FPE Career Salary Facts

The cost of education can be daunting to those about to embark on a degree. However, fire protection engineering salaries and benefits can often help those fears subside. Approximately every three years the SFPE conducts a compensation survey to gauge the compensation fire protection engineers receive. In 2023, the 20th survey was completed.

The 2023 survey had 3,105 participants from 93 countries, with a heavy majority of respondents in the United States. The median salary for full-time fire protection engineers is now $119,822.

Highlights from the 2023 Survey:

  • The median annual base salary for full-time employed individuals is $119,822; the total compensation including bonuses, commission, etc. is $128,000.
  • On average, participants received a 3% increase in base salary from the previous year.
  • The median salary for those with a professional engineering license is 36% higher than without it.
  • Robust benefits packages were reported.

Participation was concentrated in North America (2,012 participants), with 1,003 responses elsewhere in the world. By continent or region, these were in Europe (386), Asia (198), Middle East (131), Oceania (112), Latin America/ Caribbean (92), and Africa (48). To ensure consistency with previous years, many of this report’s detailed tables display patterns based on U.S.-based professionals excluding part-time and inactive individuals. Tables will display patterns for international respondents collectively primarily to compare to U.S. respondents, and by continent or country when there are sufficient observations to report reliable data. All research was conducted in the respondents’ local currency then later converted to USD for comparison.

Generous benefits are another reason to choose a career in fire protection engineering. The vast majority of respondents receive medical benefits, dental benefits, flexible spending accounts, retirement plans, tuition reimbursement and bonuses.

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SFPE offers the 2023 Salary & Compensation Report to complimentary to all SFPE members! Not a member? Learn more about member types here and their benefits.