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Best states for a machine design engineer
Quoted expert
Andy Gerrick
- Rank 1 - 10
- 11 - 20
- 21 - 30
- 31 - 40
- 41 - 51
Not all states present equal opportunity for employees, and when it comes to machine design engineer jobs, it's no different. We know how hard job search can be, and in order to make your life a little easier, we have the information you need in order to determine where you might want to start your job search. Our research found that California is the best state for machine design engineers, while California and Massachusetts are ranked highest in terms of median salary. California has a median salary of $104,000 and California has the highest median salary among all 50 states for machine design engineers.
California is the best state for jobs for machine design engineers, and Arkansas is the worst. The most common pay in California is $104,000, while the median pay in Arkansas is $59,686.California is the best state, and Windsor is the city with the highest pay for machine design engineers.
10 best states for machine design engineers in 2025
1. California
Total machine design engineer jobs: 9,855 Average annual salary: $104,000 Lowest 10 percent earn: $72,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $149,000 Location Quotient: 1.712. Massachusetts
Total machine design engineer jobs: 2,232 Average annual salary: $98,563 Lowest 10 percent earn: $72,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $133,000 Location Quotient: 1.233. Washington
Total machine design engineer jobs: 1,992 Average annual salary: $97,230 Lowest 10 percent earn: $68,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $138,000 Location Quotient: 1.394. Virginia
Total machine design engineer jobs: 2,245 Average annual salary: $93,600 Lowest 10 percent earn: $70,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $124,000 Location Quotient: 1.215. Oregon
Total machine design engineer jobs: 1,273 Average annual salary: $88,573 Lowest 10 percent earn: $62,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $125,000 Location Quotient: 1.566. Arizona
Total machine design engineer jobs: 1,259 Average annual salary: $84,992 Lowest 10 percent earn: $61,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $117,000 Location Quotient: 1.097. Colorado
Total machine design engineer jobs: 1,298 Average annual salary: $85,965 Lowest 10 percent earn: $62,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $118,000 Location Quotient: 1.118. Nevada
Total machine design engineer jobs: 298 Average annual salary: $89,913 Lowest 10 percent earn: $63,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $128,000 Location Quotient: 0.729. Delaware
Total machine design engineer jobs: 242 Average annual salary: $86,160 Lowest 10 percent earn: $64,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $115,000 Location Quotient: 0.9810. New Mexico
Total machine design engineer jobs: 219 Average annual salary: $94,232 Lowest 10 percent earn: $68,000 Highest 10 percent earn: $129,000 Location Quotient: 0.57
Machine design engineer jobsNear Columbus, OH
How Zippia determines the best states to be a machine design engineer
You can read about how the best state rankings are calculated here.
Detailed list of the best states for a machine design engineer
| Rank | State | Average salary | Lowest 10% earn | Population | Job count |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California | $104,000 | $72,000 | 39,536,653 | 9,855 |
| 2 | Massachusetts | $98,563 | $72,000 | 6,859,819 | 2,232 |
| 3 | Washington | $97,230 | $68,000 | 7,405,743 | 1,992 |
| 4 | Virginia | $93,600 | $70,000 | 8,470,020 | 2,245 |
| 5 | Oregon | $88,573 | $62,000 | 4,142,776 | 1,273 |
| 6 | Arizona | $84,992 | $61,000 | 7,016,270 | 1,259 |
| 7 | Colorado | $85,965 | $62,000 | 5,607,154 | 1,298 |
| 8 | Nevada | $89,913 | $63,000 | 2,998,039 | 298 |
| 9 | Delaware | $86,160 | $64,000 | 961,939 | 242 |
| 10 | New Mexico | $94,232 | $68,000 | 2,088,070 | 219 |
| 11 | New York | $88,133 | $65,000 | 19,849,399 | 2,463 |
| 12 | Alabama | $81,340 | $61,000 | 4,874,747 | 746 |
| 13 | Maryland | $87,568 | $65,000 | 6,052,177 | 1,275 |
| 14 | Idaho | $87,158 | $61,000 | 1,716,943 | 223 |
| 15 | Alaska | $89,390 | $67,000 | 739,795 | 114 |
