Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
Instrumentation engineer salary
Average instrumentation engineer salary
$88,783
Instrumentation Engineer Salary Insights
As of October 2025, the average salary for an Instrumentation Engineer stands at $88,783 annually. This salary can vary based on several factors including geographical location, level of experience, and specific sectors within engineering.
For instance, California and Texas typically offer higher salaries for this role due to the demand for skilled professionals. Entry-level positions may start around $65,000, while seasoned engineers can earn upwards of $110,000 based on their expertise and industry focus.
In addition to salaries, job opportunities in instrumentation engineering are expanding, particularly in sectors such as manufacturing, oil, and gas. Professionals in these fields can find various roles that not only offer competitive compensation but also opportunities for growth and advancement.
To maximize earning potential, aspiring engineers should consider obtaining relevant certifications and gaining hands-on experience through internships or co-op programs. This preparation can enhance their employability and help them secure higher-paying positions in the field.
Let Zippia find your next instrumentation engineer job
Let Zippia find your next instrumentation engineer job
Where can an Instrumentation Engineer earn more?
Instrumentation engineer salaries by experience level
| Experience level | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|
| Entry-level instrumentation engineer | $59,200 | $28.47 |
| Mid-level instrumentation engineer | $94,400 | $45.37 |
| Senior-level instrumentation engineer | $140,000 | $67.09 |
Instrumentation engineer salary estimates from across the web
Average instrumentation engineer salary by state
The average instrumentation engineer salary in California, New Jersey, and Alaska are the highest in the U.S. The lowest average instrumentation engineer salary states are Arkansas, Nevada, and Wisconsin.
- State view
- County view
Highest paying states for instrumentation engineers
| Rank | State | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California | $109,744 | $52.76 |
| 2 | Alaska | $106,424 | $51.17 |
| 3 | New Mexico | $101,952 | $49.02 |
| 4 | Washington | $95,509 | $45.92 |
| 5 | Texas | $93,836 | $45.11 |
| 6 | Vermont | $95,211 | $45.77 |
| 7 | District of Columbia | $99,250 | $47.72 |
| 8 | Utah | $89,100 | $42.84 |
| 9 | Louisiana | $102,755 | $49.40 |
| 10 | New Jersey | $106,666 | $51.28 |
| 11 | Maryland | $92,760 | $44.60 |
| 12 | Massachusetts | $90,999 | $43.75 |
| 13 | Delaware | $88,570 | $42.58 |
| 14 | Arizona | $87,701 | $42.16 |
| 15 | Idaho | $92,816 | $44.62 |
| 16 | Oregon | $88,212 | $42.41 |
| 17 | Colorado | $86,535 | $41.60 |
| 18 | Hawaii | $93,635 | $45.02 |
| 19 | Wyoming | $82,490 | $39.66 |
| 20 | North Dakota | $84,924 | $40.83 |
| 21 | Virginia | $84,232 | $40.50 |
| 22 | Michigan | $81,297 | $39.09 |
| 23 | Oklahoma | $86,788 | $41.73 |
| 24 | Georgia | $85,476 | $41.09 |
| 25 | Mississippi | $86,994 | $41.82 |
| 26 | Maine | $84,174 | $40.47 |
| 27 | New York | $83,541 | $40.16 |
| 28 | Iowa | $83,931 | $40.35 |
| 29 | Alabama | $78,291 | $37.64 |
| 30 | Tennessee | $81,466 | $39.17 |
| 31 | Rhode Island | $82,693 | $39.76 |
| 32 | Nebraska | $78,437 | $37.71 |
| 33 | South Dakota | $80,856 | $38.87 |
| 34 | New Hampshire | $78,774 | $37.87 |
| 35 | Minnesota | $76,913 | $36.98 |
| 36 | Missouri | $78,953 | $37.96 |
| 37 | Illinois | $75,867 | $36.47 |
| 38 | North Carolina | $73,707 | $35.44 |
| 39 | Florida | $74,787 | $35.96 |
| 40 | Pennsylvania | $73,549 | $35.36 |
| 41 | Kentucky | $74,065 | $35.61 |
| 42 | Kansas | $73,121 | $35.15 |
| 43 | Connecticut | $74,486 | $35.81 |
| 44 | West Virginia | $72,689 | $34.95 |
| 45 | Nevada | $68,431 | $32.90 |
| 46 | Montana | $71,064 | $34.17 |
| 47 | Indiana | $66,820 | $32.13 |
| 48 | Arkansas | $70,880 | $34.08 |
| 49 | Wisconsin | $66,940 | $32.18 |
| 50 | Ohio | $64,164 | $30.85 |
| 51 | South Carolina | $64,520 | $31.02 |
Highest paying cities for instrumentation engineers
The highest-paying cities for instrumentation engineers are Cupertino, CA, Baton Rouge, LA, and Corpus Christi, TX.
| Rank | City | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cupertino, CA | $116,487 | $56.00 |
| 2 | Baton Rouge, LA | $102,922 | $49.48 |
| 3 | Corpus Christi, TX | $94,455 | $45.41 |
| 4 | Hilo, HI | $92,494 | $44.47 |
| 5 | Cambridge, MA | $91,046 | $43.77 |
| 6 | Newark, DE | $88,594 | $42.59 |
| 7 | Phoenix, AZ | $87,921 | $42.27 |
| 8 | Pueblo, CO | $87,087 | $41.87 |
| 9 | Savannah, GA | $85,932 | $41.31 |
| 10 | Tulsa, OK | $85,861 | $41.28 |
| 11 | Cedar Falls, IA | $84,169 | $40.47 |
| 12 | Farmington Hills, MI | $81,384 | $39.13 |
| 13 | Buffalo, NY | $81,179 | $39.03 |
| 14 | Mobile, AL | $81,164 | $39.02 |
| 15 | Nashua, NH | $78,903 | $37.93 |
| 16 | Saint Louis, MO | $78,757 | $37.86 |
| 17 | Gurnee, IL | $76,093 | $36.58 |
| 18 | West Palm Beach, FL | $75,216 | $36.16 |
| 19 | Philadelphia, PA | $73,962 | $35.56 |
| 20 | Madison, WI | $66,789 | $32.11 |
Instrumentation engineer salary details
An instrumentation engineer's salary ranges from $65,000 a year at the 10th percentile to $119,000 at the 90th percentile.
