How to hire a Product Engineer

How to hire a product engineer, step by step

Here's a step-by-step product 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 product engineer job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new product engineer
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a Product Engineer do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you post your product engineer job, you should take the time to determine what type of worker your business needs. While certain jobs definitely require a full-time employee, it's sometimes better to find a product engineer for hire on a part-time basis or as a contractor.

   Determine Employee vs Contractor Status

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

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   Hiring the perfect product engineer also involves considering the ideal background you'd like them to have. Depending on what industry or field they have experience in, they'll bring different skills to the job. It's also important to consider what levels of seniority and education the job requires and what kind of salary such a candidate would likely demand.

   Here's a comparison of product engineer salaries for various roles:

   Type Of Product Engineer	Description	Hourly Rate
   Product 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.	$32-56
   Mechanical Design Engineer	A mechanical design engineer specializes in designing various mechanical devices that will be vital in developing machinery or large structures. One of their primary responsibilities revolves around conducting thorough research and analysis, establishing layouts and prototypes, producing progress reports, and working alongside fellow engineers and skilled professionals... Show More	$28-46
   Research And Development Engineer	Research and development engineers generally execute research and tests on product ideas, develop new products, and perform redesigns. They are employed in many industries, including manufacturing, electrical, and science-based companies... Show More	$35-64

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common Skills:

   • CAD
   • Product Design
   • Project Management
   • C++
   • Solidworks
   • Product Development
   • Continuous Improvement
   • Data Analysis
   • Java
   • UL
   • DFMEA
   • Product Quality
   • Sigma
   • GD

   Check All Skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Lead team to achieve project objectives and report results to Sr. Management.
   • Manage outsourced $500k mix mode voice security IC development.
   • Manage various EHS activities at the Fremont, California facility.
   • Manage coordination of APQP, component timing, and technical resource allocation for commercial issues.
   • Manage the manufacturing of defense and aerospace electro-mechanical print circuit boards from prototype to production level.
   • Sketch concepts (Creo), coordinate prototype builds, provide assembly instructions and troubleshoot build issues.

   More Product Engineer duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your product engineer job description is one of the best ways to attract top talent. A product engineer can vary based on:

   • Location. For example, product engineers' average salary in arkansas is 40% less than in california.
   • Seniority. Entry-level product engineers 42% less than senior-level product engineers.
   • Certifications. A product engineer with certifications usually earns a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for an established firm or a new start-up company can make a big difference in a product engineer's salary.

   Average product engineer salary

   $89,645yearly

   $43.10 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level product engineer salary

   $68,000 yearly salary

   Updated May 12, 2025

   Average product engineer salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. Salary	Hourly Rate
   1	California	$114,648	$55
   2	Washington	$101,834	$49
   3	Oregon	$91,136	$44
   4	Arizona	$90,656	$44
   5	Texas	$89,662	$43
   6	New York	$88,876	$43
   7	Michigan	$80,810	$39
   8	Illinois	$80,542	$39
   9	Minnesota	$78,368	$38
   10	Ohio	$77,989	$37
   11	Georgia	$74,466	$36
   12	North Carolina	$73,763	$35
   13	Iowa	$73,650	$35
   14	Indiana	$72,869	$35
   15	Mississippi	$72,849	$35

   Average product engineer salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average Salary	Hourly Rate	Job Openings
   1	Meta	$150,699	$72.45	882
   2	Apple	$140,801	$67.69	901
   3	Google	$138,179	$66.43	153
   4	Asana	$128,917	$61.98
   5	Zenefits	$128,679	$61.86
   6	Amazon	$127,997	$61.54	1,187
   7	NVIDIA	$126,619	$60.87	147
   8	Etsy	$126,557	$60.84	21
   9	Microsoft	$126,291	$60.72	16
   10	GainSpan	$124,890	$60.04
   11	Nutanix	$124,531	$59.87	13
   12	Reddit	$124,037	$59.63	32
   13	Brocade Services Corporation	$123,720	$59.48
   14	Mixpanel	$120,368	$57.87	1
   15	Twilio	$117,859	$56.66	2
   16	Adobe	$117,156	$56.33	64
   17	JPMorgan Chase & Co.	$113,323	$54.48	316
   18	Palo Alto Networks	$113,140	$54.39	52
   19	Superior Energy Services	$112,863	$54.26	1
   20	Applied Materials	$112,377	$54.03	99

4. Writing a Product Engineer Job Description

   A job description for a product engineer role includes a summary of the job's main responsibilities, required skills, and preferred background experience. Including a salary range can also go a long way in attracting more candidates to apply, and showing the first name of the hiring manager can also make applicants more comfortable. As an example, here's a product engineer job description:

   Product Engineer job description example

   Job purpose
   To lead the development, validation and approval of Suspension & Steering products, support new product launch, quality performance, revenue growth and supply base.
   Drive progress in line with our beliefs of; inclusion, integrity, excellence, responsibility and collaboration.
   
   The position reports to the Global Engineering Manager.
   
   Key responsibilities
   
   Develop, validate, and approve Suspension & Steering products: Control Arms, Wishbones, Ball Joints, Bushes, Tie Rod Ends, Link StabilizersLead and execute local development, validation and approval as directed by the Global Engineering lead using Global Technical Requirements and DVP&R process.Technical support and evaluation for product design and manufacturing process.Technical review and approval of drawing, PPAP and manufacturing.Technical evaluation and approval for changes on products and documentation from suppliers and maintain updates.Perform technical assessments on suppliers, audit and approval, and supplier management.Quality support for Steering & Suspension products - quality concern resolution from supplier and field in collaboration with the Supplier Quality Engineer.Maintain engineering and product data in the IT tools and systems.Provide marketing support for the new products, new technology, and competitor benchmarking.
   
   What we're looking for
   Bachelor degree or above, major in automotive engineering, mechanical engineering or related. Minimum 5 years relevant engineering & process experience in Steering and / or Suspension products.Solid understanding of engineering development process.Good problem solving skills and project planning ability required.Experience in supporting purchasing for supplier capability assessment and product quality issue analysis and improvement.Excellent communication skills, written and oral, fluent in English.Driven and self-managed, while being a good team player and contributor
   #LI-CP1
   #LI-Hybrid
   
   Internal Use Only: Salary
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5. Post your job

   To find the right product engineer for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important sources of talent for any company is its existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and current employees and ask if they know or have worked with product engineers they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit product engineers who meet your education requirements.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter now have more than 3.5 billion users, and you can use social media to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

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

6. Interview candidates

   Your first interview with product 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.

   You should also ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match the ideal candidate profile you developed earlier. Candidates good enough for the next step can complete 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 product engineer

   Once you have selected a candidate for the product 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.

   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.

   To prepare for the new product 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 product engineer?