SalaryExplorer

SOC 17-2112 · May 2025 · BLS OEWS

Industrial Engineers — Richmond

Richmond, VA · 8 metro areas compared

$103,180 /year
$49.60per hour
740jobs in area
+0.7%vs US median

At $103,180, median pay for Industrial Engineers in Richmond, VA tracks the national median of $102,440 closely.

Wage distribution · annual

Shaded band holds the middle 50% of earners

US MEDIAN $102,44010TH$76,920MEDIAN$103,18075TH$135,37090TH$157,420

How pay has moved

$105,628$90,9432019202020212022202320242025$103,180
$94,380 in 2019 to $103,180 in 2025, +9.3% before inflation. BLS states that OEWS estimates are not designed for comparison across years: the occupational classification, the sampling frame and the survey method have all changed inside this window. Read the direction, not the exact difference.

The next ten years

Projected to grow faster than average

Change in jobs, 2024 to 2034
+11.0%
Openings per year
25,200
Typical entry-level education
Bachelor's degree

Includes jobs opened by workers leaving the occupation, not only new positions.

Projections are published nationally only. This is the outlook for the occupation across the United States, not a measurement for Richmond, VA.

Projections are based on 2024 employment and run to 2034. The wages above are from the May 2025 survey, a separate BLS programme on a different release cycle, so the two are not two views of one dataset.

Salary overview

At $103,180, median pay for Industrial Engineers in Richmond, VA tracks the national median of $102,440 closely. Pay ranges from under $76,920 at the tenth percentile to more than $157,420 at the ninetieth, with the interquartile range running from $85,610 to $135,370.

Employment stands at 740, or 1.1 jobs per thousand held locally. Within the state, Virginia Beach records the highest median at $101,500. Of the 593 occupations with published wages in this area, it sits 87th.

Percentile breakdown

Annual wages by percentile · Richmond, VA · May 2025
PercentileAnnualvs US median
10th$76,920−24.9%
25th$85,610−16.4%
Median (50th)$103,180+0.7%
75th$135,370+32.1%
90th$157,420+53.7%
Mean$111,430+8.8%

Why the average earner is usually not a typical earner

Other metro areas in Virginia

Median annual wage for Industrial Engineers, by metro area
#Metro areaMedianJobsRelative
1Virginia Beach$101,5001,060
2Staunton$100,980110
3Harrisonburg$100,19080
4Lynchburg$99,900330
5Charlottesville$99,560120
6Blacksburg$98,480420
7Roanoke$93,520370
8Winchester$88,730110

What the pay is worth locally

Prices in Richmond run 2.1% below the national average, so the median of $103,180 goes as far as $105,393 would elsewhere in the country. Measured that way it compares to the national median at 2.9% above the national median in real terms.

Published median

$103,180as reported by BLS

Local price level

97.9US average = 100 · BEA 2024

Adjusted for local prices

$105,393US average = 100 · BEA 2024

Why the state that pays most is usually not where pay goes furthest

Key takeaways

  • Median pay is $103,180 a year, 0.7% above the national median.
  • Published pay spans $76,920 to $157,420 between the tenth and ninetieth percentiles.
  • The area has 740 jobs in this occupation.
  • The highest-paying metro area covered is Virginia Beach, at $101,500.

Frequently asked questions

What is the median wage for Industrial Engineers in Richmond, VA?

The median annual wage is $103,180, or $49.60 per hour, as of May 2025. Half of the workers in this occupation earn more than that and half earn less.

Is that higher than the national average?

The national median for this occupation is $102,440, so pay in Richmond, VA is 0.7% higher. These figures are medians, not averages: half of workers fall on each side.

What do the top earners make?

The top tenth of this occupation in Richmond, VA earns more than $157,420 per year. The ninetieth percentile is the highest figure the survey publishes.

What is the starting range?

The tenth percentile wage is $76,920 per year. The survey measures wages actually paid rather than experience level, so this reflects the lowest-paid tenth rather than entry-level pay specifically.

Which area nearby pays the most?

The highest median for this occupation among the metro areas covered is in Virginia Beach, at $101,500 per year.

How many jobs are there in this occupation here?

The survey estimates 740 jobs in this occupation in Richmond, VA. Self-employed workers are not included.

Source and methodology

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 Wages are for wage-and-salary workers; self-employed workers are not included. Salary Explorer is an independent project. It is not affiliated with, or endorsed by, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics or any government agency. Full methodology.