Electrical Engineers
Also called: Automation Engineer, Cable Engineer, Circuits Engineer, Controls Engineer, Design Engineer, Design Verification Engineer, Distribution Engineer, Distribution Field Engineer
Research, design, develop, test, or supervise the manufacturing and installation of electrical equipment, components, or systems for commercial, industrial, military, or scientific use.
What electrical engineers do
Typical tasks
- Design, implement, maintain, or improve electrical instruments, equipment, facilities, components, products, or systems for commercial, industrial, or domestic purposes.
- Oversee project production efforts to assure projects are completed on time and within budget.
- Direct or coordinate manufacturing, construction, installation, maintenance, support, documentation, or testing activities to ensure compliance with specifications, codes, or customer requirements.
- Perform detailed calculations to compute and establish manufacturing, construction, or installation standards or specifications.
- Operate computer-assisted engineering or design software or equipment to perform engineering tasks.
- Confer with engineers, customers, or others to discuss existing or potential engineering projects or products.
- Investigate or test vendors' or competitors' products.
- Inspect completed installations and observe operations to ensure conformance to design and equipment specifications and compliance with operational, safety, or environmental standards.
- Investigate customer or public complaints to determine the nature and extent of problems.
- Prepare technical drawings, specifications of electrical systems, or topographical maps to ensure that installation and operations conform to standards and customer requirements.
- Compile data and write reports regarding existing or potential electrical engineering studies or projects.
- Prepare specifications for purchases of materials or equipment.
Typical path into the job (BLS)
Electrical Engineers salary
The median annual wage for electrical engineers is $120,630 (BLS OEWS May 2025; BLS Employment Projections 2025–35, national). The lowest 10 percent earn less than $76,550 and the highest 10 percent earn more than $184,300. The mean annual wage is $125,100.
The mean hourly wage of $60.00 is 8.3× the federal minimum wage of $7.25. State minimums are higher in most large states. Minimum wage by state →
How does your pay compare with people your age?
Your numbers are not sent or stored. The comparison uses this occupation's BLS wage percentiles, adjusted for age with BLS median weekly earnings by age group (Q3 2026).
Pay by percentile
Annual wage percentiles from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS). Percentiles are a good proxy for pay by experience.
Projected pay for Electrical Engineers (3, 5 and 10 years)est.
Today $120,630 → in 3 years $130,800 → in 5 years $138,000 → in 10 years $157,800 (10-year range $135,700–$183,300). The model assumes pay growth of +2.7% per year.
What drives the annual growth rate
Projected pay = current pay × (1 + annual growth)^years. The annual growth rate starts from a base wage-growth rate and adds or subtracts labor demand (BLS projected employment growth), wage momentum and AI replacement risk for each occupation. Projections are not guarantees. How it is calculated →
Outlook score for Electrical Engineers
Each component is a percentile rank among all occupations in the same country (0–100). Weights: labor demand 25, wage momentum / openings 15, pay level 15, AI resistance 25, aging workforce 10 (Japan only), entry barrier 10.
Will AI replace Electrical Engineers? AI replacement risk
How AI is changing this job
A written analysis for this occupation is being prepared.
AI replacement risk compares the parts of a job that are easy to hand to AI or software (processing information, documentation, repetitive computer work) with the parts that are hard to automate (physical work, working closely with people, judgment in unpredictable settings), using O*NET work activities, work context, skills and knowledge. The result is a relative position among all occupations in the country, scaled to 0–100%. Methodology →
Labor demand for Electrical Engineers
Employment projections are from the BLS Employment Projections program (2025–35). Annual openings include both new jobs and replacement of workers who leave the occupation.
The same job in Japan
| Electrical Engineers United States | 電気技術者 Japan | |
|---|---|---|
| Median / average pay | $120,630 | ¥7.04M ≈ $44,766 |
| Pay in 10 years (est.) | $157,800 | ¥8.91M |
| Outlook score | 61 | 60 |
| AI replacement risk | 69% High | 56% Moderate |
| Workers | 199K | — |
Matched by occupation (SOC code). Yen converted at 157.25 JPY/USD for reference; Japanese figures are averages, U.S. figures are medians, and the surveys define occupations differently.
Skills, education and requirements for Electrical Engineers
Key skills
O*NET skill level ratings (0–7).
Key knowledge areas
What the work involves
Important abilities
Education of workers
Training before entry
Related work experience
Job Zone 4 — considerable preparation needed (O*NET)
Difficulty of entry: ★★★★☆ Demanding (from education, training, experience and Job Zone)
How to become electrical engineers
A step-by-step guide for this occupation is being prepared. The education, training and experience data above show the typical path.
Career path and how to earn more as electrical engineers
Career-path guidance is being prepared. Pay by percentile is shown in the Pay section.