Pay by state · 52 states
Architectural and Civil Drafter Salary by State (2026)
Architectural and Civil Drafters earn the most in District of Columbia at $97,880 a year and the least in Puerto Rico at $44,720 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). The national median is $66,150. All 52 states and territories with reported data are ranked below, with a cost-of-living adjusted column.
- Highest median
- $97,880District of Columbia
- National median
- $66,150BLS OEWS, May 2025
- Lowest median
- $44,720Puerto Rico
- States reporting
- 52of 54 OEWS areas
All states
Architectural and Civil Drafter salary in every state
Sort by any column. Employment is the number of architectural and civil drafters OEWS estimates in that state; blank cells are estimates BLS suppressed because the sample was too small.
| # | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | DCDistrict of Columbia | $97,880 | $78,960 | $118,490 | 370 | $89,062 |
| 2 | MAMassachusetts | $76,990 | $64,270 | $82,460 | 2,660 | $72,799 |
| 3 | CACalifornia | $76,520 | $62,220 | $96,300 | 11,400 | $69,111 |
| 4 | COColorado | $76,370 | $61,570 | $92,310 | 3,570 | $74,108 |
| 5 | CTConnecticut | $76,290 | $64,250 | $79,720 | 810 | $73,632 |
| 6 | NYNew York | $76,260 | $60,890 | $93,840 | 7,380 | $70,663 |
| 7 | MDMaryland | $75,180 | $61,870 | $86,550 | 910 | $71,628 |
| 8 | GAGeorgia | $74,940 | $56,930 | $79,790 | 3,970 | $77,825 |
| 9 | OROregon | $74,000 | $62,870 | $80,510 | 1,490 | $71,594 |
| 10 | DEDelaware | $73,040 | $58,530 | $80,710 | 290 | $73,181 |
| 11 | WAWashington | $73,000 | $61,040 | $83,920 | 2,530 | $68,216 |
| 12 | RIRhode Island | $71,700 | $61,640 | $83,960 | 240 | $70,102 |
| 13 | MNMinnesota | $70,680 | $61,450 | $80,780 | 1,930 | $71,668 |
| 14 | TNTennessee | $69,220 | $57,140 | $80,480 | 1,310 | $75,346 |
| 15 | NVNevada | $67,000 | $57,320 | $82,100 | 1,100 | $67,014 |
| 16 | MEMaine | $66,200 | $57,840 | $78,470 | 440 | $68,212 |
| 17 | MTMontana | $65,750 | $58,390 | $77,510 | 600 | $69,470 |
| 18 | WVWest Virginia | $65,640 | $48,290 | $84,680 | 330 | $73,343 |
| 19 | NHNew Hampshire | $65,300 | $58,580 | $76,200 | 400 | $62,689 |
| 20 | PAPennsylvania | $64,800 | $54,560 | $79,570 | 5,370 | $66,412 |
| 21 | AZArizona | $64,750 | $58,410 | $79,960 | 2,120 | $64,315 |
| 22 | NDNorth Dakota | $64,720 | $58,610 | $77,040 | 380 | $72,753 |
| 23 | SCSouth Carolina | $64,680 | $50,110 | $79,320 | 1,170 | $68,993 |
| 24 | UTUtah | $64,290 | $56,020 | $80,860 | 1,820 | $65,029 |
| 25 | IAIowa | $64,220 | $57,500 | $80,390 | 980 | $73,175 |
| 26 | WYWyoming | $63,730 | $57,270 | $72,570 | 200 | $68,755 |
| 27 | HIHawaii | $63,510 | $56,220 | $82,290 | 610 | $57,762 |
| 28 | VAVirginia | $63,450 | $53,940 | $76,800 | 2,600 | $62,757 |
| 29 | TXTexas | $63,320 | $50,810 | $81,050 | 11,710 | $65,240 |
| 30 | NJNew Jersey | $62,960 | $56,880 | $78,000 | 2,280 | $57,865 |
| 31 | WIWisconsin | $62,930 | $57,380 | $78,620 | 2,200 | $66,879 |
| 32 | NCNorth Carolina | $62,750 | $51,780 | $78,670 | 2,680 | $66,525 |
| 33 | FLFlorida | $62,640 | $48,380 | $77,580 | 7,530 | $60,572 |
| 34 | ARArkansas | $62,420 | $57,760 | $74,100 | 980 | $71,799 |
| 35 | KSKansas | $62,220 | $52,220 | $72,290 | 630 | $69,081 |
| 36 | OKOklahoma | $62,140 | $48,060 | $76,190 | 1,260 | $70,740 |
| 37 | MOMissouri | $61,940 | $55,230 | $76,360 | 2,270 | $68,203 |
| 38 | IDIdaho | $61,840 | $52,080 | $76,000 | 1,010 | $64,758 |
| 39 | NENebraska | $61,550 | $54,170 | $77,030 | 850 | $68,311 |
| 40 | OHOhio | $61,450 | $48,710 | $76,710 | 2,860 | $66,236 |
| 41 | LALouisiana | $61,010 | $48,090 | $81,560 | 1,040 | $69,167 |
| 42 | VTVermont | $61,000 | $47,460 | $73,550 | 230 | $62,272 |
| 43 | KYKentucky | $60,120 | $48,140 | $74,870 | 870 | $66,682 |
| 44 | INIndiana | $60,000 | $50,220 | $74,810 | 2,240 | $64,289 |
| 45 | MSMississippi | $59,920 | $50,790 | $67,800 | 330 | $68,911 |
| 46 | MIMichigan | $58,330 | $48,410 | $73,800 | 2,100 | $60,623 |
| 47 | ILIllinois | $58,240 | $48,690 | $74,790 | 1,310 | $58,264 |
| 48 | ALAlabama | $57,100 | $46,420 | $68,850 | 1,010 | $64,285 |
| 49 | GUGuam | $56,710 | $44,960 | $58,950 | 70 | N/A |
| 50 | SDSouth Dakota | $52,470 | $46,660 | $61,160 | 460 | $59,231 |
| 51 | NMNew Mexico | $50,230 | $43,670 | $75,130 | 690 | $54,472 |
| 52 | PRPuerto Rico | $44,720 | $37,600 | $46,570 | 690 | N/A |
Method
How the cost-of-living adjustment works
The adjusted column divides each state median by that state's BEA Regional Price Parity (RPP) and multiplies by 100. RPPs measure how much a fixed basket of goods, services and rents costs in one state relative to the national average, so the result restates local pay in national-average dollars.
For Architectural and Civil Drafters, that changes the ranking: District of Columbia leads on raw pay at $97,880, while District of Columbia leads once prices are taken into account at $89,062.
Source: BEA Regional Price Parities by State, 2024 (public domain). The adjustment is NueCareer's calculation, not a BLS or BEA published statistic.
Questions
Architectural and Civil Drafter pay by state: FAQ
Which state pays Architectural and Civil Drafters the most?
District of Columbia reports the highest median wage for Architectural and Civil Drafters at $97,880 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025), followed by Massachusetts ($76,990) and California ($76,520).
Which state pays Architectural and Civil Drafters the least?
Puerto Rico reports the lowest median for Architectural and Civil Drafters at $44,720 a year, $53,160 below the highest-paying state (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
Where do Architectural and Civil Drafters earn the most after cost of living?
Dividing each state median by that state's BEA Regional Price Parity puts District of Columbia first at $89,062 in national-average dollars, from a raw median of $97,880. BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024.