Side-by-side distribution
Manufacturing Engineer
$147,750
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 53.7%
- Live roles
- 925
Plant Manager
$172,500
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 34.9%
- Live roles
- 63
Highest-paying jobs
Research Engineer, Production Model Post-Training
Software Engineer, Production Engineering
Principal Production Engineer
Software Engineer, Production Engineering
Sr. Staff Production Engineer - Data Platform
Staff Site Reliability Engineer, Production Engineering
Manufacturing Software Test Engineer
Principal Software Engineer, Manufacturing Systems
Manufacturing Design Engineer (NPI & Robotics)
Software Engineer, Manufacturing Test Systems
Highest-paying jobs
Plant Manager
Staff Product Manager, AI Factory
Senior Engineering Manager, Factory Core
Manager, Plant Control Engineering
Technical Account Manager - Token Factory
Plant Operations Manager (Jet Fuel Plant)
Manufacturing Plant Manager
Lead Project Manager, Factory Development
Sr Manager, Data Factory Operation
Construction Manager – Owner's Representative (cGMP Plant Expansion)
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
Anduril Industries
|
$170,000 | 130 |
Relativity Space
|
$144,500 | 33 |
Archer
|
$171,100 | 15 |
Rocket Lab Corporation
|
$133,750 | 10 |
mthree Recruiting Portal
|
$55,750 | 10 |
|
Fluidstack
|
$217,500 | 9 |
|
Hadrian Automation
|
$152,500 | 9 |
SpaceX
|
$108,750 | 9 |
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| NE New Era Technology | $135,000 | 3 |
|
Fluidstack
|
$353,000 | 1 |
|
Domino Data Lab
|
$262,500 | 1 |
|
Hadrian Automation
|
$250,000 | 1 |
|
Helion
|
$220,000 | 1 |
|
Nebius
|
$202,500 | 1 |
|
Twelve
|
$198,000 | 1 |
|
Faraday Future
|
$190,000 | 1 |
Manufacturing Engineer salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| Seattle | $217,500 | 14 |
| Austin | $217,500 | 12 |
| New York | $190,500 | 23 |
| San Francisco | $190,500 | 32 |
| Chicago | $175,000 | 7 |
| Boston | $172,500 | 8 |
| Atlanta | $146,500 | 7 |
| Los Angeles | $145,000 | 32 |
| Denver | $121,000 | 4 |
Manufacturing Engineer vs Plant Manager: which pays more?
The median for Manufacturing Engineer is $147,750 per year (typically $120,000–$170,000), versus $172,500 for Plant Manager ($134,063–$199,125). That puts Plant Manager about 17% ahead at the median.
Both figures are computed live from active listings on JobsRadar and normalized to annualized USD, so Manufacturing Engineer and Plant Manager 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.