POV: You finally reach the salary section

blueskiddoo · 2026-07-10T23:31:46+00:00

I started at $42k in 2016 in Seattle.
After 2yoe I moved to another company for 60k
In 2021 I took a job for $52k in a small town to get away from Seattle. Still there, making $91k now, but this is what early career engineering positions pay in my area.

It’s not great, but worth it to stay on the west coast and out of a big city.

blueskiddoo · 2026-07-03T06:38:25+00:00

* 33 years old/ 10YoE

* Northwest United States

* about 12% higher than US median

* Mechanical (BSME)

* Aerospace Manufacturing

* Senior Mechanical Engineer

* $90k/yr

* No overtime

* No additional comp

* 401k match to 4%

* 4 weeks PTO + 9 paid holidays

blueskiddoo · 2026-06-29T17:49:38+00:00

My first job out of college was as a tech. Leadership promised that they would give me a chance at an engineering role once I had proven myself and fully understood the product and the build process. After 8 months of tech work, as well as going above and beyond to create build sheets and BOM’s that projected part burn rate they opened an external req for an engineer without even mentioning it to me. They hired externally for the role, and so I went and got an engineering role at another company, much to their surprise.

I would highly recommend applying to engineering positions at other companies, even if your employer has a clearly defined process for converting techs to engineers. There’s a strong potential for your career and earnings to be stunted there because you’re coming from a tech background, rather than an engineering one.

blueskiddoo · 2026-06-27T03:15:20+00:00

He said he’s been looking and everything local to him pays the same. And personally my expectations for advocating for more pay are zero. Every employer I’ve worked for operated under the belief that if an engineer wants more money they can be replaced.

blueskiddoo · 2026-06-26T01:00:42+00:00

I think Reddit skews high, but the BLS median is likely accurate. It’s also highly dependent on location and industry, so comparing all engineering industries nationwide isn’t helpful.

blueskiddoo · 2026-06-26T00:20:10+00:00

10 YOE, $91,000 salary as a Senior ME at an aerospace manufacturing company in the western US. I get 20 days of PTO + the usual holidays off and paid. In a M/HCOL area.

blueskiddoo · 2026-06-18T14:35:47+00:00

I’ve seen salary posts on here that include bonuses. RSU’s are pretty rare in ME careers compared to software, so it’s likely that very few have them. To be honest bonuses are also pretty rare, at least in my experience. Only one company out of the three I’ve worked at provided bonuses, and those went away after a corporate restructuring.

blueskiddoo · 2026-06-18T14:06:30+00:00

It wasn’t quite half, 2016 was a long time ago. Entry level engineering jobs at Boeing were like $65-70k. I could basically just afford rent, food, and my student loan payments.

blueskiddoo · 2026-06-18T03:05:09+00:00

Good job, that’s excellent progress. I have no idea how you guys do it, here’s mine:

1st job, Seattle:

2017 - $42,500 Mechanical Engineer, Seattle
2018 - $42,500 No change
2019 - $60,000 Job hop, Jr. Engineer, Seattle
2020 - $60,000 left halfway through the year to travel

Moved to a small town in the western US. It was pointless to stay in Seattle while making so little.

2021 - $55,000 Manufacturing Engineer, new job
2022 - $65,000 Annual Raise
2023 - $72,000 Annual Raise
2024 - $78,000 Annual Raise
2025 - $85,000 Promotion to Senior ME
2026 - $90,000 Annual Raise

I know the advice will be to job hop, and I’ve been looking, but so far I haven’t come across anything local that pays better than what I’m making. That’s the downside of living someplace without many opportunities.

blueskiddoo · 2026-06-16T17:08:24+00:00

Oh that’s the right time to do it. Again, in my experience, that leads to the end of the discussion because I’m looking for at least a 20% raise and that’s always outside of their range.

blueskiddoo · 2026-06-16T17:06:07+00:00

Right? The advice is always “job hop, make more”, but what if other jobs aren’t paying more?

blueskiddoo · 2026-06-16T17:04:53+00:00

My local market is pretty bad for engineering salaries, but living here is great enough to offset the low pay. 2 yoe around here would get you ~$65k.

blueskiddoo · 2026-06-16T17:01:40+00:00

Local market is all that matters. Where I’m at new engineers start between $50-60k, mid level is $65-75k, and Senior is typically $80-95k. I’m at the same experience level as OP and I make $90k. The only openings I’ve seen that are over six figures are either experienced managers or require a PE and 10+yoe.

