Biomedical Engineering Salaries State by State

A career in biomedical engineering offers attractive benefits and a lucrative career. It's viewed as a low-stress STEM job with high earning potential and for good reasons. Biomedical engineers are in demand with a job growth rate of seven percent between 2016 and 2026, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. As a biomedical engineer, you can also expect a good balance between work and your personal life, solid prospects for biomedical engineering jobs and promotions with high earnings.

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But if you want to have an idea of what salary requirements you should consider as a biomedical engineer, then it's important to know how much employers pay in the particular states you plan to work or live in. Here are the key findings and factors to consider:

What is the Average Salary for a Biomedical Engineer?

Engineering degrees offer high earning potential, and some of the highest-paid engineering majors in the U.S. make upwards of $98,000 per year for a mid-career salary. The great news is that biomedical engineering salaries aren't too far behind those high earnings. According to the Bureau of Labor and Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2018 report, biomedical engineers made an average of $95,090 per year. This figure indicates an increase from its 2017 stats that placed the average annual salary of biomedical engineers at $92,970.

But this data varies across sources. For instance, Payscale's data places the national average biomedical engineering salary at $64,513 per year. Indeed reports the average salary for biomedical engineering jobs as $76,603 per year, as of 2019. It also varies by state. For example, biomedical engineers in Arizona make $72,040 per year. On the other hand, biomedical engineers earn $99,964 per year in Washington.

How Much Do Entry-Level Biomedical Engineers Make?

Entry-level biomedical engineers can expect an average starting salary of $62,430 per year, according to data from Payscale. However, the starting salary can be higher or lower depending on where you work. For example, entry-level biomedical engineers working in Minneapolis, Minnesota, make above the national average for entry-level biomedical engineer salaries at $63,393 per year. The pay is even higher in areas in Illinois. For example, entry-level salaries average $66,183 annually for biomedical engineers working in Chicago.

What Impacts Biomedical Engineering Salaries?

The field of biomedical engineering also offers several possible careers, including roles as a bioengineer, medical consultant, professor and research scientist. This means you have a higher earning potential as you progress in your career. While your earning potential can increase significantly year-to-year as you build your career as a biomedical engineer, Payscale reports that these salaries tend to level out once you reach the 10-year mark.

You can also potentially earn more as a biomedical engineer depending on the organization that hires you. Paysa reports that some of the best companies that pay top dollar for biomedical engineers include the University of Wisconsin ($166,000), the University of Alabama at Birmingham ($138,000) and MiMedx ($117,000). You can also earn a higher salary at Rensselaer ($109,000) and Analog Devices ($106,000).

But it's also important to know that different factors impact your earnings as a biomedical engineer, such as your education level, skill set, experience and location of work. For example, skills that may impact your salary as a biomedical engineer includes your expertise in medical devices and engineering design. Most biomedical engineers also hold a bachelor's degree or higher degrees, too.

Which States Pay the Highest Biomedical Engineering Salaries?

Data from the Bureau of Labor and Statistics reveals that Minnesota, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Arizona and Connecticut as the top-paying states for biomedical engineering jobs based on its May 2018 report. For instance, biomedical engineering jobs in Minnesota earned an average of $114,380 per year while biomedical engineers in Arizona earned $103,650 annually.

However, several metropolitan areas also offer high average annual salaries for biomedical engineering jobs, including San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, California ($131,420), Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, Minnesota-Wisconsin ($114,320), Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, Massachusetts-New Hampshire ($105,810).

Biomedical Engineering Salaries State-by-State

The salaries of biomedical engineers vary from state to state. For instance, a biomedical engineering salary in Minnesota earns an average of $54.99 per hour. On the other hand, you can expect a biomedical engineering salary averaging $49.51 per hour if you work in Connecticut. It's important to know the average annual earnings in the state you plan to work in so you have an idea of what salary range to require when pursuing a job as a biomedical engineer.

Here is how much you can expect to earn from a biomedical engineering salary on average per year, according to the Bureau of Labor and Statistics:

Final Thoughts

Whether you're looking for your next promotion as a biomedical engineer or you're thinking about breaking in the field, it's important to know the salary potential of biomedical engineering jobs. Luckily, there are a ton of sources available to provide you insight on salaries across the country for biomedical engineers. By staying aware of the salaries of biomedical engineers, you'll have a starting point to work from when considering a potential role as a biomedical engineer.

If you are still trying to decide whether a career as Biomedical Engineering is right for you, consider continuing your education and staying current with the latest advances in genetics and bioengineering by taking courses such as Understanding Genetics: DNA, Genes, and Their Real-World Applications, by Dr. David Sadava, from the University of California - San Diego. With this insight, you'll have a better idea if a career as a biomedical engineer best fits your future career needs.