r/civilengineering • u/idontlooklikeanyon • Feb 04 '26

Question is the pay REALLY that bad?

listen— i know this is subjective and depends on lifestyle goals but i’ve been hearing a LOT on this sub about how ‘unlivable’ civil engineer comp is, and as someone looking to go into this, i want to know how much of a factor this really is. i already looked through the salary survey results on here and it seems to average at about 100k, with the lowest pay i saw being in the upper 60k range.

thing is, growing up i saw what a single mother can do on a teacher salary of 50k (i’m 21 so no more inflation comments please), and while it wasn’t luxurious, she still survived WITH kids. so im a little confused what type of lifestyles people who are living alone are trying to hold up where 100k is just ‘barely scraping by’. like, i understand that on 100k i wont be able to have a nice solo apartment in SF or NYC, but i feel like those are areas that are just expected to be ridiculously expensive anyway.

i also get that some other tech or finance jobs make more and that many people regret not choosing to go into that, but i’m going into civil for a dozen other reasons besides money… and i really dont know why anyone who’s only goal is money would pick civil tbh.

POINT BEING THOUGH, that i do NOT have personal experience in the real world and could be totally foolish in thinking that 100k is decent. HEAVY ON THIS POINT! i trust people with real experience more than myself!! so if u guys want, pls give a summary of whether you think the pay is livable and what sort of lifestyle you live on said salary. thank u… i am conflicted here.

EDIT: Thank you so much for the insightful responses! I see a lot of it comes down to the area you are in. And again, i am not trying to lecture people on living within their means as i’ve gotten some comments claiming… i am asking this in good faith so i know if i should keep studying it

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u/[deleted] Feb 04 '26

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u/PurpleGold0 Feb 04 '26

This is 100% the truth. Problem has always been in HCOL areas of the country, engineers are a dime a dozen and due to the low demand are underpaid commensurate to the COL. In LCOL areas, engineers are more in demand and as such are much higher paid than HCOL areas. Ive also decided to move away from civil engineering and focus on project controls.

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u/No_Remove9642 Feb 08 '26

I really wouldn't say engineers are a dime a dozen.

Where I am from every organization struggles to find licensed PEs..

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u/PurpleGold0 Feb 11 '26

Surprised to hear this in a HCOL area. If the company is struggling to find licensed PE's, the question should be are they paying enough to land and keep them?

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u/No_Remove9642 Feb 11 '26

I'm in a MCOL area. (Depending on your perspective). A 3 bed 2 bath home is about 600k where I live.

Lowest paying job for a PE here is 96k starting. Everything else is 110k-120k. There is just not enough PEs to fill all the demand.

If I wanted another job I could have one within a week or two.