Automotive Design Engineer Salary
$40.5K - $51K
3% of jobs
$51K - $61.5K
11% of jobs
$66.6K is the 25th percentile. Wages below this are outliers.
$61.5K - $72K
23% of jobs
The median wage is $78.6K / yr.
$72K - $82.5K
21% of jobs
$82.5K - $93K
16% of jobs
$93.7K is the 75th percentile. Wages above this are outliers.
$93K - $103.5K
9% of jobs
$103.5K - $114K
6% of jobs
$114K - $124.5K
3% of jobs
$124.5K - $135K
3% of jobs
$135K - $145.5K
3% of jobs
$145.5K - $156K
1% of jobs
$40.5K
$80K
$158K
$88,150
/year
$42.38
/hour
Automotive Design Engineer Salary Comparison by Location
Nationwide
United States
$88,150
Columbus
Ohio
$85,144
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How much does an Automotive Design Engineer make?
As of Aug 8, 2026, the average annual pay for an Automotive Design Engineer in the United States is $88,150 a year.
Just in case you need a simple salary calculator, that works out to be approximately $42.38 an hour. This is the equivalent of $1,695/week or $7,345/month.
While ZipRecruiter is seeing annual salaries as high as $158,000 and as low as $40,500, the majority of Automotive Design Engineer salaries currently range between $68,000 (25th percentile) to $98,500 (75th percentile) with top earners (90th percentile) making $133,000 annually across the United States. The average pay range for an Automotive Design Engineer varies greatly (by as much as 30500), which suggests there may be many opportunities for advancement and increased pay based on skill level, location and years of experience.
An Automotive Design Engineer in your area makes on average $85,144 per year, or $3,006 (3.410%) less than the national average annual salary of $88,150. Ohio ranks number 30 out of 50 states nationwide for Automotive Design Engineer salaries.
To estimate the most accurate annual salary range for Automotive Design Engineer jobs, ZipRecruiter continuously scans its database of millions of active jobs published locally throughout America.
Find your next high paying job as an Automotive Design Engineer on ZipRecruiter today.
What are Top 10 Highest Paying Cities for Automotive Design Engineer Jobs
We've identified 10 cities where the typical salary for an Automotive Design Engineer job is above the national average. Topping the list is Kirkland, WA, , with Cupertino, CA, and Berkeley, CA, close behind in the second and third positions. Berkeley, CA, beats the national average by $19,784 (22.4%), and Kirkland, WA, furthers that trend with another $23,818 (27.0%) above the $88,150 average.
With these 10 cities having average salaries higher than the national average, the opportunities for economic advancement by changing locations as an Automotive Design Engineer appears to be exceedingly fruitful.
Finally, another factor to consider is the average salary for these top 10 cities varies very little at 7% between Kirkland, WA, and Santa Clara, CA, , reinforcing the limited potential for much wage advancement. The possibility of a lower cost of living may be the best factor to use when considering location and salary for an Automotive Design Engineer role.
City | Annual Salary | Hourly Wage |
|---|---|---|
Kirkland, WA | $111,968 | $53.83 |
Cupertino, CA | $108,754 | $52.29 |
Berkeley, CA | $107,934 | $51.89 |
Sitka, AK | $106,192 | $51.05 |
Rayville, LA | $105,232 | $50.59 |
Wyoming, WY | $105,129 | $50.54 |
Sunnyvale, CA | $104,872 | $50.42 |
Andover, MA | $104,738 | $50.35 |
San Francisco, CA | $103,855 | $49.93 |
Santa Clara, CA | $103,526 | $49.77 |
What are Top 5 Best Paying Related Automotive Design Engineer Jobs in the U.S.
We found a few related jobs that pay more than jobs in the Automotive Design Engineer category.
For example Senior Ic Design Engineer jobs pay as much as $46,427 (52.7%) more than the average Automotive Design Engineer salary of $88,150. If you're qualified, finding work as an Senior Ic Design Engineer may help you make more money than that of the average Automotive Design Engineer position.
Job Title | Annual Salary | Hourly Wage |
|---|---|---|
Senior Ic Design Engineer | $134,577 | $64.70 |
Senior Process Engineer | $121,116 | $58.23 |
Staff Supplier Quality Engineer | $111,474 | $53.59 |
Emi Emc Engineer | $107,956 | $51.90 |
Propulsion Engineer | $102,825 | $49.44 |
About Our Data
ZipRecruiter salary estimates, histograms, trends and comparisons are derived from both employer job postings and third party data sources.
