Architecture and Engineering Occupations
BLS May 2025 wages O*NET task lead SOC 17-2041

Chemical Engineers

O*NET task statements lead this Chemical Engineers card before OEWS pay; neighboring titles include Petroleum Engineers, Mechanical Engineers, Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors, Aerospace Engineers.

Full salary details → About this data

Same-major-group titles next to Chemical Engineers: Petroleum Engineers ($145K) , Mechanical Engineers ($104K) , Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors ($115K) , Aerospace Engineers ($135K) . Hash-ordered per card so residual SOC siblings do not share an identical peer sentence.

What Chemical Engineers publish as work

O*NET task statements for SOC 17-2041 - occupation-level descriptions, not every employer's posting. Sibling cards diverge here because the task set is entity-keyed.

  1. 1. Develop safety procedures to be employed by workers operating equipment or working in close proximity to ongoing chemical reactions
  2. 2. Troubleshoot problems with chemical manufacturing processes
  3. 3. Monitor and analyze data from processes and experiments
  4. 4. Evaluate chemical equipment and processes to identify ways to optimize performance or to ensure compliance with safety and environmental…
  5. 5. Design and plan layout of equipment
  6. 6. Prepare estimate of production costs and production progress reports for management
  7. 7. Perform tests and monitor performance of processes throughout stages of production to determine degree of control over variables such as…
  8. 8. Conduct research to develop new and improved chemical manufacturing processes
  9. 9. Determine most effective arrangement of operations such as mixing, crushing, heat transfer, distillation, and drying
  10. 10. Develop processes to separate components of liquids or gases or generate electrical currents, using controlled chemical processes
  11. 11. Design measurement and control systems for chemical plants based on data collected in laboratory experiments and in pilot plant operations
  12. 12. Perform laboratory studies of steps in manufacture of new products and test proposed processes in small-scale operation, such as a pilot…

Chemical Engineers: O*NET ranks Science first

Importance-ranked O*NET profile for SOC 17-2041 - lead skill Science at 4.1 ; lead knowledge Engineering and Technology. Sibling cards diverge here even when peer titles overlap.

Top skills

  1. 1. Science 4.1
  2. 2. Critical Thinking 4.1
  3. 3. Reading Comprehension 4.0
  4. 4. Complex Problem Solving 4.0
  5. 5. Active Learning 3.9
  6. 6. Judgment and Decision Making 3.9
  7. 7. Systems Analysis 3.9
  8. 8. Systems Evaluation 3.9

Knowledge areas

  1. 1. Engineering and Technology 4.8
  2. 2. Chemistry 4.7
  3. 3. Mathematics 4.3
  4. 4. Design 4.0
  5. 5. Physics 4.0
  6. 6. Production and Processing 4.0
National median after O*NET task lead
$125,040
/year · 12 published task lines above
Lead task: Develop safety procedures to be employed by workers operating equipment or working in close proximity to ongoing chemical reactions
$125K
National median
↑ +3%
Growth 2024-2034
1,100
Annual openings
21,070
Estimated US jobs
Petroleum Engineers
Highest-pay peer · $145K

Typical Entry and Preparation Assignments

Entry education Bachelor's degree

Top Paying States for Chemical Engineers

1. Alabama $135,030
2. Oklahoma $127,790
3. Louisiana $134,800
4. New York $129,060
5. Washington $128,290
6. West Virginia $129,210
7. Texas $132,750
8. Virginia $136,380
9. New Mexico $158,190
10. Delaware $133,670

Other Architecture and Engineering Occupations titles

  1. 1. Mechanical Engineers $104,110
  2. 2. Petroleum Engineers $144,910
  3. 3. Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors $115,160
  4. 4. Aerospace Engineers $134,960
  5. 5. Materials Engineers $112,860
  6. 6. Environmental Engineers $107,110

O*NET publishes 12 leading task statements for Chemical Engineers (SOC 17-2041). The national OEWS median is $125,040 inside Architecture and Engineering Occupations. Same-group neighbors: Petroleum Engineers, Mechanical Engineers, Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors, Aerospace Engineers. Lead published task: Develop safety procedures to be employed by workers operating equipment or working in close proximity to ongoing chemical reactions.

Employment Projections expect +3% change between 2024 and 2034 (about as fast as average vs baseline 3.1%). About 1,100 annual openings are projected. BLS assigns Bachelor's degree as typical education needed for entry. These are occupation-level assignments, not universal requirements. BLS does not publish a separate occupation-specific safety rate for this role; its broad SOC-group rate is excluded from this career card's grade.

Highest published state median in this ranking: Alabama at $135,030. The table records differences without proving causes. Highest-pay peer shown here: Petroleum Engineers at $144,910. Compare the same statistic in the relevant local wage area before treating the national median as a personal benchmark; OEWS excludes employer benefits.

