Side-by-side distribution
Civil Engineer
$107,500
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 36.4%
- Live roles
- 781
Petroleum Engineer
$98,200
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 9.1%
- Live roles
- 44
Highest-paying jobs
Senior Civil Engineer - Water/Sewer/Gas - Rail and Transit
Principal Civil Engineer - TS/SCI Polygraph Required
Resident Engineer - Heavy Civil - Gateway Hudson Tunnel Project
Principal Civil Engineer
Civil Engineer, Capacity Delivery
Senior Supervising Engineer/Civil Design Discipline Lead – Water & Wastewater
Engineer V, Civil Structural
Senior Civil Engineer - TS/SCI Poly Required
Civil Engineer
Environmental Engineer, Civil
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| PA Parsons | $119,200 | 32 |
Wilson & Company
|
$107,000 | 23 |
| SE SEH | $122,500 | 17 |
|
Leidos
|
$103,113 | 17 |
AtkinsRéalis
|
$113,200 | 12 |
LaBella Associates
|
$125,000 | 11 |
BKF
|
$117,000 | 11 |
Olsson
|
$119,000 | 9 |
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
Chevron
|
$90,608 | 2 |
Ovintiv
|
$200,000 | 1 |
Residential Home Health and Hospice
|
$88,400 | 1 |
Civil Engineer salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| Seattle | $174,226 | 5 |
| Los Angeles | $156,250 | 4 |
| Austin | $147,500 | 7 |
| New York | $123,190 | 28 |
| San Francisco | $109,750 | 6 |
| Denver | $105,306 | 18 |
| Chicago | $103,113 | 7 |
| Boston | $102,981 | 8 |
Civil Engineer vs Petroleum Engineer: which pays more?
The median for Civil Engineer is $107,500 per year (typically $90,100–$130,000), versus $98,200 for Petroleum Engineer ($84,604–$131,000). That puts Civil Engineer about 9% ahead at the median.
Both figures are computed live from active listings on JobsRadar and normalized to annualized USD, so Civil Engineer and Petroleum 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.