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Project controls specialist salary

Average project controls specialist salary

$85,159

$40.94 hourly rate

Entry-level project controls specialist salary
$60,000 yearly salary
Updated January 8, 2025

Average Project Controls Specialist Salary

As of October 2025, the average salary for a Project Controls Specialist stands at $85,159 per year, or approximately $41 per hour. This salary can vary depending on several factors, including geographic location, years of experience, and the specific industry. Professionals in this field are essential in monitoring project performance and implementing necessary adjustments to meet project goals.

Salary Breakdown by Experience Level

Entry-level Project Controls Specialists can expect to earn significantly less, with starting salaries around $60,000. As specialists gain experience, salaries can increase substantially, with seasoned professionals earning upwards of $100,000. The growth potential is notable, especially in industries such as construction and engineering.

Where Can You Earn More?

Project Controls Specialists in states like California and New York often command higher salaries, reflecting the demand in urban areas. For example, professionals in California report average salaries exceeding $95,000. Understanding these regional pay variations can help job seekers target locations that offer better compensation packages.

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Where can a Project Controls Specialist earn more?

Compare salary by location
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Columbus, OH$110,509
Kansas City, MO$70,148
Compare salary by company
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Google$137,187
National Railroad Passenger Corporation$91,476

Project controls specialist salaries by experience level

Experience levelAvg. salaryHourly rate
Entry-level project controls specialist$44,700$21.51
Mid-level project controls specialist$75,700$36.39
Senior-level project controls specialist$112,000$53.94

Project controls specialist salary estimates from across the web

Based on the latest salary information compiled by Zippia, Salary.com, Glassdoor, Ziprecruiter and Comparably, the average salary for a project controls specialist typically falls between $55,540 and $122,243.
zippia
$85,159yearly
glassdoor[1]
$79,728yearly
comparably[2]
$55,540yearly
Salary.com[3]
$122,243yearly
ZipRecruiter[4]
$91,494yearly

Average project controls specialist salary by state

The average project controls specialist salary in Idaho, California, and New Mexico are the highest in the U.S. The lowest average project controls specialist salary states are Minnesota, Mississippi, and Iowa.

  • State view
  • County view
Average salary:

Highest paying states for project controls specialists

RankStateAvg. salaryHourly rate
1New Mexico$98,530$47.37
2Idaho$101,617$48.85
3West Virginia$91,215$43.85
4Nevada$85,951$41.32
5Maine$87,309$41.98
6California$101,260$48.68
7New Hampshire$84,607$40.68
8Wisconsin$81,532$39.20
9Oregon$96,050$46.18
10Utah$87,423$42.03
11Texas$88,246$42.43
12Indiana$82,795$39.81
13Montana$94,225$45.30
14North Carolina$86,995$41.82
15Michigan$79,357$38.15
16Alaska$92,610$44.52
17Virginia$86,112$41.40
18South Carolina$81,309$39.09
19Massachusetts$88,641$42.62
20North Dakota$78,135$37.56
21South Dakota$78,605$37.79
22Ohio$75,645$36.37
23Connecticut$83,439$40.11
24Tennessee$75,580$36.34
25New Jersey$86,479$41.58
26Arizona$81,424$39.15
27Pennsylvania$79,067$38.01
28Oklahoma$75,509$36.30
29Hawaii$87,131$41.89
30Rhode Island$80,669$38.78
31Washington$81,716$39.29
32Maryland$81,018$38.95
33New York$80,920$38.90
34Nebraska$70,908$34.09
35Louisiana$73,096$35.14
36Minnesota$69,552$33.44
37Missouri$70,285$33.79
38Georgia$74,668$35.90
39Alabama$69,835$33.57
40Delaware$75,010$36.06
41Florida$76,764$36.91
42Vermont$77,292$37.16
43Wyoming$75,660$36.38
44Illinois$75,288$36.20
45Iowa$67,755$32.57
46Arkansas$66,877$32.15
47Mississippi$69,406$33.37
48Kentucky$66,613$32.03
49Kansas$64,593$31.05
50District of Columbia$70,542$33.91
51Colorado$70,093$33.70

Highest paying cities for project controls specialists

The highest-paying cities for project controls specialists are San Francisco, CA, Anchorage, AK, and Boston, MA.

RankCityAvg. salaryHourly rate
1San Francisco, CA$110,509$53.13
2Anchorage, AK$93,097$44.76
3Boston, MA$88,775$42.68
4Austin, TX$88,510$42.55
5Greenville, NC$88,139$42.37
6Jersey City, NJ$86,552$41.61
7Reston, VA$86,321$41.50
8North Las Vegas, NV$85,281$41.00
9Seattle, WA$82,245$39.54
10Baltimore, MD$81,267$39.07
11New York, NY$81,056$38.97
12Greenville, SC$80,530$38.72
13Philadelphia, PA$79,652$38.29
14Detroit, MI$79,544$38.24
15Oak Ridge, TN$76,123$36.60
16Chicago, IL$75,380$36.24
17Atlanta, GA$74,143$35.65
18Mobile, AL$73,243$35.21
19Pueblo, CO$72,226$34.72
20Kansas City, MO$70,148$33.73

Project controls specialist salary details

A project controls specialist's salary ranges from $60,000 a year at the 10th percentile to $119,000 at the 90th percentile.

