Civil engineering salaries are on the rise, according to ASCE’s 2025 Civil Engineering Salary Report.
From 2,415 member responses, the Society found that the median pretax income from all primary sources – salary, commissions, bonuses, and net self-employment – was $136,176, an increase of over $6,000 from the previous year. This growth is the continuation of an upward trend – civil engineering salary increases of 6%-7% annually – that began in 2022.
The typical respondents were men in their early to mid-40s with bachelor’s or advanced degrees. These respondents have around 20 years of professional experience and supervise a handful of other people.
Although civil engineering salaries are rising overall, demographic disparities persist. Women in the industry – who reported median annual earnings of $119,975 – earned more than $24,000 less than their male counterparts, whose median salary was $144,002. However, this gap closes when experience is considered. The report also found pay gaps across ethnicities, with Native American and Alaska Natives reporting the lowest median earnings at $111,000. White respondents reported the highest median earnings at $137,450.
Salaries also differ across sectors, with civil engineers working at nonprofit institutions (excluding education) reporting the highest median primary income – $180,000 – while median salaries for state government civil engineers sat at $120,276.
There were also pay gaps between disciplines, with aeronautical, aerospace, and astronautical engineers reporting the highest median salary of $195,977 per year and transportation engineers reporting the lowest: $126,000. Location and licenses and certifications were other notable factors.
But salaries aren’t the only form of compensation firms have to offer. Benefits, paid leave, and company culture offer ways for firms that might not be able to offer high salaries to recruit and retain civil engineering talent. All these perks contribute to job satisfaction, which is high among civil engineers. In fact, nearly 90% of respondents said they were satisfied or very satisfied with their jobs.
Civil Engineering Source recently spoke with Mike Riccitiello, P.E., PMP, president and part owner of Atlas Engineering; Jennifer Todd, M.ASCE, founder and president of LMS General Contractors and founder of A Greener Tomorrow, a nonprofit focused on advancing equity, workforce development, and representation in construction and skilled trades; and Matt Alboum, P.E., M.ASCE, regional human resources director/senior associate at Dewberry, about the factors shaping these findings and how compensation in the industry is evolving.
Civil Engineering Source: ASCE’s 2025 Salary Report found a continued sharp rise in salaries. What is contributing to this rise, and do you think it will continue?
Mike Riccitiello: There are multiple factors here. The first is employee retainage. Given the effects of inflation over the last few years, it’s been imperative as a small firm to provide salary increases commensurate with inflation. We base our billing rate increases on the Cost Performance Index increase year-over-year, and we try to meet or exceed that number in our annual salary increases. Not meeting the current inflation rate is essentially a salary decrease. With the price increases since the pandemic, keeping our current employees’ salaries at a comfortable level is important to retain top talent.
The second factor is the existing job market for civil/structural engineers. We recently had a structural engineering intern turn down an offer for full-time employment because we could not match a competing offer that was nearly $10k more (right out of school). The increase in salary for starting engineers is echoed for more experienced engineers, where offers have to be higher than originally budgeted in order to lure prospective candidates away from their current positions.
Jennifer Todd: The increase in civil engineering salaries reflects several converging factors: sustained workforce shortages, unprecedented levels of infrastructure investment, and growing competition across both the public and private sectors. Demand has accelerated faster than the profession’s ability to replenish talent, particularly at the mid- and senior-career levels, which places upward pressure on compensation.
I expect salary growth to continue, though likely at a more measured pace over time. Long-term sustainability will depend not only on compensation but on how effectively the profession addresses workforce development, retention, and career mobility. Salary is a critical component, but it must be part of a broader talent strategy.
Matt Alboum: Since before the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve seen a continued rise in salaries. Much of this is driven by a scarcity in the job market. We’ve had a strong demand for engineers coupled with increasing numbers of staff reaching retirement age. As these employees exit our industry, we just don’t have enough engineers to replace them. This further pressures firms to raise salaries in hopes of attracting talent to their companies.
Looking to the future, I do believe this trend will normalize. At some point, salary increases will reach a rate that’s no longer sustainable, and the growth curve will lessen by default. While there will always be a positive trend in salaries, I predict the rate will soften in the coming years, fueled both by firms’ inability to continue to match the growth and the concurrent increase in other perks. As salary growth softens, I also expect to see firms offering better benefits, stronger wellness programs, and other long-term compensation packages as another method of giving back to their employees when high salary growth tapers.
