Architectural and Civil Drafters Salary

National and city-level salary data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025
$66,150
Median Salary
103,700
Total Employed
$70,740
Mean Salary

National Salary Range

$46,260 Median: $66,150 $99,710
P10: $46,260 P25: $55,650 P75: $80,870 P90: $99,710

How Much Do Architectural and Civil Drafters Make?

The national median salary for architectural and civil drafters is $66,150, with a salary spread of $53,450 from the 10th to 90th percentile -- a 81% range that reflects differences in experience, location, and industry. The mean salary of $70,740 is higher than the median, indicating that top earners pull the average upward. The highest-paying metro area is Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT, where the median reaches $84,440.

Highest Paying Cities

$84,440
Rochester, MN
$83,780
Waterbury, CT
$83,630
$82,820
Santa Rosa, CA
$80,040
$79,860
Lake Charles, LA
$79,540
Dalton, GA
$79,410
$79,310

Where the Jobs Are

4,130
3,360
2,170
2,120
1,740

Salary by Metro Area

City Median P25 P75 Employment
Bridgeport, CT$84,440$68,060$90,590110
Rochester, MN$83,780$66,150$105,14060
Waterbury, CT$83,630$62,490$88,60040
San Jose, CA$82,820$69,800$104,410610
San Francisco, CA$81,130$65,580$101,7601,750
Santa Rosa, CA$80,040$63,460$95,790150
Denver, CO$79,860$65,350$97,9102,120
Lake Charles, LA$79,540$58,460$101,55050
Dalton, GA$79,410$52,790$111,19040
Boston, MA-NH$79,310$65,140$82,4602,150
San Diego, CA$78,340$62,030$93,2101,130
Lexington Park, MD$78,010$57,670$97,21040
Chico, CA$77,850$60,650$96,44070
Manhattan, KS$77,810$59,320$77,81040
Helena, MT$77,320$58,390$81,24090
Hartford, CT$77,190$60,330$82,260210
New York, NY-NJ$77,170$61,500$94,7206,710
Sacramento, CA$76,950$61,140$98,510850
Los Angeles, CA$76,630$63,120$93,8603,890
Washington, DC-VA-MD-WV$76,020$63,200$92,8201,610
Napa, CA$76,000$61,700$96,27060
Seattle, WA$75,830$62,950$89,9901,520
Baltimore, MD$75,810$62,620$95,500450
Bremerton, WA$75,750$61,460$81,30050
Portland, OR-WA$75,560$63,300$82,1501,180
Vallejo, CA$75,460$59,800$95,13070
Wenatchee, WA$75,290$59,220$86,93040
Boulder, CO$75,200$61,600$88,320190
Nashville, TN$75,010$61,910$84,920440
Austin, TX$74,230$57,860$93,6001,300
Savannah, GA$74,190$59,430$92,760110
Atlanta, GA$74,180$59,720$92,4202,170
Santa Maria, CA$73,930$61,230$92,980180
Oxnard, CA$73,700$58,220$94,690200
Pittsfield, MA$73,130$59,440$96,07040
Kennewick, WA$72,590$59,740$94,16090
Worcester, MA$72,310$59,920$78,590160
Madison, WI$72,210$60,890$81,450390
Knoxville, TN$72,180$63,780$94,990250
Sheboygan, WI$72,040$59,340$72,05030
Minneapolis, MN-WI$72,020$62,960$84,2601,390
Gainesville, GA$71,930$48,830$81,69040
San Luis Obispo, CA$71,860$60,510$93,340160
Salem, OR$70,870$58,630$79,010110
Dover, DE$70,840$56,430$80,87050
Stockton, CA$70,800$58,240$91,460120
Providence, RI-MA$70,780$58,390$81,550370
Beaumont, TX$70,730$51,180$81,360150
Portland, ME$70,610$59,040$83,200260
Riverside, CA$70,580$57,700$94,530840
Baton Rouge, LA$70,300$57,910$87,720340
Springfield, MA$70,080$57,980$79,84070
Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN$70,010$57,790$80,380480
Reno, NV$69,650$60,360$84,660190
Augusta, GA-SC$69,440$53,720$90,590130
