What is the average Weapons and Defense Systems Engineer salary?

$188K a year on average and $193K at the median, across 100 open Weapons and Defense Systems Engineer postings at companies that state pay (November 2026). The median is the better guide: a few very high offers pull the average up.

What is the typical range?

The middle half of the postings offer $154K to $221K a year. A quarter offer less and a quarter offer more.

Which companies advertise the highest Weapons and Defense Systems Engineer pay?

CHAOS Industries ($214K), True Anomaly ($200K), Anduril Industries ($193K), by the median of their open postings that state pay (three postings or more).

Is a weapons and defense systems engineer a high-paying job?

The median Weapons and Defense Systems Engineer posting advertises $193K a year, more than the median of all 55,899 job postings with pay on Jobs Every Hour ($174K). That is 11% above the middle of the market.

How much can you earn as a weapons and defense systems engineer?

A tenth of the postings offer $244K a year or more; the highest open Weapons and Defense Systems Engineer role advertises up to $336K. Pay rises with level: see the table by level.

What is the Weapons and Defense Systems Engineer salary per hour and per month?

The median of $193K a year is about $93 an hour (2,080 working hours) and $16,083 a month before tax. The middle half of postings: $74 to $106 an hour.

Which skills pay more for Weapons and Defense Systems Engineer roles?

Postings that ask for Risk management (+$30K, 15 postings), Aviation (+$17K, 22 postings), Agile (+$16K, 12 postings) advertise more than the $193K median of all Weapons and Defense Systems Engineer postings with pay.

Where do these figures come from?

From the pay ranges employers print in their own job postings, read from their careers pages every hour. The midpoint of each range is counted. These are advertised ranges for open roles, mostly in the United States and in US dollars, not what people are actually paid.

Weapons and Defense Systems Engineer Salary: $188K Average, $193K

Weapons and Defense Systems Engineer salary by level

Lead roles advertise a median of $222K, 15% more than senior roles ($193K). The level comes from the job title; titles without a level word are counted separately.

Level	Median salary	Middle half	Roles
Senior	$193K	$168K–$210K	24
Lead and above	$222K	$213K–$244K	37
No level in the title	$154K	$138K–$177K	38

Weapons and Defense Systems Engineer salary by location

Name	Median salary	Roles counted
🇺🇸United States	$193K	100
🇺🇸California	$193K	78

Skills that pay more for Weapons and Defense Systems Engineer roles

Skill	Median with it	Above the median	Postings
Risk management	$222K	+$30K	15
Aviation	$210K	+$17K	22
Agile	$209K	+$16K	12
Control systems	$208K	+$14K	13
C	$204K	+$11K	16

Top-paying companies

Name	Median salary	Roles counted
CHAOS Industries	$214K	8
True Anomaly	$200K	8
Anduril Industries	$193K	70
Ursa Major	$122K	6

Highest-paying open Weapons and Defense Systems Engineer roles

All weapons and defense systems engineer jobs

Chief Engineer, Advanced Effects (Hypersonics)Anduril Industries · 🇺🇸Costa Mesa, California, United States$191K - $336KLead and aboveComputer VisionSecurity clearanceSensor fusion6w
Chief Engineer, Advanced Effects (Missiles)Anduril Industries · 🇺🇸Costa Mesa, California, United States$191K - $336KLead and aboveComputer VisionSecurity clearanceSensor fusion2mo
Software Engineer, Missile Defense Simulation (II - Principal)True Anomaly · 🇺🇸Denver, CO; Long Beach, CA$90K - $325KLead and abovePythonC++CI/CD5w
Senior Staff Engineer, Weapons Integration - Ranger (R6323)Shield AI · 🇺🇸Seattle, WA, US$217K - $325KLead and aboveSecurity clearanceHardware testingAviation2w
GNC Engineer, Missile DefenseTrue Anomaly · 🇺🇸Denver, CO; Long Beach, CA$115K - $300KPythonC++Agile7mo
Chief Engineer, Electronic Warfare PayloadCHAOS Industries · 🇺🇸El Segundo, California, United States$220K - $300KLead and aboveSAP5w
Chief Engineer, Long-Range Missile SystemsCHAOS Industries · 🇺🇸El Segundo, California, United States$220K - $300KLead and aboveSAP5w
Chief Engineer, Hypersonic Missile and InterceptorUrsa Major · 🇺🇸Berthoud, Colorado$185K - $250KLead and above3mo
Senior Program Manager, Missile Warning & TrackingMuon Space · 🇺🇸San Jose, CA$206K - $232KSeniorSecurity clearanceTest planningExport controls5w
Ordnance EngineerCowboyspace · 🇺🇸Kent, Washington$140K - $200KPower AutomateHigh-performance computing2mo
Senior Mechanical Engineer, InterceptorGITAI · 🇺🇸Los Angeles, California, United States$155K - $200KSenior3mo
Senior Research and Development (R&D) Networked Electronic Warfare Test EngineerSilvus Technologies · 🇺🇸Los Angeles$140K - $195KSeniorPythonC++7w
Senior ISR Staff OfficerAvalore, LLC · 🇺🇸Arlington, Virginia, United States$140K - $155KLead and aboveSecurity clearanceEnglishMicrosoft Office3w
Program Chief Engineer, Solid Missile SystemsUrsa Major · 🇺🇸Berthoud, Colorado$118K - $147KLead and above4mo
Senior Systems Engineer – Weapons SystemsQuest Defense Systems & Solutions, Inc. · 🇺🇸Cedar Rapids, Iowa$100K - $140KSeniorPythonC++Jira3w
Business Development Manager, Federal ISRSpire · 🇺🇸Washington DC$101K - $123KHubSpotSales NavigatorEvent marketing5mo

Questions about Weapons and Defense Systems Engineer pay

What is the average Weapons and Defense Systems Engineer salary?: $188K a year on average and $193K at the median, across 100 open Weapons and Defense Systems Engineer postings at companies that state pay (November 2026). The median is the better guide: a few very high offers pull the average up.
What is the typical range?: The middle half of the postings offer $154K to $221K a year. A quarter offer less and a quarter offer more.
Which companies advertise the highest Weapons and Defense Systems Engineer pay?: CHAOS Industries ($214K), True Anomaly ($200K), Anduril Industries ($193K), by the median of their open postings that state pay (three postings or more).
Is a weapons and defense systems engineer a high-paying job?: The median Weapons and Defense Systems Engineer posting advertises $193K a year, more than the median of all 55,899 job postings with pay on Jobs Every Hour ($174K). That is 11% above the middle of the market.
How much can you earn as a weapons and defense systems engineer?: A tenth of the postings offer $244K a year or more; the highest open Weapons and Defense Systems Engineer role advertises up to $336K. Pay rises with level: see the table by level.
What is the Weapons and Defense Systems Engineer salary per hour and per month?: The median of $193K a year is about $93 an hour (2,080 working hours) and $16,083 a month before tax. The middle half of postings: $74 to $106 an hour.
Which skills pay more for Weapons and Defense Systems Engineer roles?: Postings that ask for Risk management (+$30K, 15 postings), Aviation (+$17K, 22 postings), Agile (+$16K, 12 postings) advertise more than the $193K median of all Weapons and Defense Systems Engineer postings with pay.
Where do these figures come from?: From the pay ranges employers print in their own job postings, read from their careers pages every hour. The midpoint of each range is counted. These are advertised ranges for open roles, mostly in the United States and in US dollars, not what people are actually paid.

Weapons and Defense Systems Engineer salary: $193K median