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Lead operations engineer salary

Average lead operations engineer salary

$104,981

$50.47 hourly rate

Entry-level lead operations engineer salary
$75,000 yearly salary
Updated December 15, 2025

Average Lead Operations Engineer Salary

The average salary for a Lead Operations Engineer is approximately $104,981 per year, translating to around $50 per hour. This figure reflects the compensation across various industries, highlighting the demand for skilled professionals in this role.

Salary by State

Geographic location plays a crucial role in salary variations. States like California and New York often offer higher compensation, with salaries exceeding $120,000 in some areas. Understanding these regional differences is vital for job seekers.

Career Advancement

Experience also influences salary; entry-level positions may start around $80,000, while seasoned engineers can earn significantly more. For those aiming for leadership roles, developing specialized skills in operations management can enhance earning potential.

Job Opportunities

Explore job openings for Lead Operations Engineers on platforms like Zippia, where you can find detailed salary insights and apply for positions that match your skills and career aspirations.

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Where can a Lead Operations Engineer earn more?

Compare salary by location
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140k
120k
100k
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Columbus, OH$128,349
Overland Park, KS$89,626
Compare salary by company
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Apple$145,260
Bittrex$108,791

Lead operations engineer salary estimates from across the web

Based on the latest salary information compiled by Zippia, Glassdoor, Ziprecruiter, Comparably and Payscale, the average salary for a lead operations engineer typically falls between $74,415 and $115,825.
zippia
$104,981yearly
glassdoor[1]
$115,825yearly
comparably[2]
$91,029yearly
ZipRecruiter[3]
$111,500yearly
payscale[4]
$74,415yearly

Average lead operations engineer salary by state

The highest-paying states for lead operations engineers are California, Oregon, and West Virginia. The lowest average lead operations engineer salary states are Michigan, Minnesota, and Hawaii.

  • State view
  • County view
Average salary:

Highest paying states for lead operations engineers

RankStateAvg. salaryHourly rate
1Idaho$113,382$54.51
2Nevada$106,256$51.08
3West Virginia$115,192$55.38
4Texas$104,806$50.39
5Oregon$117,202$56.35
6Pennsylvania$104,561$50.27
7California$122,529$58.91
8New Mexico$101,330$48.72
9Utah$109,236$52.52
10Tennessee$104,454$50.22
11Massachusetts$109,429$52.61
12Arizona$106,974$51.43
13Wyoming$96,613$46.45
14Rhode Island$107,305$51.59
15Illinois$106,266$51.09
16New Hampshire$99,973$48.06
17North Carolina$96,815$46.55
18Washington$106,335$51.12
19Alabama$96,349$46.32
20New York$109,984$52.88
21Arkansas$93,172$44.79
22New Jersey$108,711$52.26
23Maryland$105,478$50.71
24District of Columbia$101,047$48.58
25Missouri$98,010$47.12
26Mississippi$94,179$45.28
27Wisconsin$95,112$45.73
28Maine$95,846$46.08
29Oklahoma$92,495$44.47
30Delaware$102,340$49.20
31Kentucky$93,060$44.74
32Nebraska$91,453$43.97
33Virginia$97,816$47.03
34Ohio$91,702$44.09
35South Dakota$89,530$43.04
36Florida$93,143$44.78
37Alaska$85,953$41.32
38Kansas$90,035$43.29
39Iowa$92,137$44.30
40Georgia$92,590$44.51
41Connecticut$99,624$47.90
42Louisiana$93,517$44.96
43South Carolina$93,042$44.73
44Michigan$87,558$42.10
45Colorado$93,937$45.16
46Indiana$88,126$42.37
47Montana$80,844$38.87
48North Dakota$82,503$39.66
49Minnesota$87,183$41.91
50Vermont$89,855$43.20
51Hawaii$87,056$41.85

Highest paying cities for lead operations engineers

The highest-paying cities for lead operations engineers are San Francisco, CA, New York, NY, and Boston, MA.

RankCityAvg. salaryHourly rate
1San Francisco, CA$128,349$61.71
2New York, NY$110,156$52.96
3Boston, MA$109,562$52.67
4Newark, NJ$108,756$52.29
5Salt Lake City, UT$108,428$52.13
6Tempe, AZ$107,033$51.46
7Seattle, WA$106,868$51.38
8Chicago, IL$106,508$51.21
9Dallas, TX$104,924$50.44
10Newark, DE$102,279$49.17
11Washington, DC$101,118$48.61
12Saint Louis, MO$98,399$47.31
13McLean, VA$97,628$46.94
14Raleigh, NC$97,423$46.84
15Littleton, CO$94,073$45.23
16Oklahoma City, OK$92,734$44.58
17Alpharetta, GA$92,726$44.58
18Des Moines, IA$92,006$44.23
19Columbus, OH$91,839$44.15
20Overland Park, KS$89,626$43.09

Lead operations engineer salary details

A lead operations engineer's salary ranges from $75,000 a year at the 10th percentile to $145,000 at the 90th percentile.

