Side-by-side distribution
Automotive Engineer
$170,000
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 56.9%
- Live roles
- 204
Materials Engineer
$155,000
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 48.4%
- Live roles
- 64
Highest-paying jobs
Staff Robotics Software Engineer, Air Vehicle Autonomy
Staff Robotics Software Engineer, Air Vehicle Autonomy
Staff Robotics Software Engineer, Air Vehicle Autonomy
Principal Systems Engineer, Air Vehicle Software
Principal Systems Engineer, Air Vehicle Systems
Mission Software Engineer, Vehicle Software, Computer Vision
Senior Robotics Software Engineer, Vehicle Software
Sr Staff Vehicle Controls Engineer
Senior Manufacturing Engineer (Arc Vehicle)
Senior Test Engineer (Arc Vehicle)
Highest-paying jobs
Principal Nuclear Materials Engineer
Materials & Processes Engineer
Senior Materials Engineer, Ceramic Fabrication
Senior Materials Engineer, Diagnostics
Senior Materials Engineer, Dielectrics
Staff Materials & Processes Engineer, Structural Composites
Materials Engineer
Materials Engineer
Research Engineer, Materials Science
Senior Materials Engineer (Metal 3D Printing)
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
|
Anduril Industries
|
$193,000 | 41 |
|
Relativity Space
|
$165,000 | 12 |
|
Inversion
|
$150,250 | 10 |
Scout Motors
|
$122,500 | 9 |
Rocket Lab Corporation
|
$106,000 | 7 |
Applied Intuition
|
$175,000 | 5 |
|
ALSO
|
$265,000 | 3 |
Kodiak
|
$195,000 | 3 |
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
SpaceX
|
$108,750 | 6 |
|
Helion
|
$200,000 | 5 |
|
Anduril Industries
|
$170,000 | 5 |
|
Relativity Space
|
$155,000 | 3 |
|
Neuralink
|
$116,900 | 2 |
|
Archer
|
$232,500 | 1 |
| DE DeepMind | $171,500 | 1 |
|
Freeform
|
$162,500 | 1 |
Automotive Engineer salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| Seattle | $193,000 | 8 |
| Boston | $193,000 | 5 |
| Los Angeles | $140,000 | 3 |
Materials Engineer salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles | $132,500 | 3 |
Automotive Engineer vs Materials Engineer: which pays more?
The median for Automotive Engineer is $170,000 per year (typically $136,750–$193,900), versus $155,000 for Materials Engineer ($108,750–$170,750). That puts Automotive Engineer about 10% ahead at the median.
Both figures are computed live from active listings on JobsRadar and normalized to annualized USD, so Automotive Engineer and Materials Engineer are compared on equal terms regardless of the currency each role was originally posted in. Only roles that publish a salary range feed the medians; numbers refresh every few hours as new roles post and older ones close, so this comparison reflects the market right now rather than a fixed survey. Use it as a directional benchmark when weighing one path against the other.