Missoula, MT$68,760$58,770$74,82070
Tucson, AZ$68,640$56,460$92,290210
Visalia, CA$68,470$59,260$82,31090
Charleston, SC$68,460$57,730$79,320260
Topeka, KS$68,290$54,770$88,89030
Altoona, PA$68,230$52,000$75,91050
Pittsburgh, PA$68,160$53,420$80,1601,070
Allentown, PA-NJ$68,120$52,430$82,120360
Amherst Town, MA$68,020$60,320$79,16040
Santa Cruz, CA$67,930$61,240$81,36040
Bismarck, ND$67,780$60,300$91,44060
Greeley, CO$67,720$61,720$82,81080
Cheyenne, WY$67,640$56,720$69,56050
Bend, OR$67,410$60,220$78,46080
York, PA$67,360$55,250$77,750190
Barnstable Town, MA$67,250$57,600$80,83080
Philadelphia, PA-NJ-DE-MD$67,020$58,950$82,2702,110
Bakersfield, CA$66,930$56,710$84,280150
Dallas, TX$66,890$54,600$83,2203,360
Ithaca, NY$66,690$60,810$84,08040
Wilmington, NC$66,660$49,790$81,100120
Medford, OR$66,590$61,710$74,77040
Salt Lake City, UT$66,550$58,240$81,110910
Salinas, CA$66,470$60,570$81,17080
Davenport, IA-IL$66,370$56,720$84,81070
Syracuse, NY$66,140$59,000$80,600280
Raleigh, NC$65,840$52,710$80,270730
Billings, MT$65,820$59,320$81,210130
Dubuque, IA$65,760$59,820$77,42060
Naples, FL$65,470$50,110$73,96090
New Haven, CT$65,400$59,160$81,120110
Las Vegas, NV$65,380$57,240$81,670840
Santa Fe, NM$65,370$47,320$80,22070
Phoenix, AZ$65,310$60,090$80,3401,690
Modesto, CA$65,230$59,580$90,570110
Tampa, FL$65,160$50,500$77,1901,270
Memphis, TN-MS-AR$65,090$63,970$77,500210
Fargo, ND-MN$65,030$59,790$76,760210
Greenville, NC$64,900$55,740$81,83040
Harrisburg, PA$64,900$53,420$79,090260
Kahului, HI$64,850$60,360$82,03040
Rochester, NY$64,770$58,000$80,710310
Killeen, TX$64,700$50,340$80,98050
Tulsa, OK$64,610$52,670$77,570440
Trenton, NJ$64,590$52,980$77,750170
Longview, TX$64,470$49,660$84,74060
Atlantic City, NJ$64,420$57,030$71,730100
Coeur d'Alene, ID$64,360$57,550$81,29090
La Crosse, WI-MN$64,350$57,380$75,99050
Fresno, CA$64,280$58,310$82,910260
Des Moines, IA$64,240$60,110$79,650360
Punta Gorda, FL$64,200$54,180$75,06030
St. Cloud, MN$64,130$56,960$79,23070
Urban Honolulu, HI$64,130$57,180$83,710510
Columbia, SC$64,110$51,530$82,490200
Charlotte, NC-SC$63,940$52,720$78,920740
Fort Collins, CO$63,930$48,980$84,240350
Bozeman, MT$63,880$57,420$75,570150
Manchester, NH$63,850$57,620$77,250110
Oshkosh, WI$63,850$58,540$78,29050
State College, PA$63,850$53,890$78,33090
Oklahoma City, OK$63,840$49,260$77,530580
Blacksburg, VA$63,770$52,680$74,56030
Ames, IA$63,620$59,390$83,63050
Lancaster, PA$63,570$55,150$79,220330
Kansas City, MO-KS$63,520$58,700$76,9201,010
North Port, FL$63,450$50,200$80,330270
Rockford, IL$63,440$56,580$82,46060
Redding, CA$63,410$59,870$80,23040
Albany, NY$63,250$54,660$82,020300
Fayetteville, AR$63,230$60,620$78,710500
Greensboro, NC$63,230$49,660$74,500140
Dayton, OH$63,200$56,050$77,960200
Omaha, NE-IA$63,200$57,720$79,540500
Spartanburg, SC$63,200$50,810$79,52070
Scranton, PA$63,180$48,060$77,670140
Port St. Lucie, FL$63,170$49,290$76,130100
Boise City, ID$63,160$58,160$76,380560
Houston, TX$63,120$50,070$80,9704,130
Orlando, FL$63,120$50,950$79,9301,320
Panama City, FL$63,120$50,760$75,99090
Buffalo, NY$63,070$58,670$79,120320
Eugene, OR$62,960$58,830$74,690100
Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN$62,900$52,700$77,120280
Richmond, VA$62,830$54,180$73,610380