Source: How do salaries impact employee morale and retention? From an employee standpoint, what role do perks play?
Riccitiello: As mentioned above, salaries do play a part in retention. With demand remaining high for good engineers, raising salaries is critical for retaining your top performers. As a small firm, it has a role to play with morale, but I would argue it’s a minor one. We are not able to compete with the top-tier salaries at some of the larger firms, so it is critical that we maintain the sort of culture and morale that attracts engineers beyond just the bottom-line number. An inclusive culture that provides support and mentorship goes a long way when compared to the “revenue-is-king” model at multinational engineering firms.
Additionally, perks can be easier to provide at a small firm. We provide employer-covered premiums for individual health care plans, flexible in-office work schedules, and generous bonuses. In terms of “total compensation,” these are the ways that help us compete with top-tier salaries.
Todd: Competitive salaries are foundational to morale and retention – they signal that an organization values its people and understands market realities. In my experience managing teams, I’ve seen talented engineers leave not just for higher pay but because inadequate compensation made them feel undervalued, especially when they could see what their peers in other sectors were earning. However, salary alone won’t retain top talent. Today’s engineers, particularly younger professionals, are looking for meaningful work, professional development opportunities, work-life balance, and increasingly, the chance to make a tangible impact on sustainability and community resilience.
Perks play a crucial supporting role, but they can’t substitute for fair compensation. Flexible work arrangements, professional development funding, clear advancement pathways, and opportunities to work on purpose-driven projects – like the green infrastructure initiatives we pursue – are all critical. At LMS and A Greener Tomorrow, we found that combining competitive pay with meaningful project work and flexibility creates the strongest retention. The key is authenticity; perks feel hollow if the base compensation doesn’t reflect someone’s value. As I think about ASCE’s role in shaping the profession’s future, the opportunity lies in advocating not just for higher salaries, but for comprehensive employment practices that make civil engineering a career people choose and stay with for the long term.
Alboum: Firms benefit most by aligning salary to market rates. If employee pay falls in the “sweet spot” of fair market value, salaries tend to have minimal impact on morale. Said another way: When fairly paid, few people leave a firm because of salary. I believe the best perks a company can offer are challenging work, professional advancement with access to senior leadership, and strong company culture that aligns with their preferences.
Other perks may depend on the individual’s stage of life and what they value. It’s important for HR professionals to coach firm leadership on being aware of these preferences, especially with top talent. Paid leave always plays a big role in employee retention, boosting morale by allowing employees to enjoy work-life balance. Finally, it’s important to reward contributors when the company does well, creating a sense of pride around everyone’s success.
Source: Are civil engineering salaries keeping up with inflation and rising costs? How does this compare with other professions?
Riccitiello: With recent CPI increases over the last few years, unless salaries have increased on average 4% or 5%, they are not keeping up with rising costs. We have strived for bigger increases over the last few years to combat this. It’s difficult for me to comment on other professions.
Todd: This is a nuanced picture. While the recent salary increases are encouraging, many civil engineers, especially those in public sector roles and early-career professionals, are still struggling to keep pace with inflation and the rising cost of living, particularly in urban areas where infrastructure work is concentrated. The 2025 report shows progress, but when you look at real purchasing power, many engineers are just now recovering ground lost over the past few years. We’re also seeing geographic disparities: Engineers in high-cost markets may have higher nominal salaries but lower quality of life when housing and living expenses are factored in.
Compared to other professions, we’re making progress but still lag behind software engineering, data science, and even some other engineering disciplines. This pay gap has real consequences – we’re losing talented students to computer science, mechanical (engineering), and other fields before they even enter civil engineering programs. From a contractor and business perspective, I see how this affects project delivery and innovation. If we want to attract the brightest minds to solve our infrastructure and climate challenges, we need to continue closing this gap. This isn’t just about individual earnings; it’s about the profession’s ability to compete for the talent we need to build a sustainable, resilient future.
Alboum: Because we’ve seen such big cost-of-living jumps in the last few years, the civil engineering field is working to stay up to date with the market. As a whole, civil engineering salaries have been “playing catch-up” with the trend of sharp rises at unsustainable percent increases. Industry averages remained on par with market growth rate in some years and fell short in others, but I predict salaries will continue to trend in a positive direction.
