Contract Engineer

Contract Engineer Salary

$62.5K

$95K

$206K

$101,781

/year

$48.93

/hour

Contract Engineer Salary Comparison by Location

Nationwide

United States

$101,781

Columbus

Ohio

$98,310

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    How much does a Contract Engineer make?

    As of Jul 30, 2026, the average annual pay for a Contract Engineer in the United States is $101,781 a year.

    Just in case you need a simple salary calculator, that works out to be approximately $48.93 an hour. This is the equivalent of $1,957/week or $8,481/month.

    While ZipRecruiter is seeing annual salaries as high as $206,000 and as low as $62,500, the majority of Contract Engineer salaries currently range between $85,500 (25th percentile) to $105,500 (75th percentile) with top earners (90th percentile) making $113,500 annually across the United States. The average pay range for a Contract Engineer varies greatly (by as much as 20000), which suggests there may be many opportunities for advancement and increased pay based on skill level, location and years of experience.

    A Contract Engineer in your area makes on average $98,310 per year, or $3,471 (3.410%) less than the national average annual salary of $101,781. Ohio ranks number 40 out of 50 states nationwide for Contract Engineer salaries.

    To estimate the most accurate annual salary range for Contract Engineer jobs, ZipRecruiter continuously scans its database of millions of active jobs published locally throughout America.

    Find your next high paying job as a Contract Engineer on ZipRecruiter today.

    What are Top 10 Highest Paying Cities for Contract Engineer Jobs

    We've identified 10 cities where the typical salary for a Contract Engineer job is above the national average. Topping the list is Portola Valley, CA, , with Grass Valley, CA, and Manteca, CA, close behind in the second and third positions. Manteca, CA, beats the national average by $32,507 (31.9%), and Portola Valley, CA, furthers that trend with another $40,081 (39.4%) above the $101,781 average.

    With these 10 cities having average salaries higher than the national average, the opportunities for economic advancement by changing locations as a Contract Engineer appears to be exceedingly fruitful.

    Finally, another factor to consider is the average salary for these top 10 cities varies very little at 11% between Portola Valley, CA, and Commerce City, CO, , 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 a Contract Engineer role.

    City

    Annual Salary

    Hourly Wage

    Portola Valley, CA

    $141,862

    $68.20

    Grass Valley, CA

    $136,404

    $65.58

    Manteca, CA

    $134,288

    $64.56

    Orange, CA

    $133,490

    $64.18

    Belmont, MA

    $132,845

    $63.87

    Pennington County, SD

    $131,525

    $63.23

    Wellesley, MA

    $131,441

    $63.19

    Temecula, CA

    $130,399

    $62.69

    Methuen, MA

    $129,421

    $62.22

    Commerce City, CO

    $126,264

    $60.70

    What are Top 5 Best Paying Related Contract Engineer Jobs in the U.S.

    We found a few related jobs that pay more than jobs in the Contract Engineer category.

    For example Integration Engineer jobs pay as much as $22,494 (22.1%) more than the average Contract Engineer salary of $101,781. If you're qualified, finding work as a Integration Engineer may help you make more money than that of the average Contract Engineer position.

    Job Title

    Annual Salary

    Hourly Wage

    Integration Engineer

    $124,275

    $59.75

    Navigation Engineer

    $118,348

    $56.90

    Requirements Engineer

    $109,226

    $52.51

    Mechanical Energy Engineer

    $101,250

    $48.68

    Manufacturing Engineer Ii

    $85,613

    $41.16

    About Our Data

    ZipRecruiter salary estimates, histograms, trends and comparisons are derived from both employer job postings and third party data sources.

    Infographic detailing Contract Engineer salary across the United States as of July 2026. Displays a bar chart with salary percentiles, a national average salary of $101,781 per year or $48.93 an hour, and a color-coded map showing state-by-state salary variations.