Crestview, FL$62,780$46,840$76,360130
Palm Bay, FL$62,780$48,630$77,950330
Akron, OH$62,670$51,930$78,210170
Cedar Rapids, IA$62,660$57,120$77,200100
Kingsport, TN-VA$62,630$51,540$73,51040
Bellingham, WA$62,620$60,690$79,45060
Bangor, ME$62,610$50,480$77,73040
Clarksville, TN-KY$62,550$48,470$73,78030
Greenville, SC$62,480$47,470$80,930280
St. Louis, MO-IL$62,430$57,020$77,310970
Cape Coral, FL$62,420$49,730$77,480290
Charlottesville, VA$62,400$50,830$70,92080
Green Bay, WI$62,380$52,170$74,960190
Kiryas Joel, NY$62,360$55,280$79,900120
Detroit, MI$62,330$50,090$77,510710
Indianapolis, IN$62,330$51,980$76,640980
Kalamazoo, MI$62,300$54,060$74,50080
Jacksonville, FL$62,180$52,000$79,730530
Cleveland, OH$62,130$57,040$75,620440
Youngstown, OH$62,080$50,930$68,48040
Virginia Beach, VA-NC$62,030$49,350$78,060410
Spokane, WA$62,020$57,170$71,050240
Ogden, UT$61,980$50,520$78,360300
Corpus Christi, TX$61,960$49,570$76,360130
Milwaukee, WI$61,960$57,010$79,760730
Logan, UT-ID$61,930$56,020$78,56040
Toledo, OH$61,930$52,670$77,080250
Yuma, AZ$61,900$53,660$73,07030
Appleton, WI$61,890$53,080$76,07080
Mount Vernon, WA$61,860$61,800$77,39060
Colorado Springs, CO$61,850$48,640$80,800360
Janesville, WI$61,850$57,700$82,20050
Great Falls, MT$61,790$55,610$76,59040
Deltona, FL$61,740$45,470$80,520160
Miami, FL$61,720$43,860$77,1601,740
Williamsport, PA$61,710$49,750$67,37040
Provo, UT$61,690$49,940$78,770290
Sioux City, IA-NE-SD$61,630$55,440$70,45040
Midland, TX$61,610$48,980$83,180110
Burlington, VT$61,590$55,120$77,39080
Macon, GA$61,490$49,490$77,64070
Flint, MI$61,440$52,190$68,86050
Hagerstown, MD-WV$61,440$49,790$74,42030
Eau Claire, WI$61,350$51,560$74,23070
Columbus, OH$61,310$49,510$79,000670
Duluth, MN-WI$61,270$56,050$77,42090
Kingston, NY$61,230$52,500$74,96030
St. George, UT$61,130$53,110$76,290110
Grand Rapids, MI$61,090$49,480$76,750300
Durham, NC$61,080$49,670$75,720160
Roanoke, VA$61,080$48,410$67,010120
Olympia, WA$60,990$52,670$73,58080
Yakima, WA$60,950$57,450$71,67040
Charleston, WV$60,920$46,610$78,70070
Hilton Head Island, SC$60,880$48,590$74,17050
Springfield, MO$60,880$48,750$72,790200
Grand Forks, ND-MN$60,800$59,110$73,86060
Reading, PA$60,800$50,500$78,610130
Johnson City, TN$60,530$49,700$66,21040
Athens, GA$60,520$52,000$71,33050
Gainesville, FL$60,460$46,100$74,86090
Lawrence, KS$60,380$52,220$64,20030
Erie, PA$60,320$47,130$77,39050
Lansing, MI$60,310$50,560$74,41090
Lakeland, FL$60,240$47,730$75,450170
Huntsville, AL$60,170$52,260$73,410150
Iowa City, IA$59,990$48,790$76,81070
Evansville, IN$59,890$50,150$72,590100
Winchester, VA-WV$59,860$47,310$68,10060
Wausau, WI$59,850$51,590$74,12070
Fort Smith, AR-OK$59,820$55,920$72,59050
Pensacola, FL$59,760$46,970$75,100150
Little Rock, AR$59,740$59,110$70,070190
Lincoln, NE$59,640$49,940$72,660170
Asheville, NC$59,560$51,990$75,510140
Twin Falls, ID$59,370$48,530$69,43050
Ann Arbor, MI$59,280$49,600$71,550100
Amarillo, TX$58,900$51,920$67,85060
Sioux Falls, SD-MN$58,860$50,460$63,500210
Peoria, IL$58,820$50,470$61,72060
Terre Haute, IN$58,820$48,540$66,52040
Lafayette, IN$58,810$49,450$74,50060
Chicago, IL-IN$58,800$48,320$76,5801,040
Chattanooga, TN-GA$58,780$47,680$72,310190
San Antonio, TX$58,750$52,190$74,240760