What is an instrumentation engineer's salary?
| Percentile | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 90th Percentile | $119,000 | $9,917 | $57 |
| 75th Percentile | $103,000 | $8,583 | $50 |
| Average | $88,783 | $7,399 | $43 |
| 25th Percentile | $75,000 | $6,250 | $36 |
| 10th Percentile | $65,000 | $5,417 | $31 |
Highest paying instrumentation engineer jobs
The highest paying types of instrumentation engineers are senior engineer, system design engineer, and staff engineer.
| Job title | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate | Job openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Facility Engineer | $89,623 | $7,469 | $43.09 | 94,268 |
| Research And Development Engineer | $100,169 | $8,347 | $48.16 | 187,910 |
| Engineer | $92,076 | $7,673 | $44.27 | 618,207 |
| Project Engineer | $75,050 | $6,254 | $36.08 | 176,689 |
| Product Engineer | $89,645 | $7,470 | $43.10 | 157,888 |
| Mechanical Engineer | $75,352 | $6,279 | $36.23 | 105,618 |
Top companies hiring instrumentation engineers now:
Which companies pay instrumentation engineers the most?
Instrumentation engineer salaries at Apple and Intuitive Surgical are the highest-paying according to our most recent salary estimates. In addition, the average instrumentation engineer salary at companies like Microsoft and Phillips 66 are highly competitive.
| Rank | Company | Average salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Apple | $142,808 | $68.66 |
| 2 | Intuitive Surgical | $132,143 | $63.53 |
| 3 | Microsoft | $131,108 | $63.03 |
| 4 | Phillips 66 | $124,747 | $59.97 |
| 5 | Marathon Petroleum | $122,967 | $59.12 |
| 6 | Bed Bath & Beyond | $122,583 | $58.93 |
| 7 | Quidel | $116,911 | $56.21 |
| 8 | CITGO Petroleum | $115,254 | $55.41 |
| 9 | Exxon Mobil | $114,620 | $55.11 |
| 10 | Cargill | $113,547 | $54.59 |
| 11 | Greif | $110,451 | $53.10 |
| 12 | Arkema | $109,731 | $52.76 |
| 13 | California Institute of Technology | $109,583 | $52.68 |
| 14 | Eastman | $108,303 | $52.07 |
| 15 | The Dow Chemical Company | $104,033 | $50.02 |
| 16 | Albemarle | $97,033 | $46.65 |
| 17 | The Chemours Company | $94,836 | $45.59 |
| 18 | Thermo Fisher Scientific | $94,361 | $45.37 |
| 19 | University of California-Berkeley | $93,935 | $45.16 |
| 20 | Woods Services | $93,287 | $44.85 |
Wage gap by gender, race and education
Instrumentation engineer salary trends
The average instrumentation engineer salary has risen by $13,129 over the last ten years. In 2014, the average instrumentation engineer earned $75,654 annually, but today, they earn $88,783 a year. That works out to a 7% change in pay for instrumentation engineers over the last decade.
Compare instrumentation engineer salaries for cities or states with the national average over time.
Average instrumentation engineer salary over time
Compare instrumentation engineer salaries for individual cities or states with the national average.
Instrumentation engineer salary by year
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | $88,800 | $42.68 | +2.3% |
| 2025 | $86,800 | $41.71 | +1.9% |
| 2024 | $85,100 | $40.91 | +1.6% |
| 2023 | $83,700 | $40.24 | +0.9% |
| 2022 | $83,000 | $39.88 | +1.3% |
Recently added instrumentation engineer salaries
| Company | Job | Location | Date added | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blue Origin | Test Instrumentation Engineer III | Seattle, WA | 06/30/2025 | $117,498 |
| Retro | Lab Instrument Engineer | Redwood City, CA | 06/29/2025 | $100,000 |
| CDI Corporation | Instrument Engineer II | Noble, LA | 06/27/2025 | $93,915 |
| Amentum | Instrumentation Engineer | Mountain View, CA | 06/27/2025 | $92,000 |
| Amentum | Instrumentation Engineer | Tullahoma, TN | 06/27/2025 | $92,000 |
| Archer | Flight Instrumentation Engineer | San Jose, CA | 06/11/2025 | $151,680 |
| Neptune Medical | Staff, Robotic Instruments Engineer | Burlingame, CA | 06/11/2025 | $185,000 |
| Brindley Engineering | Staff Instrumentation Engineer | Lisle, IL | 06/11/2025 | $110,000 |
| Chembular Manpower | Electrical AMD Instrumentation Engineer | Baytown, TX | 06/10/2025 | $75,000 |
| Global Channel Management, Inc. | Electrical and Instrumentation Engineer | Mount Clemens, MI | 06/10/2025 | $114,785 |
Instrumentation engineer salary FAQs
Search for instrumentation engineer jobs