Payload Engineer Salary
$59.5K - $72.5K
14% of jobs
$80.5K is the 25th percentile. Wages below this are outliers.
$72.5K - $85.5K
18% of jobs
$85.5K - $98.5K
12% of jobs
The median wage is $103.7K / yr.
$98.5K - $111.5K
16% of jobs
$111.5K - $124.5K
12% of jobs
$128.1K is the 75th percentile. Wages above this are outliers.
$124.5K - $137.5K
13% of jobs
$137.5K - $150.5K
7% of jobs
$150.5K - $163.5K
3% of jobs
$163.5K - $176.5K
0% of jobs
$176.5K - $189.5K
1% of jobs
$189.5K - $202.5K
3% of jobs
$59.5K
$105.5K
$203K
$111,632
/year
$53.67
/hour
Payload Engineer Salary Comparison by Location
Nationwide
United States
$111,632
Columbus
Ohio
$107,825
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How much does a Payload Engineer make?
As of Jul 29, 2026, the average annual pay for a Payload Engineer in the United States is $111,632 a year.
Just in case you need a simple salary calculator, that works out to be approximately $53.67 an hour. This is the equivalent of $2,146/week or $9,302/month.
While ZipRecruiter is seeing annual salaries as high as $203,000 and as low as $59,500, the majority of Payload Engineer salaries currently range between $80,500 (25th percentile) to $132,500 (75th percentile) with top earners (90th percentile) making $162,000 annually across the United States. The average pay range for a Payload Engineer varies greatly (by as much as 52000), which suggests there may be many opportunities for advancement and increased pay based on skill level, location and years of experience.
A Payload Engineer in your area makes on average $107,825 per year, or $3,807 (3.410%) less than the national average annual salary of $111,632. Ohio ranks number 40 out of 50 states nationwide for Payload Engineer salaries.
To estimate the most accurate annual salary range for Payload Engineer jobs, ZipRecruiter continuously scans its database of millions of active jobs published locally throughout America.
Find your next high paying job as a Payload Engineer on ZipRecruiter today.
What are Top 10 Highest Paying Cities for Payload Engineer Jobs
We've identified 10 cities where the typical salary for a Payload Engineer job is above the national average. Topping the list is Kentville, NS, , with Whitehorse, YT, and Carcross, YT, close behind in the second and third positions. Carcross, YT, beats the national average by $33,015 (29.6%), and Kentville, NS, furthers that trend with another $34,026 (30.5%) above the $111,632 average.
With these 10 cities having average salaries higher than the national average, the opportunities for economic advancement by changing locations as a Payload Engineer appears to be exceedingly fruitful.
Finally, another factor to consider is the average salary for these top 10 cities varies very little at 3% between Kentville, NS, and Courtenay, BC, , 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 Payload Engineer role.
City | Annual Salary | Hourly Wage |
|---|---|---|
Kentville, NS | $145,658 | $70.03 |
Whitehorse, YT | $144,732 | $69.58 |
Carcross, YT | $144,647 | $69.54 |
Haines Junction, YT | $144,153 | $69.30 |
North Cowichan, BC | $143,729 | $69.10 |
Duncan, BC | $143,176 | $68.83 |
Oak Bay, BC | $142,915 | $68.71 |
Victoria, BC | $142,310 | $68.42 |
Alberton, PE | $140,982 | $67.78 |
Courtenay, BC | $140,603 | $67.60 |
What are Top 5 Best Paying Related Payload Engineer Jobs in the U.S.
We found a few related jobs that pay more than jobs in the Payload Engineer category.
For example Microsoft Hardware Engineer jobs pay as much as $34,598 (31.0%) more than the average Payload Engineer salary of $111,632. If you're qualified, finding work as a Microsoft Hardware Engineer may help you make more money than that of the average Payload Engineer position.
Job Title | Annual Salary | Hourly Wage |
|---|---|---|
Microsoft Hardware Engineer | $146,230 | $70.30 |
Senior Electronics Design Engineer | $129,218 | $62.12 |
Verification And Validation Engineer | $108,152 | $52.00 |
Germany Mechanical Engineer | $102,878 | $49.46 |
Nuclear Analyst | $74,833 | $35.98 |
About Our Data
ZipRecruiter salary estimates, histograms, trends and comparisons are derived from both employer job postings and third party data sources.