Average lead operations engineer salary graph
Average lead operations engineer salary graph, trends, and summary

What is a lead operations engineer's salary?

PercentileAnnual salaryMonthly salaryHourly rate
90th Percentile$145,000$12,083$70
75th Percentile$124,000$10,333$60
Average$104,981$8,748$50
25th Percentile$88,000$7,333$42
10th Percentile$75,000$6,250$36

Highest paying lead operations engineer jobs

The highest paying types of lead operations engineers are lead systems engineer, senior network engineer, and chief engineer.

Job titleAnnual salaryMonthly salaryHourly rateJob openings
Network Technician$68,938$5,745$33.1479,712
System Technician$43,410$3,617$20.87137,121
Systems Administrator$77,156$6,430$37.09134,500
Network Administrator$71,357$5,946$34.31106,886
Administrator$72,882$6,074$35.0467,553
Information Technology Administrator$73,195$6,100$35.19159,499

Top companies hiring lead operations engineers now:

  1. Microsoft jobs (14)
  2. Zscaler jobs (3)
  3. Schlumberger jobs (4)
  4. Edifecs jobs (6)
  5. Halliburton jobs (3)

Which companies pay lead operations engineers the most?

Lead operations engineer salaries at Apple and Google are the highest-paying according to our most recent salary estimates. In addition, the average lead operations engineer salary at companies like Koch Industries and Microsoft are highly competitive.

RankCompanyAverage salaryHourly rate
1Apple$145,260$69.84
2Google$136,033$65.40
3Koch Industries$125,853$60.51
4Microsoft$125,125$60.16
5Salesforce$123,189$59.23
6JPMorgan Chase & Co.$122,755$59.02
7Zscaler$121,182$58.26
8Cornerstone$120,664$58.01
9NBCUniversal$119,125$57.27
10The Prudential Insurance Company of America, Inc.$115,719$55.63
11AstraZeneca$115,442$55.50
12Xandr$113,762$54.69
13Edifecs$113,052$54.35
14Douglas Emmett, Inc.$110,555$53.15
15ICONMA$110,384$53.07
16Western Asset Management$110,331$53.04
17GRAIL$108,981$52.39
18Paez, Guadalupe$108,793$52.30
19Huntington Ingalls Industries$108,791$52.30
20Bittrex$108,791$52.30

Wage gap by gender, race and education

$108,000$106,400$104,800$103,200$101,600$100,000
MaleFemale

Lead operations engineer salary trends

The average lead operations engineer salary has risen by $19,157 over the last ten years. In 2014, the average lead operations engineer earned $85,824 annually, but today, they earn $104,981 a year. That works out to a 9% change in pay for lead operations engineers over the last decade.

Compare lead operations engineer salaries for cities or states with the national average over time.

Average lead operations engineer salary over time

Compare lead operations engineer salaries for individual cities or states with the national average.

Lead operations engineer salary by year

YearAvg. salaryHourly rate% Change
2025$105,000$50.47+3.3%
2024$102,000$48.81+2.3%
2023$99,200$47.70+1.2%
2022$98,100$47.15+1.7%
2021$96,400$46.34+2.4%

Recently added lead operations engineer salaries

CompanyJobLocationDate addedSalary
NtrsLead, SW DEV OPS ENGChicago, IL06/30/2025$148,949
PerficientAWS ML OPS Lead Engineer-RemoteSaint Louis, MO06/29/2025$120,000
Bass Pro ShopsLead Engineer Data OPSChicago, IL06/29/2025$114,665
Ual-ProLead Engineer Data OPSChicago, IL06/29/2025$114,665
AerotekLead Operating EngineerMcLean, VA06/27/2025$66,784
Northern TrustLead, SW DEV OPS ENGChicago, IL06/26/2025$148,949
United AirlinesLead Engineer Data OPSChicago, IL06/24/2025$114,665
Accenture Federal ServicesOperations Engineering LeadArlington, VA06/20/2025$108,400
ParsonsMichigan Transportation Engineering and Operations LeadTroy, MI06/20/2025$128,700
JLLLead Operating EngineerBloomington, IN06/17/2025$80,000

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