Pay by state · 45 states
Materials Engineer Salary by State (2026)
Materials Engineers earn the most in New Mexico at $165,600 a year and the least in Iowa at $64,270 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). The national median is $112,860. All 45 states and territories with reported data are ranked below, with a cost-of-living adjusted column.
- Highest median
- $165,600New Mexico
- National median
- $112,860BLS OEWS, May 2025
- Lowest median
- $64,270Iowa
- States reporting
- 45of 54 OEWS areas
All states
Materials Engineer salary in every state
Sort by any column. Employment is the number of materials engineers OEWS estimates in that state; blank cells are estimates BLS suppressed because the sample was too small.
| # | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | NMNew Mexico | $165,600 | $160,340 | $197,900 | 450 | $179,586 |
| 2 | MDMaryland | $140,640 | $109,970 | $173,720 | 740 | $133,995 |
| 3 | WAWashington | $139,840 | $122,960 | $176,290 | 1,000 | $130,676 |
| 4 | DEDelaware | $131,320 | $100,980 | $165,960 | 40 | $131,573 |
| 5 | LALouisiana | $128,670 | $92,470 | $155,830 | 90 | $145,873 |
| 6 | CACalifornia | $128,470 | $103,250 | $157,980 | 3,020 | $116,031 |
| 7 | ILIllinois | $126,620 | $91,570 | $136,710 | 290 | $126,673 |
| 8 | NYNew York | $125,900 | $88,380 | $162,770 | 590 | $116,659 |
| 9 | COColorado | $124,030 | $94,640 | $164,630 | 810 | $120,357 |
| 10 | AKAlaska | $123,360 | $84,240 | $134,550 | 70 | $120,517 |
| 11 | OROregon | $122,850 | $98,670 | $147,420 | 120 | $118,855 |
| 12 | CTConnecticut | $122,300 | $104,420 | $137,130 | 420 | $118,039 |
| 13 | SCSouth Carolina | $121,610 | $92,240 | $131,080 | 600 | $129,719 |
| 14 | FLFlorida | $118,780 | $91,150 | $138,430 | 690 | $114,859 |
| 15 | TXTexas | $117,700 | $84,700 | $160,260 | 1,440 | $121,269 |
| 16 | VAVirginia | $116,720 | $83,840 | $137,400 | 620 | $115,445 |
| 17 | MAMassachusetts | $114,100 | $96,930 | $142,960 | 1,360 | $107,889 |
| 18 | WYWyoming | $110,970 | $81,950 | $119,590 | 40 | $119,720 |
| 19 | ALAlabama | $107,580 | $83,880 | $137,620 | 650 | $121,117 |
| 20 | NJNew Jersey | $106,920 | $93,450 | $138,210 | 260 | $98,268 |
| 21 | AZArizona | $106,810 | $95,930 | $139,580 | 580 | $106,092 |
| 22 | OHOhio | $106,510 | $84,560 | $142,020 | 1,790 | $114,806 |
| 23 | MNMinnesota | $106,220 | $100,690 | $147,630 | 150 | $107,705 |
| 24 | IDIdaho | $105,820 | $60,200 | $133,030 | 90 | $110,813 |
| 25 | NCNorth Carolina | $104,240 | $86,400 | $127,560 | 640 | $110,510 |
| 26 | ARArkansas | $103,900 | $100,560 | $125,370 | 90 | $119,512 |
| 27 | NHNew Hampshire | $101,290 | $77,320 | $121,920 | 70 | $97,240 |
| 28 | INIndiana | $101,120 | $77,690 | $127,230 | 570 | $108,348 |
| 29 | GAGeorgia | $100,840 | $80,180 | $129,740 | 700 | $104,722 |
| 30 | KYKentucky | $100,620 | $96,300 | $119,280 | 280 | $111,603 |
| 31 | KSKansas | $100,000 | $83,860 | $135,880 | 270 | $111,027 |
| 32 | OKOklahoma | $99,950 | $78,290 | $120,580 | 240 | $113,783 |
| 33 | NVNevada | $99,010 | $85,380 | $131,980 | 100 | $99,031 |
| 34 | MOMissouri | $98,860 | $78,600 | $123,310 | 300 | $108,856 |
| 35 | NENebraska | $98,270 | $76,740 | $127,960 | 160 | $109,064 |
| 36 | PAPennsylvania | $98,030 | $76,760 | $128,360 | 720 | $100,469 |
| 37 | MEMaine | $97,110 | $86,960 | $119,410 | 100 | $100,062 |
| 38 | WIWisconsin | $96,210 | $76,330 | $109,610 | 280 | $102,248 |
| 39 | MIMichigan | $94,050 | $75,010 | $123,180 | 810 | $97,748 |
| 40 | TNTennessee | $91,940 | $79,700 | $122,790 | 330 | $100,076 |
| 41 | UTUtah | $88,080 | $73,880 | $115,670 | 460 | $89,092 |
| 42 | RIRhode Island | $87,180 | $80,660 | $113,060 | 50 | $85,237 |
| 43 | MSMississippi | $78,700 | $72,620 | $126,050 | 100 | $90,509 |
| 44 | MTMontana | $76,030 | $63,500 | $93,560 | 90 | $80,332 |
| 45 | IAIowa | $64,270 | $62,390 | $98,730 | 200 | $73,232 |
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 Materials Engineers, that changes the ranking: New Mexico leads on raw pay at $165,600, while New Mexico leads once prices are taken into account at $179,586.
Source: BEA Regional Price Parities by State, 2024 (public domain). The adjustment is NueCareer's calculation, not a BLS or BEA published statistic.
Questions
Materials Engineer pay by state: FAQ
Which state pays Materials Engineers the most?
New Mexico reports the highest median wage for Materials Engineers at $165,600 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025), followed by Maryland ($140,640) and Washington ($139,840).
Which state pays Materials Engineers the least?
Iowa reports the lowest median for Materials Engineers at $64,270 a year, $101,330 below the highest-paying state (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
Where do Materials Engineers earn the most after cost of living?
Dividing each state median by that state's BEA Regional Price Parity puts New Mexico first at $179,586 in national-average dollars, from a raw median of $165,600. BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024.