How much do NASA employees make in 2026?
A GS-5 student trainee scanning satellite imagery in Greenbelt and a GS-15 division chief managing a $2 billion Artemis subsystem both carry the same NASA badge. The difference in their paychecks is roughly $150,000. If you have ever searched "how much do NASA employees make," the answer depends entirely on grade, step, location, and whether the employee is a civil servant, a JPL Caltech hire, or a member of the Senior Executive Service.
This guide lays out every pay bracket a NASA employee can fall into in 2026, from the lowest intern stipend to the SES cap.
The General Schedule: how NASA pay is structured
Every NASA civil servant except JPL employees and Senior Executive Service members is paid on the General Schedule (GS). The system has 15 grades and 10 steps per grade. Grade reflects responsibility and qualifications. Steps are time-based raises within a grade: Steps 1 through 3 advance annually, Steps 4 through 6 every two years, and Steps 7 through 10 every three years.
On top of the base GS salary, every employee receives a locality adjustment based on their geographic area. In 2026, locality adjustments range from roughly 17% in low-cost areas to over 46% in the San Francisco Bay Area. The result is that a GS-13 Step 1 earns $85,508 in base pay but takes home $118,005 in the DC area or $124,491 at Ames Research Center in California.
NASA employee salaries by GS grade
Here is the full range of GS grades you will find at NASA, with Washington-Baltimore locality pay applied, which covers NASA Headquarters and Goddard Space Flight Center:
| GS Grade | Step 1 (DC Locality) | Step 10 (DC Locality) | Typical NASA Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| GS-5 | $43,646 | $56,741 | Pathways intern (bachelor's level) |
| GS-7 | $54,092 | $70,317 | Recent graduate, entry analyst |
| GS-9 | $66,178 | $86,029 | Entry-level engineer or scientist |
| GS-11 | $80,006 | $104,005 | Engineer or scientist (2-4 years) |
| GS-12 | $95,895 | $124,659 | Journey-level engineer or scientist |
| GS-13 | $114,044 | $148,255 | Senior engineer, project lead |
| GS-14 | $134,751 | $175,178 | Branch chief, principal engineer |
| GS-15 | $158,527 | $191,900 | Division chief, senior technical fellow |
GS-15 Step 10 hits the Executive Schedule Level IV cap of $191,900 in most high-locality areas. No matter how many steps you accumulate, GS pay cannot exceed that ceiling.
Entry-level NASA employees: GS-5 through GS-9
The bulk of new NASA hires enter through three pipelines, each at a different grade:
Pathways Internship Experience Program (IEP): Current students working part-time or during summers. They enter at GS-3 to GS-5 depending on academic level, earning roughly $35,000 to $57,000 annualized. Most IEP positions are seasonal.
Recent Graduates Program: For people within two years of completing a degree. Bachelor's holders typically start at GS-5, and master's holders at GS-7. Starting salaries range from $44,000 to $70,000 with DC locality.
Direct Hire Authority: NASA can hire directly for critical shortage positions without full competitive procedures. Engineers and scientists frequently enter at GS-9 or GS-11 through this path, starting between $66,000 and $104,000.
Most NASA positions are posted with a career ladder like "GS-9/11/12." This means you start at GS-9 and receive non-competitive promotions to GS-11 and then GS-12 as long as your performance is satisfactory. These promotions typically happen annually, giving you roughly a 15-20% raise each year for the first few years.
Mid-career NASA employees: GS-12 through GS-13
The GS-12 to GS-13 range is where most experienced NASA engineers and scientists settle. A GS-12 is a fully qualified journey-level professional who works independently. A GS-13 typically leads a team, serves as a subsystem manager, or holds principal investigator status on a research project.
At the DC locality rate, a GS-12 Step 5 earns about $108,000 and a GS-13 Step 5 earns about $129,000. In Houston, where Johnson Space Center is located, those figures are $106,000 and $126,000 respectively.
These employees form the backbone of NASA missions. They design flight hardware, analyze data from the James Webb Space Telescope, plan Artemis surface operations, and manage the budgets that keep programs on track.
Senior NASA employees: GS-14 through GS-15
GS-14 and GS-15 positions are leadership and senior technical roles. A GS-14 typically serves as a branch chief overseeing 15 to 30 employees, or as a principal engineer providing technical authority on a major system. A GS-15 usually leads a division of 50 to 200 people, or holds an agency-level technical fellow position.
| Grade | Houston Locality | DC Locality | Bay Area Locality |
|---|---|---|---|
| GS-14 Step 1 | $131,808 | $134,751 | $147,154 |
| GS-14 Step 10 | $171,346 | $175,178 | $191,298 |
| GS-15 Step 1 | $155,026 | $158,527 | $173,113 |
| GS-15 Step 10 | $191,900 | $191,900 | $191,900 |
GS-15 Step 10 hits the same $191,900 cap across all localities. High-locality areas simply reach that cap at an earlier step.
Senior Executive Service and ST positions
Above GS-15, NASA employs roughly 80 Senior Executive Service (SES) members and 30 to 40 Senior Scientist/Engineer (ST) appointees. These are the center directors, associate administrators, mission directorate heads, chief scientists, and technical fellows who run the agency.
