How to hire a mechanical design engineer

How to hire a mechanical design engineer, step by step

Here's a step-by-step mechanical design engineer hiring guide:

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

What does a mechanical design engineer do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring a mechanical design engineer, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

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

   Yes

   No

   You should also consider the ideal background you'd like them a mechanical design engineer to have before you start to hire. For example, what industry or field would you like them to have experience in, what level of seniority or education does the job require, and how much it'll cost to hire a mechanical design engineer that fits the bill.

   This list shows salaries for various types of mechanical design engineers.

   Type of Mechanical Design Engineer	Description	Hourly rate
   Mechanical Design Engineer	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.	$28-46
   Engineer	Engineers are highly trained professionals who determine the feasibility of various projects, usually related to the construction industry. They are considered experts in mathematics and science, two disciplines that they need to use in designing and coming up with plans for projects... Show more	$31-62
   Product Engineer	A product engineer specializes in designing and developing commercial materials and services. They are primarily responsible for conducting thorough research and analysis of the latest trends and marketing conditions to come up with new ideas and products for the public... Show more	$32-56

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • CAD
   • Mechanical Design
   • GD
   • Creo
   • FEA
   • UL
   • Engineering Design
   • Mechanical Systems
   • Design Reviews
   • Product Design
   • Project Management
   • Product Development
   • HVAC
   • Prototyping

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage installation and troubleshooting documents for ultra precision CNC grinding machines.
   • Manage the successful release to manufacturing of several generations of Ethernet switches.
   • Engineer, manage and implement configuration and installation of complex Ethernet network backbones.
   • Manage automation projects including purchasing, scheduling fabrication and assembly, debugging, and delivery to customer.
   • Provide mechanical design and sustaining engineering expertise to troubleshoot manufacturing defect trends and achieve a more robust and producible product.
   • Supervise product development in coherence with UL standards and manufacturers.

   More mechanical design engineer duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in the mechanical design engineer job description is a good way to get more applicants. A mechanical design engineer salary can be affected by several factors, such as the location of the job, the level of experience, education, certifications, and the employer's prestige.

   For example, the average salary for a mechanical design engineer in North Carolina may be lower than in California, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level mechanical design engineer. Additionally, a mechanical design engineer with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

   Average mechanical design engineer salary

   $75,821yearly

   $36.45 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level mechanical design engineer salary

   $59,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 17, 2025

   Average mechanical design engineer salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$106,784	$51
   2	Washington	$91,124	$44
   3	Nevada	$85,971	$41
   4	Massachusetts	$85,814	$41
   5	District of Columbia	$85,079	$41
   6	Arizona	$82,465	$40
   7	Illinois	$76,133	$37
   8	New York	$75,598	$36
   9	Texas	$74,956	$36
   10	Georgia	$73,000	$35
   11	Michigan	$72,596	$35
   12	South Carolina	$69,035	$33
   13	Indiana	$68,937	$33
   14	Ohio	$68,859	$33
   15	Florida	$68,766	$33
   16	Missouri	$67,464	$32
   17	Wisconsin	$66,094	$32
   18	North Carolina	$65,493	$31
   19	Kansas	$63,966	$31

   Average mechanical design engineer salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Meta	$144,418	$69.43	566
   2	Apple	$126,295	$60.72	601
   3	Zoox	$119,018	$57.22	44
   4	NVIDIA	$116,040	$55.79	182
   5	Koch Industries	$112,639	$54.15	7
   6	Genentech	$106,306	$51.11	32
   7	Western Digital	$104,627	$50.30	20
   8	Amazon	$103,279	$49.65	543
   9	Texas Instruments	$102,483	$49.27	32
   10	Joby Aviation	$102,381	$49.22	41
   11	Rivian	$101,176	$48.64	45
   12	Lam Research	$101,048	$48.58	15
   13	Finisar	$100,834	$48.48
   14	Kiewit	$100,436	$48.29	410
   15	KLA	$100,288	$48.22	84
   16	Harley-Davidson	$98,729	$47.47	4
   17	Intuitive Surgical	$98,587	$47.40	31
   18	Altra Industrial Motion	$97,787	$47.01
   19	Nikola Motor	$96,315	$46.31
   20	Tesla	$95,630	$45.98	188

4. Writing a mechanical design engineer job description

   A good mechanical design engineer 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 mechanical design engineer job description:

   Mechanical design engineer job description example

   This position is part of the Newport News Shipbuilding (NNS) Washington Technical Office (WTO), responsible for providing design and engineering support to service Navy platforms. NNS Engineering offers a challenging, high paced, team environment with opportunity to excel and endless possibilities for professional growth. Three main tracks are available: engineering design, project technical, and technical liaison. Engineering Design is responsible for Electrical, Structural, Mechanical and Fluid engineering design of variety of ship and systems and components, particularly modeling and simulation. Project Technical Engineering is responsible for analysis and technical cognizance of specific systems. Technical liaison is responsible for interfacing with Navy technical personnel and NNS subject matter engineering experts to help resolve emergent issues in production, design, or post-delivery ship support. The NNS WTO is well suited for any engineering discipline to include Mechanical, Structural, Electrical, Systems, Industrial, Nuclear, and others.
   
   Researches, plans, designs and develops mechanical products and systems such as instruments, controls, robots, engines, machines and mechanical, thermal hydraulic or heat transfer systems for production, transmission, measurement, and use of energy. Applies research to the planning, design, development, and testing of mechanical and/or electromechanical systems, instruments, controls, engines, and/or machines.
   **Basic Qualifications**
   
   5 Years with Bachelors in Science; 3 Years with Masters; 0 Years with PhD.- Newport News Shipbuilding requires a Bachelor's Degree in engineering from an ABET accredited program.
   
   **Preferred Qualifications**
   
   Five years experience in design, operation, or maintenance of complex mechanical systems, maritime preferred.
   
   
   + Department: E05 WASHINGTON OFFICE
   
   + Entity: NN SHIPBUILDING (0265)
   
   + Travel Required: Yes, 10%-25% of the time
   
   + Shift: 1st
   
   + Relocation: Relocation assistance will be available
   
   + Education: Bachelor's Degree
   
   + Virtual/Telework Opportunity: No - Not eligible for telework
   
   + US Citizenship Required for this Position: Yes
   
   + Clearance Type: No - Clearance Not Required to Start
   
   **EEO Statement:**
   
   HII is an Equal Opportunity/Vets and Disabled Employer. U.S. Citizenship may be required for certain positions.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find mechanical design engineers for your business, try out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important talent pools for any company is its current employees.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and your current work to ask if they know any mechanical design engineers they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit entry-level mechanical design engineers with the right educational background.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter have more than 3.5 billion users, and they're a great place for company branding and reaching potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your mechanical design engineer job on Zippia to find and recruit mechanical design engineer candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Your first interview with mechanical design engineer candidates should focus on their interest in the role and background experience. As the hiring process goes on, you can learn more about how they'd fit into the company culture in later rounds of interviews.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match your ideal candidate profile. If you think a candidate is good enough for the next step, you 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.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new mechanical design engineer

   Once you have selected a candidate for the mechanical design engineer position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the agreement with a contract.

   It's equally important to follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   To prepare for the new mechanical design engineer first day, you should share an onboarding schedule with them that covers their first period on the job. You should also quickly complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Finally, Human Resources must ensure a new employee file is created for internal record keeping.

8. 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 mechanical design engineer?