Surveying Salaries
BLS OEWS May 2025 · national and state pay for land surveyors, survey technicians, CAD, photogrammetry and GIS staff
BLS publishes wages by occupation, not job title, so every figure on these pages names the BLS occupation behind it.
The headline figure on each page is the national median across all industries.
Next to it are the two national industry rows BLS publishes that cover survey firms: architectural, engineering and related services (NAICS 541300) and engineering services (541330).
BLS publishes no wage for survey firms alone (541370).
State figures cover every employer in the state.
Land surveyors (surveyors, SOC 17-1022) and survey technicians (surveying and mapping technicians, SOC 17-3031) each have a BLS occupation of their own, with full percentile tables.
Photogrammetrists are counted together with cartographers, and GIS technicians inside surveying and mapping technicians, so their pages show the broader group, labelled.
Survey CAD technicians have no BLS occupation.
Their pages show the closest available one, architectural and civil drafters, as a labelled stand-in without a percentile table.
Every figure is payroll pay from the BLS wage survey, before overtime and most bonuses.
The self-employed are not in it.
Salary by state
Land Surveyor salary by state: surveyors in 50 of the 50 states + DC (BLS occupation: SOC 17-1022 Surveyors) →Survey Technician salary by state: surveying and mapping technicians in 50 of the 50 states + DC (BLS occupation: SOC 17-3031 Surveying and Mapping Technicians) →Survey CAD Technician salary by state: architectural and civil drafters in 50 of the 50 states + DC (Closest available occupation, a stand-in: SOC 17-3011 Architectural and Civil Drafters) →Photogrammetrist salary by state: cartographers and photogrammetrists in 41 of the 50 states + DC (Broader BLS occupation: SOC 17-1021 Cartographers and Photogrammetrists) →GIS Technician salary by state: surveying and mapping technicians in 50 of the 50 states + DC (Broader BLS occupation: SOC 17-3031 Surveying and Mapping Technicians) →Surveying salaries by role
| Role | Median, all industries | Median, architectural, engineering and related services | What the number is |
|---|---|---|---|
| Land Surveyor | $75,440 | $73,320 | BLS occupation (SOC 17-1022 Surveyors) |
| Survey Technician | $54,240 | $50,340 | BLS occupation (SOC 17-3031 Surveying and Mapping Technicians) |
| Photogrammetrist | $81,390 | $81,080 | Broader BLS occupation (SOC 17-1021 Cartographers and Photogrammetrists) |
| Survey CAD Technician | $66,150 | $65,980 | Closest available occupation, a stand-in (SOC 17-3011 Architectural and Civil Drafters) |
| GIS Technician | $54,240 | $50,340 | Broader BLS occupation (SOC 17-3031 Surveying and Mapping Technicians) |
Medians are annual, BLS OEWS May 2025, national, for wage-and-salary workers only. The third column is NAICS 541300 architectural, engineering and related services, which includes survey firms along with architecture and engineering firms. The last column says whether a median is the title's own BLS occupation, a broader group or the closest available one.