How to hire a machine designer

Machine designer hiring summary. Here are some key points about hiring machine designers in the United States:

In the United States, the median cost per hire a machine designer is $1,633.
It takes between 36 and 42 days to fill the average role in the US.
Human Resources use 15% of their expenses on recruitment on average.
On average, it takes around 12 weeks for a new machine designer to become settled and show total productivity levels at work.

How to hire a machine designer, step by step

To hire a machine designer, you should clearly understand the skills and experience you are looking for in a candidate, and allocate a budget for the position. You will also need to post and promote the job opening to reach potential candidates. Here's a step-by-step guide on how to hire a machine designer:

Here's a step-by-step machine designer hiring guide:

Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
Step 3: Make a budget
Step 4: Write a machine designer job description
Step 5: Post your job
Step 6: Interview candidates
Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new machine designer
Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a machine designer do?

A mechanical designer creates and draws different designs for pieces of machinery and other equipment. They are often patterned with engineers and other related professionals to create a variety of types of machinery. Typically they work in an office setting, with the majority at architecture, manufacturing, and engineering firms. They may also be the person who develops and provides layout designs for customers and clients. A person who is creative, has a background in product development, and possesses analytic skills may be a great fit for the job.

Learn more about the specifics of what a machine designer does

Post a machine designer job for free, promote it for a fee

Identify your hiring needs

First, determine the employments status of the machine designer you need to hire. Certain machine designer roles might require a full-time employee, whereas others can be done by part-time workers or contractors.

Determine employee vs contractor status

Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

A machine designer's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, machine designers from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

Here's a comparison of machine designer salaries for various roles:

Type of Machine Designer	Description	Hourly rate
Machine Designer	Mechanical engineering is one of the broadest engineering disciplines. Mechanical engineers design, develop, build, and test mechanical and thermal sensors and devices, including tools, engines, and machines.	$23-48
Mechanical Engineering Internship	One of the primary responsibilities in a mechanical engineering internship is to follow directives from engineers and managers while gaining practical experience. There are instances when an intern must take part in crafting various materials under the supervision of a more experienced colleague, produce reports and paperwork, operate tools and devices, and provide assistance should anyone need... Show more	$15-25
Project Engineer	A Project Engineer develops the plan that the entire team or company will undertake. The project engineer develops the plans, strategies, and goals of a project and then gives it to the management for approval and allocation... Show more	$26-48

Create an ideal candidate profile
Common skills:
- Solidworks
- Machine Design
- Autocad
- Assembly Drawings
- Provide Engineering Support
- R
- FEA
- BOM
- Plant Layout
- Custom Machinery
- Auto CAD
- GD
- Assembly Fixtures
- CNC
Check all skills
Responsibilities:
- Manage documentation of existing projects, perform ECN resolutions.
- Create assembly and layout drawings using AutoCAD and SolidWorks modeling software.
- Programme CNC turret punch/plasma punching machine.
- Perform various reverse engineering jobs using CMM machines.
- Supervise CNC programmer/operator and machinists to make parts, assemble and test machine.
- Complete first successful solid model of a cylinder head design for importation to FEA software.
More machine designer duties

Make a budget

Including a salary range in your machine designer job description helps attract top candidates to the position. A machine designer salary can be affected by several factors, such as geography, experience, seniority, certifications, and the prestige of the hiring company.

For example, the average salary for a machine designer in South Dakota may be lower than in California, and an entry-level machine designer usually earns less than a senior-level machine designer. Additionally, a machine designer with certifications may command a higher salary, and working for a well-known company or start-up may also impact an employee's pay.

Average machine designer salary

$69,937yearly

$33.62 hourly rate

Entry-level machine designer salary

$48,000 yearly salary

Updated December 18, 2025

Average machine designer salary by state

Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
1	California	$84,222	$40
2	Connecticut	$75,085	$36
3	New Jersey	$68,103	$33
4	Illinois	$66,013	$32
5	Pennsylvania	$64,301	$31
6	South Carolina	$64,071	$31
7	Wisconsin	$61,994	$30
8	Ohio	$61,844	$30
9	North Carolina	$60,128	$29

Average machine designer salary by company

Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
1	Energy Inc.	$81,739	$39.30
2	IMPCO by EControls	$80,420	$38.66
3	Remy Inc	$80,109	$38.51
4	BD	$77,902	$37.45	2
5	Randstad North America, Inc.	$72,660	$34.93	1
6	Filtration Group	$69,478	$33.40	4
7	Crayola	$67,920	$32.65
8	Dyno Nobel	$67,302	$32.36

