5 | Too few rates | Not stated |
| Propulsion engineers | 5 | $58.2k–$130k/yr | $132k/yr |
What the roles ask for
Drawn from the requirement lines of 69 out of 309 open roles for propulsion engineers, the same lines each role's pop-up quotes from its posting. Each role is counted once, at the lowest degree it will accept.
- Name years of experience55
- Name u.S. person status (ITAR or EAR)9
- Name a security clearance9
- Set a residency or work-authorization condition4
- Require programming (Python, C++, MATLAB and similar)2
Where a posting states years of experience, the median ask is 4 years.
Who hires propulsion engineers in the space industry
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.
Roles posted for one country
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Frequently asked questions
How much do propulsion engineers earn in the space industry?
Across the 160 distinct hourly rates posted for roles for propulsion engineers right now, typical pay runs from $110000 to $200000 an hour, with a median of $130000. The highest posted rate is $327810 an hour, at Stoke Space. 149 of the 309 open roles for propulsion engineers state no pay, so check each listing.
What do propulsion roles ask for?
Usually an engineering degree (mechanical and aerospace are the most common) and hands-on hardware experience in the role's area, from test operations to fluid systems. A license is rarely asked. Each listing states the degree, the years of experience and the location it asks for. Of the 69 open roles for propulsion engineers whose requirements we read, 3 a master's, 63 at least a bachelor's and 3 name no degree.
What does a propulsion engineer do at a space company?
A propulsion engineer designs, analyzes and tests the systems that make thrust: engines and their turbomachinery, combustion devices, thrusters, and the valves, lines and tanks that carry propellants. Much of the work is on hardware: building test articles, firing them on a stand and changing the design from what the data shows.
How do space companies hire propulsion engineers?
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, Varda Space Industries, K2 Space and Apex 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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Propulsion & Engines
Every open propulsion role across space employers, with live pay.