Civil Engineers salary in Madison, WI

Median pay for civil engineers in Madison, WI: $88,710/yr

Typical range (10th–90th percentile): $63,240 – $130,830 · about 1,500 employed locally

Above the typical metro median ($88,630) by +$80 (+0%).

What it's really worth in Madison

With Madison's cost of living at 96 (US=100), that $88,710 has the buying power of about $92,470 in an average-cost US metro.

Local context: median household income $82,996 · median home $452,769 · median rent $1,683/mo.

Full Madison cost of living & taxes →

How Madison ranks for this job

On raw pay, Madison, WI is 92nd of the 187 metros we hold civil engineers wages for. Once Madison's cost of living is applied, it ranks 89th.

Pay and living costs are roughly in step here, so Madison sits in much the same place whether you look at raw salary or spending power.

What that salary buys in Madison

A median home in Madison, WI costs $452,769 — about 5.1× this salary, against a typical US metro figure of 4.7×. Buying is harder here than in the average metro on this income.

Median rent of $1,683/mo works out at 23% of gross pay — inside the conventional 30% affordability ceiling.

Where civil engineers earn more

Pay on its own is only half the picture, so each row shows what rent costs there relative to Madison.

Metro	Median pay	vs Madison	Rent vs Madison
Sacramento, CA	$125,760	+42%	1.4×
San Francisco, CA	$122,670	+38%	1.9×
San Jose, CA	$119,430	+35%	2.2×
Baton Rouge, LA	$110,110	+24%	0.8×

Same job elsewhere in WI

Metro	Median pay	vs Madison	Rent vs Madison
Appleton, WI	$88,630	+0%	0.7×
Milwaukee, WI	$82,830	−7%	0.9×
Green Bay, WI	$80,850	−9%	0.7×

Staying in WI keeps state income tax and licensing the same, which makes these the most directly comparable moves.

Who hires civil engineers around Madison

Large local employers in sectors that typically employ this role.

• Alliant Energy · Energy

Other jobs in Madison