Canton, OH$58,730$50,020$65,01070
Joplin, MO-KS$58,690$46,350$72,45040
Ocala, FL$58,660$48,060$72,940120
Sebastian, FL$58,660$46,200$74,27050
Houma, LA$58,640$45,910$64,41050
Sherman, TX$58,630$43,720$64,20040
Chambersburg, PA$58,550$51,480$70,00040
Jefferson City, MO$58,420$52,040$71,43030
Grand Junction, CO$58,350$46,670$70,55090
Idaho Falls, ID$58,310$46,160$83,510100
Abilene, TX$58,290$45,020$73,07040
Wildwood, FL$58,290$46,700$75,07040
Tyler, TX$58,230$46,350$76,23070
Huntington, WV-KY-OH$58,180$44,110$78,89050
Elkhart, IN$58,080$49,720$63,840120
Gulfport, MS$57,940$49,420$74,67050
Jackson, MS$57,790$55,390$73,91080
Waco, TX$57,650$49,890$76,07060
Valdosta, GA$57,540$48,150$74,52040
Birmingham, AL$57,510$47,790$72,740280
Columbia, MO$57,410$47,430$72,38080
Lynchburg, VA$57,310$47,180$65,00050
Rapid City, SD$57,300$50,160$63,52050
Winston, NC$57,180$43,260$66,97070
Fort Wayne, IN$57,110$48,900$70,050160
Brunswick, GA$57,060$49,600$82,38040
Las Cruces, NM$56,980$48,210$74,02050
Shreveport, LA$56,810$45,650$66,10040
Mobile, AL$56,800$46,970$68,39090
Columbus, GA-AL$56,430$47,230$67,18060
Wichita, KS$56,270$49,020$62,230140
Fayetteville, NC$56,120$42,610$56,43060
Tallahassee, FL$55,710$46,160$66,380130
Lexington, KY$55,640$46,980$66,560250
El Paso, TX$54,840$46,160$71,500190
College Station, TX$54,620$46,280$76,750100
Prescott Valley, AZ$53,500$47,690$63,10060
Albany, GA$52,990$37,510$61,97040
Bowling Green, KY$52,980$37,900$74,46030
South Bend, IN-MI$52,790$48,100$61,46080
Lubbock, TX$52,780$46,060$64,90090
Johnstown, PA$52,750$46,760$64,49070
Montgomery, AL$52,550$48,690$64,29080
Bloomington, IN$52,410$48,640$73,97080
Daphne, AL$52,260$43,290$64,73050
Traverse City, MI$52,050$45,530$62,20050
Champaign, IL$51,920$45,290$58,64030
Pocatello, ID$51,900$47,010$59,22040
Auburn, AL$50,950$40,810$70,52040
Lafayette, LA$49,990$45,760$62,91080
Dothan, AL$49,260$41,060$62,59040
Muskegon, MI$48,880$43,170$58,78040
Brownsville, TX$48,710$46,120$69,47060
Florence, AL$48,520$38,530$63,13030
Pueblo, CO$48,060$46,890$80,05040
McAllen, TX$47,790$43,050$69,430120
Tuscaloosa, AL$47,460$44,840$65,15050
Albuquerque, NM$46,740$43,670$72,130450
San Juan, PR$45,070$37,960$46,610600
Ponce, PR$36,940$30,910$45,11030

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the average architectural and civil drafters salary?
The national median salary for architectural and civil drafters is $66,150 as of May 2025, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The mean (average) salary is $70,740. Salaries range from $46,260 at the 10th percentile to $99,710 at the 90th percentile.
Where do architectural and civil drafters earn the most?
The highest-paying metro areas for architectural and civil drafters are Bridgeport, CT ($84,440), Rochester, MN ($83,780), Waterbury, CT ($83,630). These figures reflect median salaries from BLS government data.
How many architectural and civil drafters jobs are there in the U.S.?
There are approximately 103,700 architectural and civil drafters employed across the United States as of May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025 OEWS. This data reflects occupational employment and wage estimates and may not capture total compensation including equity, bonuses, or benefits.