GD&T salary: $154K median
The median advertised GD&T salary is $154K a year, and the middle half of postings offer $128K to $172K: counted from 674 open roles that publish a yearly US-dollar range: about $74 an hour or $12,792 a month. A tenth of the postings offer $201K or more. Advertised ranges, not verified pay.
Check an offer against these figuresAll GD&T jobs
$154Kmedian advertised salary
$128K – $172Kmiddle half of roles
$156Kaverage advertised salary
674roles counted
GD&T salary by level
Lead roles advertise a median of $203K, 19% more than senior roles ($170K). The level comes from the job title; titles without a level word are counted separately.
| Level | Median salary | Middle half | Roles |
|---|---|---|---|
| Senior | $170K | $158K–$176K | 235 |
| Lead and above | $203K | $176K–$222K | 84 |
| No level in the title | $132K | $115K–$154K | 348 |
GD&T salary by location
| Name | Median salary | Roles counted |
|---|---|---|
| 🇺🇸San Francisco Bay Area | $185K | 67 |
| 🇺🇸Seattle, WA | $160K | 43 |
| 🇺🇸California | $158K | 480 |
| 🇺🇸United States | $154K | 649 |
| 🇺🇸Los Angeles, CA | $146K | 173 |
Skills that pay more for GD&T roles
| Skill | Median with it | Above the median | Postings |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sensor fusion | $170K | +$16K | 156 |
| Security clearance | $170K | +$16K | 169 |
| SPC | $170K | +$16K | 161 |
| Computer Vision | $170K | +$16K | 161 |
| Composites | $168K | +$14K | 71 |
Top-paying companies
| Name | Median salary | Roles counted |
|---|---|---|
| OpenAI | $279K | 6 |
| Shield AI | $214K | 26 |
| Zoox | $201K | 6 |
| Muon Space | $194K | 9 |
| Oura | $190K | 5 |
| Figure | $185K | 8 |
| Skydio | $182K | 4 |
| Swarmaero | $178K | 3 |
| Whoop | $172K | 4 |
| Anduril Industries | $170K | 156 |
| Archer | $166K | 10 |
| Astranis | $165K | 9 |
| Cowboyspace | $165K | 15 |
| 1X | $164K | 10 |
| Portal Space Systems | $160K | 7 |
| Valar Atomics | $160K | 11 |
| Varda Space Industries | $160K | 15 |
| K2 Space | $158K | 45 |
| Rocket Lab | $152K | 39 |
| Lucid Motors | $150K | 12 |
| Gravitics, Inc | $148K | 5 |
| Apex Technology | $148K | 7 |
| Crusoe | $145K | 4 |
| Criticalloop | $145K | 5 |
| Amca | $142K | 15 |
Highest-paying open GD&T roles
All GD&T jobs- Mechanical Engineer, Hardware SystemsOpenAI · 🇺🇸San Francisco$266K - $455KData centers3D modelingHigh-performance computing
- Mechanical Engineer, PCBA Test Infrastructure, RoboticsOpenAI · 🇺🇸San Francisco$318K - $423KFirmwareMechatronicsPCB design
- Principal Combustion Devices EngineerRocket Lab · 🇺🇸Long Beach, CA$162K - $350KLead and aboveMATLABGD&TFEA
- Head of Mechanical Strategic Supply ChainAnduril Industries · 🇺🇸Costa Mesa, California, United States$260K - $345KLead and aboveComputer VisionSecurity clearancePerformance management
- Staff RF Engineer (R5991)Shield AI · 🇺🇸Seattle, WA, US$217K - $325KLead and abovePythonMATLABSecurity clearance
- Applied AI Engineer, Startups (Physical AI)Anthropic · 🇺🇸San Francisco, CA$280K - $320KLLMAIAI agents
- Senior Combustion Devices Engineer IIRocket Lab · 🇺🇸Long Beach, CA$132K - $320KSeniorMATLABGD&TFEA
- Senior Staff Engineer, Mechanical & Actuated Systems (R6307)Shield AI · 🇺🇸Seattle, WA, US$209K - $313KLead and aboveMechatronicsCADAviation
- Lead Structures Design EngineerSwarmaero · Oxnard$180K - $300KLead and aboveCADGD&TFEA
- Lead Mechanical Designer, TurbomachineryValar Atomics · 🇺🇸Torrance, California, United States$200K - $295KLead and aboveCADGD&TSiemens NX
- Principal Engineer, cUAS Lead, OmenAnduril Industries · 🇺🇸Costa Mesa, California, United States$220K - $292KLead and abovePythonC++MATLAB
- Optomechanical Engineer, StaffTrue Anomaly · 🇺🇸Denver, CO or Long Beach, CA$185K - $285KLead and aboveOpticsCADGD&T
- Hardware Design Engineering, Senior Director - Signal Connectivity Rack-Scale PlatformsAstera Labs · 🇺🇸San Jose, California, United States$220K - $280KLead and aboveAirflowAWSMandarin
- Fabrication Shop ManagerSesame · Bellevue$175K - $280KOpticsCNC machiningGD&T
- Head of HardwarePicogrid · 🇺🇸El Segundo, CA$220K - $270KLead and aboveFirmwarePCB designAnalog design
- Staff Chassis Engineer, Steering and Braking ActuationZoox · 🇺🇸Foster City, CA$195K - $269KLead and aboveJiraAgileComputer Vision
- Director, QualityOura · 🇺🇸Hybrid - San Francisco, California$226K - $266KHybridLead and aboveData qualityFirmwareHardware testing
- Propulsion Structures EngineerVast · 🇺🇸Long Beach, California, United States$138K - $265KTest planningCADGD&T
- Principal Manufacturing Engineer (Payloads)Varda Space Industries · 🇺🇸El Segundo, California, United States$182K - $263KLead and aboveTest planningMechatronicsOptics
- Principal Manufacturing Engineer (Structures)Varda Space Industries · 🇺🇸El Segundo, California, United States$182K - $263KLead and aboveCADGD&TBlueprint reading
Questions about GD&T pay
- What is the average GD&T salary?
- $156K a year on average and $154K at the median, across 674 open GD&T 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 $128K to $172K a year. A quarter offer less and a quarter offer more.
- Which companies advertise the highest GD&T pay?
- OpenAI ($279K), Shield AI ($214K), Zoox ($201K), by the median of their open postings that state pay (three postings or more).
- Is a gd&t a high-paying job?
- The median GD&T posting advertises $154K a year, less than the median of all 55,899 job postings with pay on Jobs Every Hour ($174K). That is 12% below the middle of the market.
- How much can you earn as a gd&t?
- A tenth of the postings offer $201K a year or more; the highest open GD&T role advertises up to $455K. Pay rises with level: see the table by level.
- What is the GD&T salary per hour and per month?
- The median of $154K a year is about $74 an hour (2,080 working hours) and $12,792 a month before tax. The middle half of postings: $61 to $83 an hour.
- Which skills pay more for GD&T roles?
- Postings that ask for Sensor fusion (+$16K, 156 postings), Security clearance (+$16K, 169 postings), SPC (+$16K, 161 postings) advertise more than the $154K median of all GD&T postings with pay.
- What does an entry-level gd&t make?
- 7 junior and intern GD&T postings state pay, with a median of $118K a year ($56 an hour).
- 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.
Writing about this? A sentence you can quote
The median advertised salary for GD&T roles at companies is $154K a year, and the middle half of postings offer $128K to $172K. Counted from 674 open job postings that state pay, November 2026. Source: Jobs Every Hour, https://jobseveryhour.com/salaries/gdt/
Free to use with the link.