SES pay in 2026 ranges from $147,649 to $221,900. The ST pay band covers a similar range. Both are set by presidential executive order and adjusted annually.
SES positions are managerial: you lead organizations. ST positions are technical: you remain hands-on as a researcher or engineer. Both pay the same. The choice depends on whether you want to manage people or push the state of the art. Many NASA centers encourage their best technical staff to pursue ST appointments so they can stay in the lab.
Non-GS employees: JPL and the Caltech scale
The Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena is operated by Caltech, not the federal government. JPL employees are Caltech employees with a separate compensation structure that generally pays 10 to 20% more in base salary than equivalent GS positions.
A mid-career JPL engineer earns roughly $130,000 to $170,000. Senior principal engineers and scientists can reach $190,000 to $220,000 or more. JPL does not offer the FERS federal pension, but it has its own Caltech retirement plan with employer contributions.
What affects how much NASA employees make
Four factors drive the variation in NASA salaries:
Occupational series: The four-digit job series code determines your pay band. Engineers (0801, 0830, 0861) and scientists (1301, 1310) follow the same GS table, but certain series like IT Specialist (2210) and Contract Specialist (1102) have different competitive dynamics that affect typical grade levels.
Locality pay area: The same GS-13 base salary of $85,508 becomes $118,005 in DC, $115,483 in Houston, $124,491 in the Bay Area, and $105,000 in Huntsville. Where you work changes your paycheck by up to $20,000 at mid-career grades.
Promotion velocity: A position posted as GS-9/11/12 promotes you twice in two years. A position posted at a flat GS-12 requires you to compete for a new job to advance. Always check the "full performance level" on any posting.
Step progression: Within a single grade, the difference between Step 1 and Step 10 is roughly 30%. A GS-13 Step 1 earns $114,044 in DC; Step 10 earns $148,255. That $34,000 gap accumulates over 18 years of service at the same grade.
NASA compensation beyond salary
Federal benefits add significant value on top of the GS paycheck:
| Benefit | Details |
|---|---|
| FERS pension | 1.0-1.1% of high-3 average salary per year of service |
| TSP match | Up to 5% government match (similar to 401k) |
| FEHB health insurance | Government pays roughly 72% of premium |
| Annual leave | 13-26 days per year based on service length |
| Sick leave | 13 days per year, unlimited accumulation |
| Federal holidays | 11 paid days per year |
| Student loan repayment | Up to $10,000/year, $60,000 lifetime cap |
The FERS pension alone is worth roughly $30,000 to $60,000 per year in retirement for a career federal employee, an asset that has no private-sector equivalent outside of military service.
How NASA pay compares to the private sector
NASA salaries fall below private aerospace and tech companies at senior levels but remain competitive at entry and mid-career:
- Entry-level engineers: NASA GS-9 ($66,000-$86,000) is comparable to entry offers at SpaceX ($80,000-$95,000) and Blue Origin ($85,000-$100,000), before equity.
- Mid-career engineers: NASA GS-13 ($114,000-$148,000) tracks below SpaceX ($140,000-$180,000 total comp) and Boeing ($120,000-$160,000) but with stronger benefits.
- Senior engineers: NASA GS-15 caps at $191,900. Senior engineers at SpaceX or Northrop Grumman can earn $200,000-$250,000 in total compensation.
The pension, job security, and mission access often tip the balance for people who plan to stay in aerospace for a full career.
The biggest pay disparity is in software engineering. A NASA GS-14 software engineer earns up to $175,000. The same experience at a major tech company commands $250,000 to $400,000 in total compensation. NASA compensates by offering work that no tech company can: flight software for Mars rovers, ground systems for Artemis, and mission-critical code that flies in space.
Frequently asked questions
What is the average NASA employee salary? The median GS grade at NASA is GS-13, which pays $114,000 to $148,000 in the DC locality area. Including all grades and localities, the average NASA civil servant salary is approximately $120,000 to $130,000.
Do NASA employees get raises every year? Yes, through two mechanisms. Annual across-the-board pay raises (typically 2 to 5% set by Congress) apply to all federal employees. Within-grade step increases provide an additional 2 to 3% raise every one to three years. Combined, most NASA employees see 4 to 8% annual salary growth in early career.
Can you make $200,000 at NASA? Only at the SES or ST level. The GS-15 cap is $191,900, and SES tops out at $221,900. At JPL, senior principal roles on the Caltech scale can exceed $200,000.
Is NASA pay negotiable? The grade is fixed, but your starting step can be negotiated. If your current salary exceeds the Step 1 rate of your offered grade, HR can approve a higher starting step through a superior qualifications appointment.
Explore NASA careers
Browse current NASA openings on Zero G Talent. For salary details specific to engineers, read our NASA engineer salary guide. If you are interested in research roles, see our NASA scientist salary breakdown. You can also compare NASA pay with roles at Lockheed Martin, Rocket Lab, and across the broader aerospace engineering job market.
