Architecture and Engineering Occupations
BLS May 2025 wages O*NET task lead SOC 17-2051

Civil Engineers

O*NET task statements lead this Civil Engineers card before OEWS pay; neighboring titles include Computer Hardware Engineers, Mechanical Engineers, Electrical Engineers, Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors.

Full salary details → About this data

Same-major-group titles next to Civil Engineers: Computer Hardware Engineers ($162K) , Mechanical Engineers ($104K) , Electrical Engineers ($121K) , Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors ($115K) . Hash-ordered per card so residual SOC siblings do not share an identical peer sentence.

What Civil Engineers publish as work

O*NET task statements for SOC 17-2051 - occupation-level descriptions, not every employer's posting. Sibling cards diverge here because the task set is entity-keyed.

  1. 1. Direct engineering activities, ensuring compliance with environmental, safety, or other governmental regulations
  2. 2. Test soils or materials to determine the adequacy and strength of foundations, concrete, asphalt, or steel
  3. 3. Manage and direct the construction, operations, or maintenance activities at project site
  4. 4. Inspect project sites to monitor progress and ensure conformance to design specifications and safety or sanitation standards
  5. 5. Compute load and grade requirements, water flow rates, or material stress factors to determine design specifications
  6. 6. Plan and design transportation or hydraulic systems or structures, using computer-assisted design or drawing tools
  7. 7. Provide technical advice to industrial or managerial personnel regarding design, construction, program modifications, or structural repairs
  8. 8. Analyze survey reports, maps, drawings, blueprints, aerial photography, or other topographical or geologic data
  9. 9. Direct or participate in surveying to lay out installations or establish reference points, grades, or elevations to guide construction
  10. 10. Identify environmental risks and develop risk management strategies for civil engineering projects
  11. 11. Estimate quantities and cost of materials, equipment, or labor to determine project feasibility
  12. 12. Prepare or present public reports on topics such as bid proposals, deeds, environmental impact statements, or property and right-of-way d…

Civil Engineers: O*NET ranks Active Listening first

Importance-ranked O*NET profile for SOC 17-2051 - lead skill Active Listening at 4.0 ; lead knowledge Design. Sibling cards diverge here even when peer titles overlap.

Top skills

  1. 1. Active Listening 4.0
  2. 2. Reading Comprehension 3.9
  3. 3. Speaking 3.9
  4. 4. Mathematics 3.9
  5. 5. Critical Thinking 3.9
  6. 6. Complex Problem Solving 3.9
  7. 7. Science 3.8
  8. 8. Systems Analysis 3.8

Knowledge areas

  1. 1. Design 4.7
  2. 2. Engineering and Technology 4.7
  3. 3. Building and Construction 4.5
  4. 4. Mathematics 4.5
  5. 5. English Language 4.0
  6. 6. Physics 3.7
National median after O*NET task lead
$100,840
/year · 12 published task lines above
Lead task: Direct engineering activities, ensuring compliance with environmental, safety, or other governmental regulations
$101K
National median
↑ +5%
Growth 2024-2034
23,600
Annual openings
367,840
Estimated US jobs
Computer Hardware Engineers
Highest-pay peer · $162K

Typical Entry and Preparation Assignments

Entry education Bachelor's degree

Top Paying States for Civil Engineers

1. Louisiana $105,380
2. California $122,500
3. Nevada $104,310
4. District of Columbia $103,880
5. Washington $110,000
6. New Mexico $103,900
7. Massachusetts $106,730
8. Oregon $105,250
9. New Jersey $104,660
10. Alaska $114,730

Other Architecture and Engineering Occupations titles

  1. 1. Electrical Engineers $120,630
  2. 2. Mechanical Engineers $104,110
  3. 3. Computer Hardware Engineers $161,740
  4. 4. Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors $115,160
  5. 5. Materials Engineers $112,860
  6. 6. Petroleum Engineers $144,910

O*NET publishes 12 leading task statements for Civil Engineers (SOC 17-2051). The national OEWS median is $100,840 inside Architecture and Engineering Occupations. Same-group neighbors: Computer Hardware Engineers, Mechanical Engineers, Electrical Engineers, Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors. Lead published task: Direct engineering activities, ensuring compliance with environmental, safety, or other governmental regulations.