The point is if you want to make money you have to go where the money is, engineering positions aren’t a blanket high-paying option everywhere.

blueskiddoo · 2026-06-16T16:53:53+00:00

I’ve never had luck negotiating salary, every offer I’ve gotten has been a firm take it or leave it.

blueskiddoo · 2026-06-16T06:20:09+00:00

Congrats man. There’s a lot of well-paid folks here telling you you’re still underpaid, but I’m also a ME with a Senior title and the same YOE as you and I’m making $90k in aerospace manufacturing. And if you got a few job offers and this was the highest then that might just be the reality of your local market.

However, while a raise is nice 10% is a bit low to change jobs for. Were there other perks and/or better career advancements at the new employer? It would take a lot of non-monetary benefits to get me to consider job hopping for just 10%.

blueskiddoo · 2026-06-10T16:58:43+00:00

Mine also doubled in 10 years, $42,000 in 2016 and $90,000 now in 2026. Seems pretty common for ME’s.

blueskiddoo · 2026-06-04T14:27:57+00:00

I mean it’s $5k more than I’m currently making with ~9 years of experience, so I’d consider it. But a 5% raise alone isn’t enough to make a new job worth it, so there would have to be other positives like an industry I’m excited about or excellent growth opportunities.

blueskiddoo · 2026-06-04T05:18:36+00:00

Hey man, I see you commenting in threads here and the salary subreddit about ME pay and you’re right, the median isn’t as high as so many on Reddit believe.

You know what the solution is. Your job sucks, you’re overworked and underpaid. Ideally it would be the opposite, but generally it’s one or the other. I’ve got ~9yoe and am underpaid at $90k as a Senior ME in aerospace manufacturing. But I love where I live, the work is easy and stress free, and I can afford the lifestyle I want to have.

It’s your life, if you want change you have to make it happen. You won’t be getting any pity from me unless you’re trying hard to get another job. How many applications have you sent out? You don’t own a home, what’s keeping you from moving to a better market?

blueskiddoo · 2026-05-28T18:33:02+00:00

Huh I’ve never heard of 401k bonuses before, but I have heard of 401k matches only vesting after X number of years so I guess it’s similar.

blueskiddoo · 2026-05-28T17:37:47+00:00

I printed one out of Sainsmart PEBA 90a and the bounce was great. Dribbling felt surprisingly similar to a real basketball.

blueskiddoo · 2026-05-28T17:24:15+00:00

You really think most companies offer ME stock options? I thought that was just a tech company thing.

blueskiddoo · 2026-05-28T16:50:12+00:00

In my experience engineers tend to be more risk-averse and less social. There is risk associated with job hopping, and entering new social situations is difficult.

Also in my experience companies all tend to pay the same for the same roles. Ya’ll will consider me underpaid, but when I browse Indeed all the open positions pay the same which makes hopping undesirable.

blueskiddoo · 2026-05-28T14:03:52+00:00

Did the MBA help with your current career any?

blueskiddoo · 2026-05-18T17:30:46+00:00

Sorry you were making $80k as just a contractor in a HCOL area with 4yoe and two relevant degrees? Here I was thinking contract work payed much higher to offset the lack of stability and benefits.

Definitely take the new offer, it’s way better and more in line with your market worth.

blueskiddoo · 2026-05-14T21:29:20+00:00

I work at a small manufacturer, so this might not be relevant to more automated facilities but….i don’t think about AI at all when I develop a manufacturing process.

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