9,084 certified filings · FY2021–FY2026 (through Q3)
Reported wages are what employers filed with the Department of Labor — not actual take-home pay. One LCA is not one job.
FY2025 median, from the 1,601 filings that reported a wage (of 9,084 certified filings in total) across all employers and levels. DOL LCA · FY2025
| Fiscal year | Filed wage | Wage sample (n) |
|---|---|---|
| FY2026 (through Q3) | $100,901 median of 1,251 | 1,251 |
| FY2025 | $93,096 median of 1,601 | 1,601 |
| FY2024 | $91,187 median of 1,611 | 1,611 |
| FY2023 | $87,503 median of 1,418 | 1,418 |
| FY2022 | $84,906 median of 1,679 | 1,679 |
| FY2021 | $82,867 median of 1,511 | 1,511 |
How these wages are computed · All cities · All job titles
Source U.S. Department of Labor — OFLC LCA disclosure files (ETA-9035) · Coverage FY2021–FY2026 (through Q3) ·Updated 2026-08-28 · Basis certified filings only, median not average
Senior Mechanical Engineer filings (n = 997) have a median 41% above the 6,828 filings with no level stated. A single figure for “Mechanical Engineer” averages those together, which overstates the junior end and understates the senior end. We never merge them.
| Level as filed | Filed wage | Wage sample (n) |
|---|---|---|
| Intern | $74,710 1 filing | 1 |
| Junior | $73,424 median of 47 | 47 |
| Associate | $85,000 median of 31 | 31 |
| (unstated) | $85,000 median of 6,828 | 6,828 |
| Senior | $120,000 median of 997 | 997 |
| Lead | $111,962 median of 86 | 86 |
| Staff | $160,000 median of 131 | 131 |
| Principal | $138,507 median of 62 | 62 |
| Fellow | $115,003 1 filing | 1 |
| Level 1 | $77,900 median of 141 | 141 |
| Level 2 | $89,440 median of 472 | 472 |
| Level 3 | $105,000 median of 221 | 221 |
| Level 4 | $123,317 median of 42 | 42 |
| Level 5 | $119,330 median of 11 | 11 |
“Level as filed” is taken from the job title on the filing itself — we do not infer a level that the employer did not write down. Rows below 10filings show the count only; a median from a handful of filings is not a market rate. “(unstated)” means the title carried no level, not that the role is junior.
Source U.S. Department of Labor — OFLC LCA disclosure files (ETA-9035, level read from the job title as filed) ·Coverage FY2021–FY2026 (through Q3) · Updated 2026-08-28 ·Basis certified filings only; medians, not averages
Ranked by number of filings, not by pay and not by quality. This is not a “best employers” list. 2,794 employers in total filed for this role; the 25 above are those with the most filings. Those with at least 10 certified filings have their own page; the rest are counted here but do not.
Source U.S. Department of Labor — OFLC LCA disclosure files (ETA-9035) · Coverage FY2021–FY2026 (through Q3) ·Updated 2026-08-28 ·Basis filings counted across the whole coverage period, not one year
We build a page only for roles we can classify with confidence. The filings we do not classify are mostly three things: employer-internal job codes (“Manager JC50”), generic words that would make a useless page (“Analyst”, “Associate”), and spellings that appear only a handful of times. None of those can be grouped reliably —so we do not guess. To see every role at one company, use its employer page.
For the record: 866,533 of 3,034,814 certified filings (28.6%) reduce to one of our 29 role pages. That percentage on its own would mislead — the remainder is not a missing 71% of the job market, it is mostly text that cannot become a page.
Source U.S. Department of Labor — OFLC LCA disclosure files (ETA-9035) · Coverage FY2021–FY2026 (through Q3) ·Updated 2026-08-28 ·Basis certified filings with a job title, across the whole coverage period