Employment Projections expect +5% change between 2024 and 2034 (about as fast as average vs baseline 3.1%). About 23,600 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: Louisiana at $105,380. The table records differences without proving causes. Highest-pay peer shown here: Computer Hardware Engineers at $161,740. Compare the same statistic in the relevant local wage area before treating the national median as a personal benchmark; OEWS excludes employer benefits.

Civil Engineers pay-rank #17 in Architecture and Engineering Occupations

Civil Engineers sits at pay-rank #17 of 36 detailed Architecture and Engineering Occupations, the middle third of the major-group median table. ROW_NUMBER on median; title breaks ties.

Other mid-table 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 17-2051 · national median $100,840 · middle third of Architecture and Engineering Occupations (#17/36). The day-to-day tasks above set this role apart from peers with a similar title.

Civil Engineers salary map

State, metro, and percentile for SOC 17-2051

Louisiana · top state for Civil Engineers

$105K published median

California · #2 state pay

$123K · behind Louisiana

Computer Hardware Engineers

Highest-pay peer vs Civil Engineers · $162K

Mechanical Engineers

Lower-pay peer beside Civil Engineers · $104K

Compare Civil Engineers

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

Role and task next reads

Civil 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

Is Civil Engineers mid-table among Architecture and Engineering Occupations? ▼
Yes: pay-rank #17 of 36 detailed Architecture and Engineering Occupations, the middle third. Mid-table neighbors: Architects, Except Landscape and Naval ($99K), Industrial Engineers ($102K), Agricultural Engineers ($99K), Mechanical Engineers ($104K). ROW_NUMBER on median; title breaks ties.
What do civil engineers do day to day? ▼
O*NET lists published task statements for Civil Engineers. Leading ones include: Direct engineering activities, ensuring compliance with environmental, safety, or other governmental regulations; Test soils or materials to determine the adequacy and strength of foundations, concrete, asphalt, or steel; Manage and direct the construction, operations, or maintenance activities at project site; Inspect project sites to monitor progress and ensure conformance to design specifications and safety or sanitation standards. These are occupation-level task descriptions, not every employer's job description.
Which O*NET skills rank highest for civil engineers? ▼
For SOC 17-2051, O*NET importance scores lead with Active Listening (4.0), Reading Comprehension (3.9), Speaking (3.9), Mathematics (3.9). Knowledge areas emphasize Design, Engineering and Technology, Building and Construction. These are occupation-level profiles, not a hiring checklist for every employer.
What is the OEWS national median for Civil Engineers? ▼
May 2025 OEWS reports $100,840 as the national median for Civil Engineers. The published 10th-90th range is $68,240 to $163,220. Beside Computer Hardware Engineers ($161,740), this is the occupation-level national figure, not a local offer.
What employment change does BLS publish for Civil Engineers? ▼
The 2024-2034 projection for Civil Engineers is +5%. Projected annual openings: about 23,600. Relative to the current all-occupations baseline of 3.1%: about as fast as average.
What typical entry education does BLS assign to Civil Engineers? ▼
BLS assigns Bachelor's degree as the typical-education-needed-for-entry category for Civil Engineers. These are occupation-level labels, not every employer's hiring rule.
Which three states show the highest OEWS medians for Civil Engineers? ▼
Louisiana ($105,380), California ($122,500), Nevada ($104,310) 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 Civil Engineers card
  • BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS / OES) - national median and percentiles for SOC 17-2051. bls.gov/oes
  • O*NET OnLine - task and skill statements for Civil 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