How much does an associate mechanical engineer make?

The average associate mechanical engineer salary in the United States is $71,432. Associate mechanical engineer salaries typically range between $56,000 and $89,000 yearly. The average hourly rate for associate mechanical engineers is $34.34 per hour. Associate mechanical engineer salary is impacted by location, education, and experience. Associate mechanical engineers earn the highest average salary in California.

Associate mechanical engineer salary

Q: What state pays Associate Mechanical Engineers the most?

California pays Associate Mechanical Engineers the most in the United States, with an average salary of $87,025 per year, or $41.84 per hour.

Q: How do I know if I'm being paid fairly as an associate mechanical engineer?

You know if you are being paid fairly as an associate mechanical engineer if your pay is close to the average pay for the state you live in. For example, if you live in New Mexico you should be paid close to $86,439 per year.

Quoted expert

Daisy Huang

Average associate mechanical engineer salary

$71,432

$34.34 hourly rate

Entry-level associate mechanical engineer salary

$56,000 yearly salary

Updated December 15, 2025

Understanding Associate Mechanical Engineer Salaries

As of October 2025, the average salary for an Associate Mechanical Engineer stands at $71,432 annually. This figure can vary significantly based on several factors:

Experience Level: Entry-level engineers may expect lower salaries, while those with several years of experience can earn considerably more.
Geographic Location: Salaries tend to be higher in metropolitan areas where demand for engineering talent is greater.
Industry: Engineers working in specialized fields or high-demand sectors often receive better compensation.

Understanding these factors is vital for prospective engineers when considering job offers. By researching salary ranges in different states and industries, candidates can make informed decisions about their career paths. Additionally, exploring job listings on platforms like Zippia can uncover opportunities that align with their skills and salary expectations.

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Associate mechanical engineer salary by:

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Where can an Associate Mechanical Engineer earn more?

Compare salary by location

113k

93k

73k

53k

33k

Columbus, OH$93,802

Sioux Falls, SD$62,688

Compare salary by company

144k

124k

104k

84k

64k

44k

Koch Industries$114,418

Xerox$73,931

Associate mechanical engineer salaries by experience level

Associate mechanical engineer salary estimates from across the web

Based on the latest salary information compiled by Zippia, Salary.com, Glassdoor, Ziprecruiter, Comparably and Payscale, the average salary for an associate mechanical engineer typically falls between $65,116 and $93,814.

zippia

$71,432yearly

glassdoor[1]

$85,742yearly

comparably[2]

$72,597yearly

Salary.com[3]

$93,814yearly

ZipRecruiter[4]

$86,750yearly

payscale[5]

$65,116yearly

Average associate mechanical engineer salary by state

The average associate mechanical engineer salary in California, New Mexico, and Washington are the highest in the U.S. The lowest average associate mechanical engineer salary states are South Dakota, Mississippi, and Montana.

State view
County view

Average salary:

Highest paying states for associate mechanical engineers

Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
1	California	$87,025	$41.84
2	Washington	$81,445	$39.16
3	Massachusetts	$81,437	$39.15
4	New Mexico	$86,439	$41.56
5	Delaware	$80,097	$38.51
6	Illinois	$80,668	$38.78
7	Arizona	$76,754	$36.90
8	Michigan	$77,453	$37.24
9	Iowa	$78,467	$37.72
10	New York	$80,093	$38.51
11	Maryland	$80,260	$38.59
12	Idaho	$77,559	$37.29
13	Wisconsin	$74,067	$35.61
14	Oregon	$74,533	$35.83
15	District of Columbia	$79,100	$38.03
16	Ohio	$74,066	$35.61
17	Texas	$73,355	$35.27
18	Nevada	$74,790	$35.96
19	West Virginia	$74,918	$36.02
20	Kansas	$71,505	$34.38
21	New Hampshire	$69,981	$33.64
22	Colorado	$71,406	$34.33
23	New Jersey	$77,602	$37.31
24	Minnesota	$68,863	$33.11
25	Louisiana	$71,507	$34.38
26	Connecticut	$70,261	$33.78
27	Virginia	$68,604	$32.98
28	Pennsylvania	$68,994	$33.17
29	North Carolina	$67,730	$32.56
30	Indiana	$67,497	$32.45
31	South Carolina	$68,710	$33.03
32	Georgia	$67,584	$32.49
33	Tennessee	$68,105	$32.74
34	Rhode Island	$68,476	$32.92
35	Alabama	$64,310	$30.92
36	Maine	$68,428	$32.90
37	Alaska	$70,730	$34.00
38	Utah	$63,924	$30.73
39	Oklahoma	$67,649	$32.52
40	Wyoming	$63,732	$30.64
41	Missouri	$66,705	$32.07
42	Florida	$66,497	$31.97
43	Kentucky	$64,057	$30.80
44	Vermont	$63,516	$30.54
45	Hawaii	$66,989	$32.21
46	North Dakota	$60,470	$29.07
47	South Dakota	$62,506	$30.05
48	Nebraska	$60,512	$29.09
49	Mississippi	$61,376	$29.51
50	Montana	$60,603	$29.14
51	Arkansas	$59,224	$28.47