| 16 | District of Columbia | $87,132 | $65,000 | 693,972 | 414 |
| 17 | New Hampshire | $78,427 | $57,000 | 1,342,795 | 399 |
| 18 | Minnesota | $79,838 | $59,000 | 5,576,606 | 1,424 |
| 19 | Connecticut | $81,707 | $60,000 | 3,588,184 | 695 |
| 20 | Texas | $77,506 | $57,000 | 28,304,596 | 3,712 |
| 21 | Illinois | $80,366 | $60,000 | 12,802,023 | 2,086 |
| 22 | North Carolina | $75,220 | $57,000 | 10,273,419 | 1,848 |
| 23 | Wisconsin | $73,237 | $55,000 | 5,795,483 | 1,183 |
| 24 | Ohio | $72,933 | $55,000 | 11,658,609 | 1,851 |
| 25 | Rhode Island | $76,276 | $56,000 | 1,059,639 | 224 |
| 26 | Louisiana | $81,380 | $60,000 | 4,684,333 | 274 |
| 27 | Utah | $72,510 | $51,000 | 3,101,833 | 681 |
| 28 | West Virginia | $77,213 | $58,000 | 1,815,857 | 131 |
| 29 | New Jersey | $80,799 | $59,000 | 9,005,644 | 1,115 |
| 30 | Maine | $77,267 | $57,000 | 1,335,907 | 168 |
| 31 | Michigan | $70,745 | $53,000 | 9,962,311 | 1,586 |
| 32 | Pennsylvania | $70,525 | $52,000 | 12,805,537 | 1,951 |
| 33 | Vermont | $70,772 | $52,000 | 623,657 | 139 |
| 34 | Missouri | $72,177 | $54,000 | 6,113,532 | 790 |
| 35 | Oklahoma | $71,915 | $54,000 | 3,930,864 | 310 |
| 36 | Iowa | $66,831 | $50,000 | 3,145,711 | 596 |
| 37 | Georgia | $67,098 | $51,000 | 10,429,379 | 1,854 |
| 38 | Wyoming | $66,357 | $47,000 | 579,315 | 95 |
| 39 | South Carolina | $66,838 | $50,000 | 5,024,369 | 680 |
| 40 | Tennessee | $66,981 | $50,000 | 6,715,984 | 764 |
| 41 | Indiana | $65,496 | $49,000 | 6,666,818 | 1,095 |
| 42 | Hawaii | $69,498 | $55,000 | 1,427,538 | 119 |
| 43 | Florida | $68,266 | $50,000 | 20,984,400 | 2,178 |
| 44 | Kentucky | $66,136 | $50,000 | 4,454,189 | 468 |
| 45 | Montana | $66,577 | $46,000 | 1,050,493 | 154 |
| 46 | Nebraska | $60,332 | $45,000 | 1,920,076 | 323 |
| 47 | South Dakota | $62,262 | $46,000 | 869,666 | 114 |
| 48 | Mississippi | $63,155 | $47,000 | 2,984,100 | 208 |
| 49 | Kansas | $58,486 | $43,000 | 2,913,123 | 430 |
| 50 | North Dakota | $60,742 | $45,000 | 755,393 | 123 |
| 51 | Arkansas | $59,686 | $45,000 | 3,004,279 | 309 |
Highest paying states for machine design engineers
| Rank | State | Avg. Machine Design Engineer Salary |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | California | $104,000 |
| 2 | Massachusetts | $98,563 |
| 3 | Washington | $97,230 |
| 4 | Virginia | $93,600 |
| 5 | Oregon | $88,573 |
| 6 | Arizona | $84,992 |
| 7 | Colorado | $85,965 |
| 8 | Nevada | $89,913 |
| 9 | Delaware | $86,160 |
| 10 | New Mexico | $94,232 |
| 11 | New York | $88,133 |
| 12 | Alabama | $81,340 |
| 13 | Maryland | $87,568 |
| 14 | Idaho | $87,158 |
| 15 | Alaska | $89,390 |
| 16 | District of Columbia | $87,132 |
| 17 | New Hampshire | $78,427 |
| 18 | Minnesota | $79,838 |
| 19 | Connecticut | $81,707 |
| 20 | Texas | $77,506 |
| 21 | Illinois | $80,366 |
| 22 | North Carolina | $75,220 |
| 23 | Wisconsin | $73,237 |
| 24 | Ohio | $72,933 |
| 25 | Rhode Island | $76,276 |
| 26 | Louisiana | $81,380 |
| 27 | Utah | $72,510 |
| 28 | West Virginia | $77,213 |
| 29 | New Jersey | $80,799 |
| 30 | Maine | $77,267 |
| 31 | Michigan | $70,745 |
| 32 | Pennsylvania | $70,525 |
| 33 | Vermont | $70,772 |
| 34 | Missouri | $72,177 |
| 35 | Oklahoma | $71,915 |
| 36 | Iowa | $66,831 |
| 37 | Georgia | $67,098 |
| 38 | Wyoming | $66,357 |
| 39 | South Carolina | $66,838 |
| 40 | Tennessee | $66,981 |
| 41 | Indiana | $65,496 |
| 42 | Hawaii | $69,498 |
| 43 | Florida | $68,266 |
| 44 | Kentucky | $66,136 |
| 45 | Montana | $66,577 |
| 46 | Nebraska | $60,332 |
| 47 | South Dakota | $62,262 |
| 48 | Mississippi | $63,155 |
| 49 | Kansas | $58,486 |
| 50 | North Dakota | $60,742 |
| 51 | Arkansas | $59,686 |
Expert opinions on the best states for machine design engineers
Are there any particularly good places in the United States for machine design engineers to find work opportunities?
Andy Gerrick
Associate Professor and Chair, Embry-Riddle, Prescott
Mechanical engineering is the most general field of engineering. Any industry that designs or produces physical products, from toys to spacecraft, hires mechanical engineers. The aerospace industry, where I spent 35 years as a mechanical engineer, hires many more mechanical engineers than aerospace engineers.
Machine design engineer best states FAQs
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Updated January 8, 2025