Writing a machine designer job description
A good machine designer job description should include a few things:
- Summary of the role
- List of responsibilities
- Required skills and experience
Including a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager is also appreciated by candidates. Here's an example of a machine designer job description:
Machine designer job description example
Job DescriptionMachine Designer-Automotive In a world in which the speed and scale of change are unprecedented, there are some types of job people dream of, jobs which offer a secure career and incredible opportunities for the future. Our company has many of these jobs, drawing on a huge range of projects, job lines and experiences. We have a current opening for a Machine Designer and if you desire a stable career path, we would love to speak with you!What You Will Be DoingProduce assembly and detail drawings within Mechanical Engineering as assigned by Mechanical Project Engineer (MPE). Responsible for supporting the project team with tasks provided by the MPE or Engineering Manager. They are responsible for understanding the scope, following engineering
processes, designing with in the budget and releasing to meet the schedule.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES:

1. Design and/or coordinate complete drawing package for approval and release including all engineering
BOMs and system details as directed by the MPE.
2. Design complete project/item/task package in accordance with customer requirements. Specifies
components and creates BOMs.
3. Review, verify, and correct own work prior to checking by others. Ensures that details and subassemblies fit together.
4. Revise drawings as required through detailing, manufacturing, or field changes.
5. Develop cost effective, standardized designs.
7. Understand the requirement when to apply FEA
8. Support Manufacturing and Service Departments during building and installation stages as required.
9. Support project, departmental, and business goals/objectives for design direction, quality, budget, and
schedule.
10. Consistently assures the accurate design of mechanical parts, details, and drawings.
11. Effectively research purchased parts to ensure good quality and evaluate delivery date to provide timely
delivery of machine.
12. Consistently aware of engineering cost and time budgets pursuant to job.
13. Understand and consistently adhere to standard operating procedures relating to this position.
14. Apply knowledge of safety and quality in all designs and assures proper release of completed BOMs to
production control.What You Need for this Position- Have a strong command of AutoCad Software
- Experience with Solidworks and powertrain is a must.
- Machine design experience
- Transmission assembly specific automotive experience
- Ability to work with mathematical concepts such as probability and statistical inference, and fundamentals of
plane and solid geometry, algebra, and trigonometry.What's In It for Youcompetitive salary DOE (80-110K)
health care programs
401K
PTOSo, if you are a Mechanical Engineer with experience, please apply today! - Applicants must be authorized to work in the U.S.

CyberCoders, Inc is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.

Your Right to Work – In compliance with federal law, all persons hired will be required to verify identity and eligibility to work in the United States and to complete the required employment eligibility verification document form upon hire.
Post your job
There are various strategies that you can use to find the right machine designer for your business:
- Consider promoting from within or recruiting from your existing workforce.
- Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
- Attend job fairs at local colleges to find candidates who meet your education requirements.
- Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to reach potential job candidates.
Post your job online:
- Post your machine designer job on Zippia to find and recruit machine designer candidates who meet your exact specifications.
- Use field-specific websites.
- Post a job on free websites.
Interview candidates
To successfully recruit machine designers, your first interview needs to engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. You can go into more detail about the company, the role, and the responsibilities during follow-up interviews.
Remember to include a few questions that allow candidates to expand on their strengths in their own words. Asking about their unique skills might reveal things you'd miss otherwise. At this point, good candidates can move on to the technical interview.
The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.
Send a job offer and onboard your new machine designer
Once you've selected the best machine designer candidate for the job, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, this letter should include details about the benefits and perks you offer the candidate. Ensuring that your offer is competitive is essential, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and you should be open to discussion. After you reach an agreement, the final step is formalizing the agreement with a contract.
You should also follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that you've filled the position.
After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new machine designer. Human Resources and the hiring manager should complete Employee Action Forms. Human Resources should also ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc., and that new employee files are created.
Go through the hiring process checklist
- Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
- Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
- Define job responsibilities and requirements
- Establish budget and timeline
- Determine hiring decision makers for the role
- Write job description
- Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
- Promote the job internally
- Process applications through applicant tracking system
- Review resumes and cover letters
- Shortlist candidates for screening
- Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
- Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
- Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
- Conduct background checks on top candidates
- Check references of top candidates
- Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
- Extend offer to top candidate(s)
- Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
- Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
- Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
- Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)
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How much does it cost to hire a machine designer?

Recruiting machine designers involves both the one-time costs of hiring and the ongoing costs of adding a new employee to your team. Your spending during the hiring process will mostly be on things like promoting the job on job boards, reviewing and interviewing candidates, and onboarding the new hire. Ongoing costs will obviously involve the employee's salary, but also may include things like benefits.

You can expect to pay around $69,937 per year for a machine designer, as this is the median yearly salary nationally. This can vary depending on what state or city you're hiring in. If you're hiring for contract work or on a per-project basis, hourly rates for machine designers in the US typically range between $23 and $48 an hour.

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Updated December 18, 2025

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How to hire a machine designer