[SALARIES]
UTC 2026.06.24 18:42:11
// COMPENSATION INTELLIGENCE · SPACE · 12 ROLES · 4 LEVELS · 5 LOCATIONS
Space industry compensation, by role and level.
Median total compensation by role and level, derived from 1,247 self-reported and employer-disclosed offers across 218 space companies. Updated monthly. No averages, only medians, because high earners distort the mean.
// METHODOLOGYM-04
01Self-reported offers verified against L1+ filings
02Employer-disclosed bands when available
03Outliers removed (>3σ)
04Quarterly cadence
[ DATA POINTS ]
1,247
[ COMPANIES ]
218
[ UPDATED ]
2026.06.01
[ MEDIAN SR ]
$215K
[ ROLE ]
All Roles▾
[ LEVEL ]
All Levels▾
[ LOCATION ]
United States▾
[ REMOTE ]
All▾
[ STAGE ]
Series A → Public▾
[ SEARCH ]
[ SENIOR SPACE ENGINEER · UNITED STATES · ALL STAGES ]
$195,000USD · MEDIAN
P10$145KP25$172KP75$228KP90$265K
YoY 2024 → 2026↑ 8.0% YoY · TRENDING
§ 02MEDIAN BY LEVEL
// MEDIAN SENIOR BY ROLEC-01
[ MEDIAN SENIOR · USD · 2026.Q2 · MAX $235K · BARS PROPORTIONAL ]
§ 03COMPENSATION CURVE BY LEVEL
// COMP CURVE BY LEVELC-02
S SPACEX · R ROCKET LAB · A ANDURIL (APOLLO) · B BLUE ORIGIN · V VAST · S SIERRA SPACE · A ASTRANIS · S STOKE SPACE
§ 04LOCATION DELTA
// LOCATION DELTA INDEXC-03
[ INDEX 100 = SF BAY AREA SR MEDIAN $225K · NEGATIVE = COMP DISCOUNT vs SF ]
§ 05YoY TREND
// SENIOR MEDIAN · MONTHLYC-04
[ START 2024.07 $175K · END 2026.06 $215K ]+23% YoY
§ 06BY ROLE
| ROLE | MID | SENIOR | STAFF | PRINCIPAL | DATA POINTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Propulsion Engineer→ | $145K | $195K | $255K | $320K | 184 |
| GN&C Engineer→ | $155K | $210K | $270K | $340K | 142 |
| Flight Software Engineer→ | $160K | $215K | $275K | $345K | 198 |
| Avionics Engineer→ | $145K | $195K | $250K | $315K | 156 |
| Spacecraft Systems Engineer→ | $150K | $200K | $260K | $325K | 174 |
| Structural Engineer→ | $135K | $180K | $230K | $290K | 108 |
| Thermal Engineer→ | $130K | $175K | $220K | $280K | 86 |
| RF / Comms Engineer→ | $145K | $195K | $245K | $310K | 94 |
| Mission Operations Engineer→ | $130K | $170K | $215K | $270K | 76 |
| Integration & Test Engineer→ | $125K | $170K | $215K | $265K | 132 |
| Manufacturing Engineer→ | $120K | $160K | $205K | $255K | 168 |
| Research Scientist→ | $170K | $235K | $305K | $385K | 64 |
§ 07BY COMPANY
| COMPANY | SENIOR | STAFF | PRINCIPAL | STAGE |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SSpaceX | $215K | $285K | $355K | LATE / PRIVATE |
| RRocket Lab | $195K | $255K | $315K | PUBLIC (RKLB) |
| AAnduril (Apollo)[ CLEARANCE REQ'D ] | $210K | $270K | $340K | LATE / PRIVATE |
| BBlue Origin | $210K | $270K | $330K | PRIVATE (BEZOS) |
| VVast | $210K | $265K | $320K | SERIES A |
| SSierra Space[ CLEARANCE REQ'D ] | $190K | $240K | $295K | PRE-IPO |
| AAstranis | $200K | $255K | $315K | SERIES D |
| SStoke Space | $200K | $255K | $310K | SERIES B |
| LLockheed Space[ CLEARANCE REQ'D ] | $185K | $235K | $290K | PUBLIC (LMT) |
| NNorthrop Grumman[ CLEARANCE REQ'D ] | $185K | $235K | $290K | PUBLIC (NOC) |
§ 08BY LOCATION
| LOCATION | LIVE ROLES | MEDIAN SR | DELTA vs SF | REMOTE % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SF Bay Area[ BASELINE ] | 312 | $220K | +0% | 14% |
| LA / Hawthorne | 985 | $215K | -2% | 7% |
| Long Beach | 408 | $205K | -7% | 6% |
| Seattle / Kent | 286 | $208K | -5% | 11% |
| Denver / Boulder | 224 | $195K | -11% | 13% |
| Cape Canaveral | 198 | $170K | -23% | 4% |
| Huntsville | 246 | $165K | -25% | 6% |
| Houston | 167 | $175K | -20% | 9% |
// TREND · SPACE SENIOR COMPN=1,247σ=$8,200UPDATED 2026.06.01
Senior space compensation up 12% over 24 months.
+12%YoY · 202624M TRAJECTORY2024.072026.06
COHORTSenior ICL5+ · n=1,247
DRIVERHumanoid + Autonomy+18% · +14%
LAGGINGDefense · Public+4% · +6%
PEAK SENIORResearch Scientist$245K