In comparison to other professions, civil engineering is steady. While civil engineering still has its peaks and valleys, it boasts greater long-term stability than other industries, which tend to be more volatile. As with any field, there are good years and bad years, but salaries consistently trend upward, which creates more security for civil engineers. Even if salaries aren’t quite at an overall market benchmark at times, earnings balance out over the length of a career. Additionally, market dips in civil engineering typically fare better than other professions, and the field has greater potential. The skills are so transferable that civil engineers can often leverage their knowledge to manage projects in other industries.
Source: Does the rise in civil engineering salaries make the profession more appealing to younger people? Is there a generational difference of opinion when it comes to salary vs. other perks?
Riccitiello: Higher starting salaries have definitely helped appeal to younger engineers coming right out of college. That being said, salary numbers are not the first thing that interviewees are asking about. From my perspective, young engineers are more concerned with mentorship, support, flexible work schedules, and engaging work. I’ve heard multiple times from college seniors that they do not want to get stuck in a cubicle, that they want their profession to mean something, and they want to know they will be supported and guided in their first few years out of school. I think this is a generational shift, where the younger generations want a more inclusive environment that supports and nurtures them versus a 60-hour workweek with high salary compensation.
Todd: Competitive salaries are an important factor in attracting younger professionals, particularly given the rising cost of education and student debt. However, younger generations are evaluating careers more holistically. They are looking for purpose-driven work, flexibility, mentorship, and clear pathways for growth and leadership. There is a noticeable generational shift toward valuing autonomy, work-life integration, and alignment with organizational values. Salary matters, but it is rarely sufficient on its own. Organizations that recognize and adapt to these expectations will be better positioned to build the next generation of civil engineering leaders.
Alboum: Most engineers are driven by passion, their unique skill set, and a desire to solve problems. However, if we’re not providing a level of compensation where our engineers can live a comfortable life, salaries will become an issue. In my opinion, people will continue to enter the field if they are compensated fairly, and firms must continue to pay fair market value so salary never becomes a barrier to entry.
Generational differences are certainly a pertinent issue in our field. For much of current industry leadership, their early career was marked by lower health care costs and fewer two-income households. Their generation put greater emphasis on making enough salary to provide for their household. While fair pay is still important to today’s young professionals, the cost of living is much higher. More employees have two salaries covering household needs, so they are interested in how the firm’s benefits can also support them. Today’s engineers need to know that if they put multiple years into the industry, their total compensation will cover both retirement and additional expenses throughout their career, like child care and health care for their family.
Source: The salary report also found a continued gap between salaries for men and women and a disparity among races and sectors, with those employed by state governments having the lowest median pay. Do you see these trends continuing or changing in the future? What other trends do you expect?
Riccitiello: It’s easier at a small firm to “level the playing field” when it comes to gender or race disparity. Our starting salary is fairly set for college graduates regardless of their background. One thing I have noticed in our recent interactions with local universities is that women are more represented in graduating classes than we previously saw. Our last two summer interns were both women, and we have a third intern starting in the spring that is also a woman. I hope this trend continues, and the percentage of women engineers continues to rise across the industry.
Todd: These disparities are long-standing and structural, and while awareness has increased, meaningful change requires intentional and sustained action. Without focused efforts around transparency, advancement pathways, and equitable compensation practices, these gaps are likely to persist.
Looking ahead, I anticipate increased pressure on public-sector employers and professional organizations to address compensation challenges as workforce shortages intensify. I also expect greater emphasis on data-driven decision-making, equity benchmarks, and cross-sector collaboration to strengthen the profession’s overall talent pipeline.
Alboum: In the engineering industry, there has always been a disparity between different market sectors. If we consider public versus private, we tend to see higher profit margins with private clients. This affects how much a firm makes, which in turn impacts how much they can pay employees. In addition, if a particular market becomes an area of focus, there is typically a bigger disparity in relation to other markets as its projects become more lucrative, causing margins to increase as a result.
That being said, we do our best to pay people fairly, regardless of their background. Recently, the civil engineering industry has been increasingly focused on this initiative to pay fairly, and I am hopeful that we will continue to see strong efforts toward closing that gap. Civil engineering is driven by necessity with more funding available to key areas in need of support, so other trends will likely follow the needs of the country. Specifically, I anticipate an increase in projects in the energy sector. Big data consumes energy at a rate that is unsustainable, which will likely lead to enormous focus on energy infrastructure.