Top associate mechanical engineer jobs near you

Highest paying cities for associate mechanical engineers

The highest-paying cities for associate mechanical engineers are San Francisco, CA, Boston, MA, and Chicago, IL.

Rank	City	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
1	San Francisco, CA	$93,802	$45.10
2	Boston, MA	$81,442	$39.15
3	Chicago, IL	$80,772	$38.83
4	Richland, WA	$80,722	$38.81
5	New York, NY	$80,239	$38.58
6	Teaneck, NJ	$77,562	$37.29
7	Troy, MI	$77,498	$37.26
8	Chandler, AZ	$76,734	$36.89
9	El Paso, TX	$74,698	$35.91
10	Racine, WI	$74,046	$35.60
11	Boulder, CO	$71,374	$34.31
12	Danbury, CT	$70,263	$33.78
13	Philadelphia, PA	$69,290	$33.31
14	Greenville, SC	$68,846	$33.10
15	Oklahoma City, OK	$67,737	$32.57
16	Charlotte, NC	$67,516	$32.46
17	Columbus, IN	$67,470	$32.44
18	Melbourne, FL	$66,752	$32.09
19	Clearfield, UT	$63,539	$30.55
20	Sioux Falls, SD	$62,688	$30.14

Associate mechanical engineer salary details

An associate mechanical engineer's salary ranges from $56,000 a year at the 10th percentile to $89,000 at the 90th percentile.

Average associate mechanical engineer salary graph, trends, and summary

What is an associate mechanical engineer's salary?

Percentile	Annual salary	Monthly salary	Hourly rate
90th Percentile	$89,000	$7,417	$43
75th Percentile	$80,000	$6,667	$38
Average	$71,432	$5,953	$34
25th Percentile	$63,000	$5,250	$30
10th Percentile	$56,000	$4,667	$27

Highest paying associate mechanical engineer jobs

The highest paying types of associate mechanical engineers are staff engineer, senior mechanical engineer, and senior mechanical designer.

Job title	Annual salary	Monthly salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
Engineer	$92,076	$7,673	$44.27	618,207
Product Design Engineer	$94,827	$7,902	$45.59	170,485
Staff Engineer	$107,530	$8,961	$51.70	277,011
Equipment Engineer	$97,539	$8,128	$46.89	108,449
Mechanical Design Drafter	$58,371	$4,864	$28.06	54,189
Facility Engineer	$89,623	$7,469	$43.09	94,268

How would you rate the starting salaries for associate mechanical engineers, as well as the prospects for salary advancement?

Daisy Huang

Assistant Professor, University of Alaska Fairbanks

Above average, but you won't be a millionaire easily (you can with some effort, saving, and investing well). It is very unlikely you'll ever be *super* wealthy, but it's also very unlikely you'll ever not find employment in your field. You'll have a solid ticket to a modestly comfortable life, with some luxuries, too.

Top companies hiring associate mechanical engineers now:

Which companies pay associate mechanical engineers the most?

Associate mechanical engineer salaries at Koch Industries and Nike are the highest-paying according to our most recent salary estimates. In addition, the average associate mechanical engineer salary at companies like Intuitive Surgical and Tesla are highly competitive.

Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate
1	Koch Industries	$114,418	$55.01
2	Nike	$108,358	$52.10
3	Intuitive Surgical	$104,381	$50.18
4	Tesla	$92,033	$44.25
5	Halliburton	$87,660	$42.14
6	Corning Incorporated	$86,064	$41.38
7	NuvoSun	$85,723	$41.21
8	SC Johnson	$84,361	$40.56
9	CarMax	$81,107	$38.99
10	Santa Clara Valley Water District	$80,228	$38.57
11	Nexteer Automotive	$78,825	$37.90
12	Whirlpool	$78,366	$37.68
13	HHMI	$78,298	$37.64
14	Schindler Elevator	$77,961	$37.48
15	Moog	$76,810	$36.93
16	QuantumScape	$76,322	$36.69
17	Florida Power and Light	$76,238	$36.65
18	MWH Americas Inc	$75,592	$36.34
19	Continental Automotive Systems	$74,758	$35.94
20	Xerox	$73,931	$35.54

Wage gap by gender, race and education

$72,000$71,400$70,800$70,200$69,600$69,000

MaleFemale

Associate Mechanical Engineer salary by industry

The average associate mechanical engineer salary varies across industries:

The average associate mechanical engineer salary in the automotive industry is $81,136, the highest of any industry.
The average associate mechanical engineer salary in the finance industry is $74,187.
Associate mechanical engineers in the professional industry earn an average salary of $71,771, the lowest of any industry.

Highest paying industries for associate mechanical engineers

Rank	Industry	Average salary	Hourly rate
1	Automotive	$81,136	$39.01
2	Hospitality	$74,187	$35.67
3	Manufacturing	$73,341	$35.26
4	Retail	$73,130	$35.16
5	Internet	$72,333	$34.78
6	Technology	$71,921	$34.58
7	Professional	$71,771	$34.51

High paying associate mechanical engineer jobs

Associate mechanical engineer salary trends

The average associate mechanical engineer salary has risen by $8,659 over the last ten years. In 2014, the average associate mechanical engineer earned $62,773 annually, but today, they earn $71,432 a year. That works out to a 7% change in pay for associate mechanical engineers over the last decade.

Compare associate mechanical engineer salaries for cities or states with the national average over time.

Average associate mechanical engineer salary over time

Compare associate mechanical engineer salaries for individual cities or states with the national average.

Associate mechanical engineer salary by year

Year	Avg. salary	Hourly rate	% Change
2026	$71,400	$34.34	+1.9%
2025	$70,100	$33.68	+1.2%
2024	$69,200	$33.28	+1.7%
2023	$68,000	$32.71	+2.0%
2022	$66,700	$32.07	+0.7%

Recently added associate mechanical engineer salaries

Company	Job	Location	Date added	Salary
Perspecta	Mechanical Engineering, Associate	Topeka, KS	06/29/2025	$51,000
Oneok, Inc.	Mechanic-Associate	Watford City, ND	06/27/2025	$63,000
Lockheed Martin	Mechanical Engineer Associate	Englewood, CO	06/26/2025	$66,200
Global Medical Response	Mechanic Associate	Orangeburg, SC	06/25/2025	$62,610
Vanguard-Ip	Patent Prosecution Associate-Mechanical Engineering VIP	Denver, CO	06/24/2025	$140,000
Thornton Tomasetti	Mechanical Associate	Los Angeles, CA	06/20/2025	$120,000
WSP	Associate Mechanical Engineer	New York, NY	06/16/2025	$114,000
Exponent	Mechanical Engineering Associate (PH.D.)	Chicago, IL	06/10/2025	$131,000
Brooksource	Associate Mechanical Engineer	Millington, MD	06/09/2025	$65,000
Astranis	Mechanical Engineer-Associate Program (Fall 2025)	San Francisco, CA	06/09/2025	$91,306

Associate mechanical engineer salary FAQs

What state pays Associate Mechanical Engineers the most?

How do I know if I'm being paid fairly as an associate mechanical engineer?

Have more questions? See all answers to common architecture and engineering questions.

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Updated December 15, 2025

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