195 OPEN
SALARIES · HARDWARE ENGINEER
Hardware Engineer [YoY +8%]
Median total compensation for hardware engineer roles in robotics, AI, and autonomy. Open roles by salary, direct from each employer.
[ SENIOR COMPENSATION · ANNUAL · BASE ]
$180,000 – $225,000USD
§ 01Compensation by level
[ MID ]
$135K
[ SENIOR ]
$180K
[ STAFF ]
$225K
[ PRINCIPAL ]
$285K
§ 02Top-paid open roles
- 01Staff Electrical Engineering Lead/Manager - High Performance Compute and Control SystemsZoox·Foster City, California, US$249K–$344K
- 02APrincipal Electrical Engineer - Compute and SensingApptronik·Sunnyvale, CA$295K–$330K
- 03WSenior Staff Hardware Engineer, Sensor ArchitectureWing·Palo Alto, California$304K–$323K
- 04Power Electronics - Principal Electrical Engineer (R4822)Shield AI·San Diego, California$211K–$317K
- 05Staff Electrical Engineer, ComputeZoox·Foster City, CA$217K–$300K
- 06
Sr. FPGA Design EngineerReliable Robotics·Mountain View, CA$215K–$300K - 07Sr. FPGA Design Engineer, RadarReliable Robotics·Seattle, WA$215K–$300K
- 08Sr. FPGA Verification Engineer, RadarReliable Robotics·Seattle, WA$215K–$300K
- 09Sr. FPGA Engineer, CertificationReliable Robotics·Mountain View, CA$215K–$300K
- 10Sr. FPGA Verification EngineerReliable Robotics·Mountain View, CA$215K–$300K
§ 03Top employers hiring hardware engineers
| Employer | Open roles | Median comp |
|---|---|---|
| Anduril Industries | 97 | $170K |
| Shield AI | 15 | $115K |
| Saronic | 13 | — |
| Apptronik | 12 | $268K |
| Reliable Robotics | 8 | $258K |
| Skydio | 7 | $181K |
| Rockwell Automation | 5 | — |
| Aurora Innovation | 3 | $223K |
§ 04Top cities hiring hardware engineers
| Metro | Open roles | Median comp |
|---|---|---|
| Costa Mesa | 64 | $170K |
| Austin | 21 | — |
| Mountain View | 13 | $215K |
| Dallas | 10 | $115K |
| Reston | 7 | $170K |
| San Diego | 6 | $185K |
| San Mateo | 6 | $181K |
| Irvine | 4 | $170K |
§ 05FAQ
- How much do hardware engineers make in the robotics industry?
- Senior hardware engineers in the robotics industry typically earn $180K base salary at top employers. Staff-level roles run $225K and principal-level reach $285K. Numbers are median base salary across 113 data points; total compensation including equity is typically 15-30% higher at private robotics employers.
- Who is hiring the most hardware engineers right now?
- Anduril Industries (97 open roles), Shield AI (15 open roles), and Saronic (13 open roles) lead by open-role volume. Browse all 195 open hardware engineer roles sorted by recency.
- Where are most hardware engineer jobs located?
- The top robotics industry hubs for hardware engineer roles right now are Costa Mesa, Austin, and Mountain View. Defense robotics tends to concentrate in DC/Northern Virginia and Colorado Springs (clearance-required roles), while commercial launch is heaviest in LA basin and Florida's Space Coast.
- Do hardware engineer roles in robotics, AI, and autonomy require security clearance?
- Many do. Defense robotics programs at Anduril, Shield AI, Saronic, and defense primes require Secret or TS/SCI clearance. Commercial robotics roles at Boston Dynamics, Apptronik, 1X, Skydio, and Wayve generally do not. ITAR registration is more common than clearance — many sensor, autonomy, and unmanned-systems roles require it.
§ 06See all open roles
Browse every hardware engineer role