Mechanical Engineers Salary

It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $102K, rent takes 32.3% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $2,044/month. The 30% guideline puts the comfortable ceiling at roughly $1,900/month in rent — so roommates or a 1-bedroom would ease the math significantly.

The 10th-percentile wage — what new mechanical engineers typically earn — is $59K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $3,537/month.

Pay here is roughly in line with the national average — $102K locally vs. $104K nationally, a 2% difference.

Northwest Colorado nonmetropolitan area pays $102K median vs. the U.S. average of $104K — that’s -2%.

The median is $102,370 a year, that works out to about $49 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $58,950, and experienced mechanical engineers can clear $157,670. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.

On that salary, you'd take home roughly $6,325/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $2,044/month, which eats 32.3% of your paycheck. That's above the 30% rule of thumb, housing will be a stretch at the median salary, though you can manage with roommates or a smaller place.

Northwest Colorado nonmetropolitan area has a Regional Price Parity of 100 (100 is the national average). That's right at the national average. After cost-of-living adjustment, the median mechanical engineers salary is worth about $102,370 in national-average purchasing power.

The table above ranks every state by median pay for this role. Keep in mind that the highest-paying states tend to have the highest costs of living, so the top salary doesn't always mean the most money in your pocket.