How much does a Mechanical Engineer make in Colorado?

BLS reports a median annual wage of $108,060 for Mechanical Engineers in Colorado as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $89,470 and the 75th-percentile is $137,530.

What is the real (cost-adjusted) Mechanical Engineer salary in Colorado?

After BEA RPP adjustment (regional price parity index 101.9 for Colorado), the real-wage equivalent is $106,091 — what the $108,060 nominal salary actually buys. Quartiles in real terms: $87,840 to $135,024.

What does the top of the Mechanical Engineer pay scale look like in Colorado?

The 90th percentile lands at $176,300. That tier typically reflects senior roles, specialty certifications, high-cost-of-living metros within the state, or union-negotiated rate cards. Below that, the P75 quartile is $137,530.

How many Mechanical Engineers does Colorado employ?

BLS OES counts 6,850 Mechanical Engineers employed in Colorado in the most recent release. Employment density relative to population determines whether wage tiers reflect a robust competitive market or a thinner labor pool.

Where does Colorado rank for Mechanical Engineer pay?

On nominal BLS wages alone, Colorado ranks among the 51 states and DC by median pay. After the BEA cost-of-living adjustment the ordering changes — high-cost states fall, low-cost states rise. Both rankings are shown in the data table on this page.

Is Colorado a 'real-wage arbitrage' state for Mechanical Engineers?

No — Colorado's RPP is close to the national 100 baseline, so nominal and real wages move roughly together. Neither an arbitrage nor a penalty state.

When does this data update?

BLS OES releases a new May reference set roughly each spring; we re-run the ETL pipeline within two weeks of release. BEA RPP refreshes annually. The last-synced timestamp at the top of this page reflects the most recent build.

Colorado Mechanical Engineer Salary: BLS $108K Median, Real $106K (2026)

TL;DR

BLS reports Colorado Mechanical Engineer median pay at $108,060. Adjusted for state cost of living, real purchasing power equals $106,091.
BLS percentile breakdown: P10 $76,180 · P25 $89,470 · P75 $137,530 · P90 $176,300.
Cost of living tracks roughly with the national index, so nominal and real wages stay close.
Mechanical Engineer ranking: #12 on the BLS table, #23 once cost of living is in.

Wage breakdown — Colorado

Percentile	Nominal (BLS)	Real (BEA RPP-adjusted)
P10 (entry tier)	$76,180	$74,792
P25 (lower quartile)	$89,470	$87,840
P50 (median)	$108,060	$106,091
P75 (upper quartile)	$137,530	$135,024
P90 (top tier)	$176,300	$173,087
Mean	$120,890	$118,687
Employment	6,850 Mechanical Engineers in Colorado

Cost of living — BEA Regional Price Parity

Component	Colorado index (US = 100)
All-items RPP	101.9
Goods	99.2
Services	86.8
Rents	130.5

Colorado's overall RPP (101.9) is close to the national 100 baseline; nominal and real wage move roughly together.

After-tax take-home — Colorado (2024 BLS · 2024 tax year, single filer)

Layer-by-layer take-home math at the BLS median

Layer	Amount	Note
Gross BLS P50 (Mechanical Engineer)	$108,060	nominal median
Federal income tax	−$15,020	13.9% effective; std deduction $15,750 applied
State income tax	−$4,062	4.4% flat (2026)
FICA (SS 6.2% + Medicare 1.45%)	−$8,267	SS capped at $183,600 wage base
Take-home (after-tax)	$80,712	74.7% of gross
Real take-home (RPP-adjusted)	$79,241	÷ (101.9 / 100) BEA cost-of-living

What the Colorado state-tax burden means for Mechanical Engineer take-home

Mid-band state-tax burden at 3.8% effective. Combined with federal and FICA, take-home is $80,712 (74.7% of gross). After the 101.9 RPP, real take-home is $79,241.

Computed from 2026 IRS federal brackets (Rev. Proc. 2025-32), 2026 state DOR brackets, and 2026 FICA rates. Single filer, standard deduction, no other adjustments. See methodology · tax for limitations (married filers, ITM/SALT itemizers, retirement deferrals, HSA, dependent credits, etc.).

National context

Across the United States, BLS reports a national median of $102,320 for Mechanical Engineers with mean pay of $110,080 and total employment of 286,760. Colorado sits at #12 on nominal pay and #23 on real (cost-adjusted) pay among the 51 states and DC. After cost adjustment, Colorado falls 11 positions — the cost premium eats into the headline wage.

Frequently asked questions

How much does a Mechanical Engineer make in Colorado?: BLS reports a median annual wage of $108,060 for Mechanical Engineers in Colorado as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $89,470 and the 75th-percentile is $137,530.
What is the real (cost-adjusted) Mechanical Engineer salary in Colorado?: After BEA RPP adjustment (regional price parity index 101.9 for Colorado), the real-wage equivalent is $106,091 — what the $108,060 nominal salary actually buys. Quartiles in real terms: $87,840 to $135,024.
What does the top of the Mechanical Engineer pay scale look like in Colorado?: The 90th percentile lands at $176,300. That tier typically reflects senior roles, specialty certifications, high-cost-of-living metros within the state, or union-negotiated rate cards. Below that, the P75 quartile is $137,530.
How many Mechanical Engineers does Colorado employ?: BLS OES counts 6,850 Mechanical Engineers employed in Colorado in the most recent release. Employment density relative to population determines whether wage tiers reflect a robust competitive market or a thinner labor pool.
Where does Colorado rank for Mechanical Engineer pay?: On nominal BLS wages alone, Colorado ranks among the 51 states and DC by median pay. After the BEA cost-of-living adjustment the ordering changes — high-cost states fall, low-cost states rise. Both rankings are shown in the data table on this page.
Is Colorado a 'real-wage arbitrage' state for Mechanical Engineers?: No — Colorado's RPP is close to the national 100 baseline, so nominal and real wages move roughly together. Neither an arbitrage nor a penalty state.
When does this data update?: BLS OES releases a new May reference set roughly each spring; we re-run the ETL pipeline within two weeks of release. BEA RPP refreshes annually. The last-synced timestamp at the top of this page reflects the most recent build.

Sources & methodology

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES), SOC 17-2141, 2024 reference period.
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis — Regional Price Parities, 2023 vintage (all-items, goods, services, rents).
Real-wage figures = nominal BLS wage ÷ (state RPP / 100).
See the methodology page for full computation details and limitations.

By Marcus Liang · Founder & Editor · Last synced 2026-05-05.

Cross-comparison: see how Colorado Mechanical Engineer pay ranks against the other 254 state × occupation pages on the Real Wage Atlas → — four-way ranking by real wage, after-tax take-home, state-tax savings, and cost-of-living arbitrage.