15 Best States For Aerospace Engineers

Space is an important frontier in the best states for aerospace engineers.

Whenever I think of engineers, scientists, or mathematicians, I’m immediately in awe of the work they do because it’s an area of expertise I haven’t mastered or gotten remotely close to understanding. I know math is incredibly important, but I don’t like it or care about it and I’m proud of using my iPhone calculator to figure out what to tip at a restaurant and that’s it. Space seems really interesting to study and think about, though, and if I were to enter any scientific field it would probably be something related to space simply because it would make me feel like Dana Scully. She’s a doctor, but same thing I guess.

Aerospace engineering is primarily concerned with the development or space and aircraft. Aeronautical and astronautical engineering are the branches within it. These engineers basically design and work with anything that flies like aircraft, spacecraft, missiles, and satellites. There are a lot of skills you need and a lot of things you need to know. Physics is a major part of this career because of the air and space factors. If you’re not a spacey person, maybe the best states for advertising salesmen is more your speed.

In order to create this list of best states for aerospace engineers, we took data of the annual mean salary and number of employees from each state from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. 17 states were missing from the statistics, so that’s something to keep in mind here. Additionally, we took a look at the cost of living index from MERIC. It’s important to know how the cost of living factors into the salary in each state. The best states will be the ones with the lowest cost of living and the highest average annual salary. If your salary is high and the cost of living is too high, then the salary doesn’t mean as much, which is why we took this into consideration.

Without further ado, let’s take a look at the best states for aerospace engineers.

15. North Carolina

Cost of living index: 94.2

Annual mean salary: $99,760

Hourly mean wage: $47.96

Number of employees: 710

14. Michigan

Cost of living index: 88.2

Annual mean salary: $94,810

Hourly mean wage: $45.58

Number of employees: 1,330

13. Minnesota

Cost of living index: 101.1

Annual mean salary: $110,550

Hourly mean wage: $53.14

Number of employees: 340

12 .Illinois

Cost of living index: 95.5

Annual mean salary: $102,020

Hourly mean wage: $50.49

Number of employees: 370

11. Kansas

Cost of living index: 90.4

Annual mean salary: $101,210

Hourly mean wage: $48.65

Number of employees: 2,370

10. Nebraska

Cost of living index: 91.3

Annual mean salary: $102,970

Hourly mean wage: $49.50

Number of employees: 110

9. Kentucky

Cost of living index: 90.8

Annual mean salary: $103,490

Hourly mean wage: $49.75

Number of employees: 130

8. New Mexico

Cost of living index: 95.7

Annual mean salary: $112,260

Hourly mean wage: $53.97

Number of employees: 730

We’re halfway through our list of best states for aerospace engineers, and now, let’s see the otehr half.

7. Ohio

Cost of living index: 93

Annual mean salary: $110,690

Hourly mean wage: $53.21

Number of employees: 4,890

6. Mississippi

Cost of living index: 86

Annual mean salary: $102,590

Hourly mean wage: $49.32

Number of employees: 110

5. Georgia

Cost of living index: 91.4

Annual mean wage: $110,960

Hourly mean wage: $53.34

Number of employees: 2,620

4. Texas

Cost of living index: 90.7

Annual mean salary: $111,480

Hourly mean wage: $53.59

Number of employees: 7,450

3. Alabama

Cost of living index: 91.2

Annual mean wage: $115,550

Hourly mean wage: $55.55

Number of employees: 4,470

2. Colorado

Cost of living index: 102.1

Annual mean salary: $129,550

Hourly mean wage: $62.28

Number of employees: 2,410

1. Virginia

Cost of living index: 100.2

Annual mean salary: $130,580

Hourly mean wage: $62.77

Number of employees: 2,350

That concludes our list of the best states for aerospace engineers. If you’re looking for a new place to live and work, you should consider one of these options.