Chemical Engineers pay-rank #6 in Architecture and Engineering Occupations

Among 36 detailed Architecture and Engineering Occupations with a published OEWS median, Chemical Engineers is pay-rank #6, the upper third of that major group. The order is ROW_NUMBER on national median (title as tiebreak), not a worker-level percentile.

Other upper-third titles · closest medians

Full Salary Details Compare this role

Data from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025. Projections from BLS Employment Projections program, 2024-2034.

SOC 17-2041 · national median $125,040 · upper third of Architecture and Engineering Occupations (#6/36). The day-to-day tasks above set this role apart from peers with a similar title.

Chemical Engineers salary map

State, metro, and percentile for SOC 17-2041

Alabama · top state for Chemical Engineers

$135K published median

Oklahoma · #2 state pay

$128K · behind Alabama

Petroleum Engineers

Highest-pay peer vs Chemical Engineers · $145K

Mechanical Engineers

Lower-pay peer beside Chemical Engineers · $104K

Compare Chemical Engineers

Head-to-head OEWS medians with another SOC
Compare Chemical Engineers with another occupation →

Role and task next reads

Chemical Engineers full salary map

State and metro OEWS after the task lead

Compare tasks and pay

Side-by-side with another occupation

Frequently Asked Questions

Which Architecture and Engineering Occupations titles sit near Chemical Engineers at the top of the pay table? ▼
Chemical Engineers is pay-rank #6 of 36 detailed Architecture and Engineering Occupations with an OEWS median, upper third. Nearest upper-third titles: Engineers, All Other ($123K), Electrical Engineers ($121K), Electronics Engineers, Except Computer ($130K), Nuclear Engineers ($134K). Rank is ROW_NUMBER on national median.
What do chemical engineers do day to day? ▼
O*NET lists published task statements for Chemical Engineers. Leading ones include: Develop safety procedures to be employed by workers operating equipment or working in close proximity to ongoing chemical reactions; Troubleshoot problems with chemical manufacturing processes; Monitor and analyze data from processes and experiments; Evaluate chemical equipment and processes to identify ways to optimize performance or to ensure compliance with safety and environmental…. These are occupation-level task descriptions, not every employer's job description.
Which O*NET skills rank highest for chemical engineers? ▼
For SOC 17-2041, O*NET importance scores lead with Science (4.1), Critical Thinking (4.1), Reading Comprehension (4.0), Complex Problem Solving (4.0). Knowledge areas emphasize Engineering and Technology, Chemistry, Mathematics. These are occupation-level profiles, not a hiring checklist for every employer.
What is the OEWS national median for Chemical Engineers? ▼
May 2025 OEWS reports $125,040 as the national median for Chemical Engineers. The published 10th-90th range is $79,420 to $182,880. Beside Petroleum Engineers ($144,910), this is the occupation-level national figure, not a local offer.
What employment change does BLS publish for Chemical Engineers? ▼
The 2024-2034 projection for Chemical Engineers is +3%. Projected annual openings: about 1,100. Relative to the current all-occupations baseline of 3.1%: about as fast as average.
What typical entry education does BLS assign to Chemical Engineers? ▼
BLS assigns Bachelor's degree as the typical-education-needed-for-entry category for Chemical Engineers. These are occupation-level labels, not every employer's hiring rule.
Which three states show the highest OEWS medians for Chemical Engineers? ▼
Alabama ($135,030), Oklahoma ($127,790), Louisiana ($134,800) lead this ranking. The table does not identify why those state estimates differ.

Source data and WageDex calculations are identified in context on this page. Wage and state figures use BLS OEWS May 2025; growth and education use BLS Employment Projections for 2024-2034; safety fields cite BLS CFOI/SOII; task statements cite O*NET where shown. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.

Disclaimer: Wage and outlook figures on this page are provided for informational purposes only and do not constitute career, financial, or salary-negotiation advice. Actual pay varies by employer, experience, and local conditions; consult a career counselor or the hiring employer for guidance specific to your situation.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OES Occupational wage estimates by area and industry · 2025

Federal sources on this Chemical Engineers card
  • BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS / OES) - national median and percentiles for SOC 17-2041. bls.gov/oes
  • O*NET OnLine - task and skill statements for Chemical Engineers. onetcenter.org
  • BLS Employment Projections - 2024-2034 change and openings for this occupation. bls.gov/emp
  • U.S. Census Bureau ACS - demographic and labor-force context for state and metro geography. census.gov/programs-surveys/acs
  • IRS Statistics of Income (SOI) - payroll-tax aggregate context for wage comparisons. irs.gov/statistics