Surveyors: Career Overview
Make exact measurements and determine property boundaries. Provide data relevant to the shape, contour, gravitation, location, elevation, or dimension of land or land features on or near the earth's surface for engineering, mapmaking, mining, land evaluation, construction, and other purposes.
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What Tasks Do Surveyors Perform?
The core tasks performed by surveyors cover:
- Direct or conduct surveys to establish legal boundaries for properties, based on legal deeds and titles.
- Prepare and maintain sketches, maps, reports, and legal descriptions of surveys to describe, certify, and assume liability for work performed.
- Write descriptions of property boundary surveys for use in deeds, leases, or other legal documents.
- Verify the accuracy of survey data, including measurements and calculations conducted at survey sites.
- Search legal records, survey records, and land titles to obtain information about property boundaries in areas to be surveyed.
- Record the results of surveys, including the shape, contour, location, elevation, and dimensions of land or land features.
- Prepare, or supervise preparation of, all data, charts, plots, maps, records, and documents related to surveys.
- Compute geodetic measurements and interpret survey data to determine positions, shapes, and elevations of geomorphic and topographic features.
What Surveyors Need to Know
Effective surveyors combine a mix of skills and domain knowledge.
Top Skills
The competencies most central to this role, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:
Top Knowledge Areas
Types of Surveyors Jobs
People in this occupation may also be known by titles such as:
- City Surveyor
- Construction Surveyor
- County Surveyor
- Field Inspector
- Field Surveyor
- Geophysical Prospecting Surveyor
- Health Facilities Surveyor
- Home Surveyor
Job Outlook
The U.S. employs around 345,666 surveyors working in the United States today. Demand is forecast to grow by +15.0% over the projection horizon.
Surveyors Pay
| Statistic | Value |
|---|---|
| Annual median | $131,353 |
| Hourly median | $63.15 |
| 10th percentile | $82,988 |
| 25th percentile | $107,170 |
| 75th percentile | $155,536 |
| 90th percentile | $179,718 |
Pay can vary substantially based on experience, location, and industry.
How Much Do Surveyors Make in Different U.S. States?
| State | Annual median salary |
|---|---|
| California | $103,790 |
| New Jersey | $93,260 |
| Washington | $88,340 |
| Oregon | $87,730 |
| South Dakota | $86,260 |
| Alaska | $85,520 |
| Delaware | $85,350 |
| Massachusetts | $84,260 |
| Nevada | $82,990 |
| Indiana | $81,010 |
| Maine | $80,740 |
| Hawaii | $79,730 |
| Montana | $79,230 |
| New York | $79,050 |
| North Dakota | $78,750 |
| Arizona | $78,480 |
| Illinois | $77,540 |
| Wyoming | $77,320 |
| Colorado | $77,050 |
| Wisconsin | $76,790 |
| Connecticut | $76,760 |
| Iowa | $76,720 |
| New Mexico | $75,190 |
| Tennessee | $74,690 |
| Idaho | $74,270 |
| Pennsylvania | $73,680 |
| Virginia | $73,380 |
| Kansas | $70,820 |
| Michigan | $69,990 |
| Vermont | $68,510 |
| North Carolina | $67,870 |
| Kentucky | $67,060 |
| New Hampshire | $66,750 |
| Nebraska | $66,020 |
| Ohio | $65,970 |
| Utah | $64,260 |
| Alabama | $63,700 |
| South Carolina | $62,160 |
| Maryland | $62,100 |
| Florida | $62,100 |
| West Virginia | $61,610 |
| Oklahoma | $60,870 |
| Georgia | $60,410 |
| Louisiana | $60,020 |
| District of Columbia | $59,860 |
| Missouri | $59,500 |
| Texas | $59,450 |
| Mississippi | $57,370 |
| Arkansas | $57,260 |
| Guam | $55,990 |
| Rhode Island | $52,000 |
| Minnesota | $46,610 |
| Puerto Rico | $40,780 |
Pay by U.S. Region
Pay for surveyors shift depending on where you work. These regions lead on median pay:
| Region | Median annual wage | Share of U.S. jobs | Location quotient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Far Western US | $96,962 | 11.5% | 0.77 |
| New England | $79,236 | 5.9% | 1.28 |
| Middle Atlantic | $76,529 | 9.6% | 0.72 |
| Rocky Mountains | $74,348 | 5.8% | 1.53 |
| Great Lakes | $73,826 | 10.7% | 0.77 |
| Southeast | $63,979 | 28.5% | 1.23 |
| Southwest | $62,625 | 18.9% | 1.52 |
| Plains States | $59,639 | 8.6% | 1.41 |
Where the Jobs Cluster
| Metro area | State | Median annual wage | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yuba City, CA | CA | $130,730 | 50 |
| Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA | CA | $124,990 | 310 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | CA | $122,690 | 520 |
| Redding, CA | CA | $121,250 | 40 |
| Fresno, CA | CA | $115,620 | 130 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | CA | $110,450 | 190 |
| Salem, OR | OR | $105,000 | 50 |
| San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles, CA | CA | $104,480 | 50 |
Top Industries Employing Surveyors
The bulk of surveyors work in these industries:
| Industry | Employment | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 40,270 | $67,870 |
| Construction | 5,050 | $72,800 |
| Mining, Quarrying, and Oil and Gas Extraction | 1,590 | $86,050 |
| Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services | 690 | $75,840 |
| Utilities | 500 | $91,870 |
| Management of Companies and Enterprises | 240 | $82,820 |
| Transportation and Warehousing | 210 | $76,430 |
| Wholesale Trade | 60 | $63,660 |
The table below shows some of the most common industries where those employed in this career field work.
Tools and Technology
- Computer aided design CAD software: Autodesk AutoCAD (hot technology)
- Computer aided design CAD software: Autodesk AutoCAD Civil 3D (hot technology)
- Computer aided design CAD software: Bentley MicroStation (hot technology)
- Geographic information system: ESRI ArcGIS software (hot technology)
- Spreadsheet software: Microsoft Excel (hot technology)
- Office suite software: Microsoft Office software (hot technology)
- Word processing software: Microsoft Word (hot technology)
Work Environment
Daily working conditions for surveyors reflects the following characteristics:
- Importance of Being Exact or Accurate
- Telephone Conversations
- Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams
- Outdoors, Exposed to All Weather Conditions
Getting Started in This Career
Entry-level surveyors positions require a bachelor’s degree as the typical entry-level education. The role falls in Considerable Preparation Needed (Job Zone 4), indicating the level of preparation typically expected.
Similar Occupations
Similar Occupations
- Construction Managers (Supplemental)
- Government Property Inspectors and Investigators (Supplemental)
- Cost Estimators (Supplemental)
- Appraisers and Assessors of Real Estate (Primary-Long)
- Architects, Except Landscape and Naval (Supplemental)
- Landscape Architects (Supplemental)
- Cartographers and Photogrammetrists (Primary-Short)
- Geodetic Surveyors (Primary-Short)
Top Programs to Study For This Career
Future surveyors typically earn programs in:
Engineering Technologies and Engineering-Related Fields
1 programs across 1 majors
Engineering
1 programs across 1 majors
Sources
This profile draws on the following authoritative sources:
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) for employment and wage data by state and industry.
- BLS Employment Projections for total employment and growth forecasts.
- O*NET (Occupational Information Network) for skills, knowledge, tasks, work activities, work context, technology, and education-zone data.
SOC code: 17-1022.00 (Surveyors).
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