Architectural and Engineering Manager Salary (2026), outlook and how to become one

Architectural and Engineering Managers earn a median of $171,270 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025). That is 236% above the $50,980 median for all US occupations. That works out at $82.34/hr. The middle half earn between $139,360 and $212,500. The top 10% earn $262,760 or more.

The median hourly wage for architectural and engineering managers is $82.34 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). On a full-year basis the $171,270 annual median works out to about $14,270 a month before tax.

BLS does not publish a starting salary. The nearest measure is the low end of the pay range: the lowest-paid 10% of architectural and engineering managers earn less than $120,810 a year and the bottom quarter less than $139,360 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). New workers often start near that end, but where a particular job starts depends on the employer, the state and the credentials you bring, so read these as the bottom of the range rather than a guaranteed entry wage.

The highest state medians for Architectural and Engineering Managers are New Mexico ($215,120), California ($210,280), Massachusetts ($201,430) (BLS OEWS, May 2025).

BLS does not split architectural and engineering managers' pay by specialty or employer, but its range shows how far the top end runs: the highest-paid 10% earn more than $262,760, against a median of $171,270 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). Location moves pay the most in the published data: the best-paying states are New Mexico ($215,120), California ($210,280), Massachusetts ($201,430). BLS also counts a specialty career inside this occupation (silicon engineering manager), which shares its federal pay figures.

Yes. BLS reports a bachelor's degree as the typical entry-level education for Architectural and Engineering Managers, and O*NET rates the preparation needed as extensive preparation. Employers typically expect 5 years or more of related work experience first. In O*NET's survey of people already doing the job, 45.5% hold bachelor's degree.

BLS does not publish a fixed length; it depends on the route. What it does publish: the typical way in for architectural and engineering managers is a bachelor's degree, plus 5 years or more of work experience in a related occupation. O*NET classes the work as needing extensive preparation.

Yes. Employment is projected to grow 5.5% over 2025–2035, faster than the 3.5% average for all occupations (BLS EP, 2025–2035). BLS still projects about 14,900 openings a year, mostly from workers retiring or moving to other work.

Architectural and engineering managers plan, direct, and coordinate activities in the fields of architecture and engineering. A core O*NET task: confer with management, production, or marketing staff to discuss project specifications or procedures. Employers most often ask for Analytical or scientific software, Application server software, Cloud-based management software.

Most work more than 40. In O*NET's survey of people in the job, 84% of architectural and engineering managers usually work more than 40 hours a week, 16% work exactly 40 and 0% work fewer. 93% say their schedule is regular and 7% irregular. Source: O*NET 31.0 Database, Work Context.

O*NET scores Architectural and Engineering Managers highest on the Enterprising, Investigative and Conventional interest areas, so the work mixes leading, persuading, selling and making decisions with investigating, analysing and solving problems with ideas and data. On NueCareer's MBTI-to-interest mapping the closest types are ENTJ, ESTJ. Personality is a fit signal, not a gate. The free NueCareer quiz scores your own profile against all 1,731 careers in the bank.

Women make up 10.8% of architectural and engineering managers, against 47.1% of all employed people: a heavily male-dominated occupation. 31.0% are 55 or older (23.2% across all jobs), so a larger-than-usual share of the workforce reaches retirement age over the next decade. Those exits are counted in the BLS openings figure. The median worker is 46.7 years old (all workers: 42.1). Source: BLS Current Population Survey, 2025 annual averages.