Understand what the ads ask for and how to stand out.
By AtiveSite · Published 07/11/2026 · Updated 09/11/2026 · Every figure is linked to its source below.
SpaceX has 405 open mechanical / manufacturing engineer jobs in 6 states, 57 of them posted in the last 7 days.
| Title ⇅ | Open jobs ⇅ |
|---|---|
| Mechanical Engineer | 37 |
| Manufacturing Engineer | 26 |
| Propulsion Technician | 23 |
| Propulsion Engineer | 17 |
| New Graduate Engineer | 12 |
| Sr. Mechanical Engineer | 10 |
| Sr. ASIC Design Engineer | 9 |
| Supplier Development Engineer | 9 |
| Supervisor | 8 |
| Electrical Engineer | 8 |
| Mechanical Design Engineer | 8 |
| Materials Engineer | 8 |
Senior Level 10, Mid Level 3 (stated in 13 of 405 ads).
None of these listings publishes a pay range, so we do not state one.
0 of 405 ads mention a remote or flexible location.
Everything about working at SpaceX →All 405 jobs with filters →
| City ⇅ | State ⇅ | Open jobs ⇅ | Share ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hawthorne | California | 118 | 29% |
| Bastrop | Texas | 75 | 19% |
| Starbase | Texas | 67 | 17% |
| Redmond | Washington | 47 | 12% |
| Cape Canaveral | Florida | 34 | 8% |
| Austin | Texas | 16 | 4% |
| Palo Alto | California | 12 | 3% |
| McGregor | Texas | 9 | 2% |
| Woodinville | Washington | 8 | 2% |
| Irvine | California | 7 | 2% |
| Vandenberg | California | 5 | 1% |
| Long Beach | California | 2 | 0% |
We counted how often SpaceX's own 405 ads (those with a full description) state each requirement. This shows the filters the ads apply before anyone reads a resume. We have no data on why candidates are rejected after applying, and we do not guess.
Years of experience. 394 of 405 ads (97%) state a number of years. The median is 1 years; 25% ask for 5 or more and 0% for 10 or more.
| Requirement ⇅ | Ads that state it ⇅ | Share of ads ⇅ |
|---|---|---|
| Bachelor's degree | 336 | 83% |
| Master's degree | 147 | 36% |
| High school diploma or GED | 85 | 21% |
| PhD or doctorate | 59 | 15% |
| 'or equivalent experience' accepted | 31 | 8% |
| Associate degree | 14 | 3% |
| Requirement ⇅ | Ads that state it ⇅ | Share of ads ⇅ |
|---|---|---|
| U.S. citizenship mentioned | 405 | 100% |
| U.S. person / export-control (ITAR, EAR) rules | 405 | 100% |
| Background check or drug test | 99 | 24% |
| Security clearance mentioned | 21 | 5% |
| Requirement ⇅ | Ads that state it ⇅ | Share of ads ⇅ |
|---|---|---|
| Nights, weekends, holidays or on-call | 385 | 95% |
| Travel mentioned | 229 | 57% |
| Heavy lifting | 127 | 31% |
| On-site or in-person work | 60 | 15% |
| Relocation mentioned | 13 | 3% |
| Requirement ⇅ | Ads that state it ⇅ | Share of ads ⇅ |
|---|---|---|
| cad | 118 | 29% |
| python | 114 | 28% |
| matlab | 48 | 12% |
| c++ | 39 | 10% |
| sql | 36 | 9% |
| excel | 30 | 7% |
| solidworks | 26 | 6% |
| autocad | 22 | 5% |
| linux | 15 | 4% |
| fpga | 12 | 3% |
| aws | 12 | 3% |
| sap | 7 | 2% |
| jira | 7 | 2% |
| machine learning | 6 | 1% |
| power bi | 4 | 1% |
First, cover the basics the ads ask for most (see the requirements above: cad (29%), python (28%), matlab (12%), c++ (10%)). Then look at what separates higher-paid ads:
Too few ads publish a pay range to compare, so we do not rank items by pay.
We describe only what the ads state. We do not know how recruiters rank candidates.
Where else the same role family is open, with the pay each posts:
| Employer ⇅ | Open mechanical / manufacturing engineer jobs ⇅ | Posted range (median, yearly) ⇅ |
|---|---|---|
| Apple | 206 | not published |
| Rocket Lab Corporation | 86 | $100,800 – $161,000 |
| Shield AI | 85 | $142,000 – $220,000 |
| Leidos | 47 | not published |
| Vast | 43 | $112,340 – $195,552 |
| Saronic | 36 | not published |
| Esri | 29 | $79,664 – $133,120 |
| Hermeus | 25 | $91,800 – $140,250 |
| Lucid Motors | 24 | $121,900 – $167,640 |
| Divergent | 24 | $111,300 – $204,090 |
| Kairos Power | 20 | not published |
| Muon Space | 19 | not published |
| Flex | 19 | not published |
| Jabil | 18 | not published |
| OpenAI | 15 | $225,000 – $365,000 |
405 open today, 57 posted in the last 7 days.
Mostly in Hawthorne, CA (118), Bastrop, TX (75), Starbase, TX (67).