Average project controls specialist salary graph
Average project controls specialist salary graph, trends, and summary

What is a project controls specialist's salary?

PercentileAnnual salaryMonthly salaryHourly rate
90th Percentile$119,000$9,917$57
75th Percentile$101,000$8,417$49
Average$85,159$7,097$41
25th Percentile$71,000$5,917$34
10th Percentile$60,000$5,000$29

Highest paying project controls specialist jobs

The highest paying types of project controls specialists are director of construction, controls project manager, and project superintendent.

Job titleAnnual salaryMonthly salaryHourly rateJob openings
Field Manager$68,695$5,725$33.0379,908
Site Manager$59,192$4,933$28.4647,853
Cost Engineer$87,901$7,325$42.2665,278
Construction Manager$81,313$6,776$39.0944,431
Construction Coordinator$60,160$5,013$28.9251,167
General Contractor$66,602$5,550$32.0266,218

Top companies hiring project controls specialists now:

  1. Burns & McDonnell jobs (33)
  2. Parsons jobs (18)
  3. Fluor Corporation jobs (245)
  4. Ball jobs (12)
  5. SAIC jobs (14)

Which companies pay project controls specialists the most?

Project controls specialist salaries at Google and Marathon Petroleum are the highest-paying according to our most recent salary estimates. In addition, the average project controls specialist salary at companies like Bayer and Pacifi are highly competitive.

RankCompanyAverage salaryHourly rate
1Google$137,187$65.96
2Marathon Petroleum$110,064$52.92
3Bayer$106,401$51.15
4Pacifi$102,519$49.29
5Tucson Electric Power$99,388$47.78
6Tesla$95,904$46.11
7Burns & McDonnell$95,727$46.02
8ICONMA$94,429$45.40
9ANSER$93,636$45.02
10By Light Professional IT Services$92,705$44.57
11Bowman Consulting Group$92,344$44.40
12Ambitech Engineering$92,290$44.37
13Port of Portland$92,175$44.31
14GAS Unlimited$92,092$44.27
15ESPO$91,880$44.17
16HDR$91,803$44.14
17McDermott International$91,718$44.10
18Hargrove Engineers + Constructors$91,631$44.05
19Babcock & Wilcox$91,531$44.01
20National Railroad Passenger Corporation$91,476$43.98

Wage gap by gender, race and education

$86,000$84,800$83,600$82,400$81,200$80,000
MaleFemale

Project Controls Specialist salary by industry

The average project controls specialist salary varies across industries:

  • The average project controls specialist salary in the professional industry is $90,141, the highest of any industry.
  • The average project controls specialist salary in the finance industry is $87,298.
  • Project controls specialists in the government industry earn an average salary of $77,873, the lowest of any industry.

Highest paying industries for project controls specialists

RankIndustryAverage salaryHourly rate
1Professional$90,141$43.34
2Energy$87,298$41.97
3Construction$85,974$41.33
4Technology$83,773$40.28
5Government$77,873$37.44

High paying project controls specialist jobs

Project controls specialist salary trends

The average project controls specialist salary has risen by $11,340 over the last ten years. In 2014, the average project controls specialist earned $73,819 annually, but today, they earn $85,159 a year. That works out to a 9% change in pay for project controls specialists over the last decade.

Compare project controls specialist salaries for cities or states with the national average over time.

Average project controls specialist salary over time

Compare project controls specialist salaries for individual cities or states with the national average.

Project controls specialist salary by year

YearAvg. salaryHourly rate% Change
2025$85,200$40.94+2.0%
2024$83,500$40.13+2.0%
2023$81,800$39.34+2.1%
2022$80,100$38.49+2.3%
2021$78,300$37.62+2.1%

Recently added project controls specialist salaries

CompanyJobLocationDate addedSalary
Explore CharlestonProject Controls SpecialistChicago, IL06/29/2025$88,600
Explore CharlestonProject Controls SpecialistSan Francisco, CA06/29/2025$106,200
Explore CharlestonProject Controls SpecialistMinneapolis, MN06/29/2025$88,600
CumminggroupProject Controls SpecialistLos Angeles, CA06/29/2025$84,400
Marathon PetroleumProject Controls SpecialistRobinson, IL06/28/2025$78,800
Cumming Management GroupProject Controls SpecialistLos Angeles, CA06/28/2025$84,400
HNTB CorporationProject Controls Specialist ILouisville, KY06/28/2025$79,356
HNTB CorporationProject Controls Specialist IColumbus, OH06/28/2025$79,356
HNTB CorporationProject Controls Specialist IIndianapolis, IN06/28/2025$79,356
EnfraProject Controls Specialist, SeniorHouston, TX06/28/2025$101,610

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