Environmental Engineers vs Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors: $107K vs $115K Median Pay

Environmental Engineers vs Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors: what changes?

Consider Environmental Engineers if you want to research, design, plan, or perform engineering duties in the prevention, control, and remediation of environmental hazards using various engineering disciplines. Consider Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors if you would rather promote worksite or product safety by applying knowledge of industrial processes, mechanics, chemistry, psychology, and industrial health and safety laws. Both list bachelor's degree; compare training and prior experience separately.

Try this next: Compare three local entry-level postings for Environmental Engineers and Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors. List the duties, credentials, prior experience, and paid training each employer actually asks for. Try a supervised class or sample project from each field before choosing a program.

BLS 2025 wages and 2025–2035 projections. National medians are not starting offers. Occupation size is not a count of vacancies. View the BLS data.

Compare the practical differences

Environmental Engineers

National median pay (2025): $107,110
Route into the job: Bachelor's degree
Prior related experience: No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.
Training and licensing: BLS does not list a separate on-the-job training requirement. Employers may still provide orientation and role-specific training.
Work to investigate: Design, or supervise the design of, systems, processes, or equipment for control, management, or remediation of water, air, or soil quality.
Annual openings (2025–2035): 2,300

Know before you choose

Review the full career brief for day-to-day working conditions.

See the full Environmental Engineers brief

Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors

National median pay (2025): $115,160
Route into the job: Bachelor's degree
Prior related experience: No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.
Training and licensing: BLS does not list a separate on-the-job training requirement. Employers may still provide orientation and role-specific training.
Work to investigate: Investigate industrial accidents, injuries, or occupational diseases to determine causes and preventive measures.
Annual openings (2025–2035): 1,200

Know before you choose

This is a small national occupation (22,300 jobs in 2025), so location and employer concentration can matter more than the national median suggests.

See the full Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors brief

How the national numbers differ

Environmental Engineers has the edge on annual openings

Environmental Engineers is at 2,300 annual openings, compared with 1,200 annual openings for Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors.

Environmental Engineers has the edge on projected growth

Environmental Engineers is at 6.3% projected growth, compared with 5.4% projected growth for Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors.

Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors has the edge on median pay

Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors is at $115,160, compared with $107,110 for Environmental Engineers.

61.1/ 100

Environmental Engineers

55.9/ 100

Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors

Each available metric is ranked from 0 to 100 against the careers on ChooseField. The weighted average uses this profile: pay 30%, growth 25%, openings 30%, preparation level 15%. Missing values are not scored as zero; their weights are redistributed across available metrics. Occupation size has zero weight: employment is not accessible vacancies. Preparation categories do not measure admission difficulty or years without earnings. The score summarizes national measures; local opportunities and personal fit still need separate consideration.

Detailed evidence

Environmental Engineers vs Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors

Dimension	Environmental Engineers	Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors
Median pay (2025)	$107,110	$115,160
Pay percentile	87.3 percentile	89 percentile
Projected growth (2025–2035)	6.3%	5.4%
Annual openings (2025–2035)	2,300	1,200
2025 employment	39,100	22,300
How you qualify	Bachelor's degree	Bachelor's degree
O*NET preparation group	Job Zone 4	Job Zone 4
Related work experience	No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.	No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.
On-the-job training	BLS does not list a separate on-the-job training requirement. Employers may still provide orientation and role-specific training.	BLS does not list a separate on-the-job training requirement. Employers may still provide orientation and role-specific training.

The table reports national benchmarks and reviewed work descriptions. It does not rate personal suitability, job security, or physical safety.

Read Environmental Engineers brief Read Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors brief

Environmental Engineers vs Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors: what changes?

The facts most likely to affect your decision

Environmental Engineers

Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors

How the national numbers differ

Environmental Engineers has the edge on annual openings

Environmental Engineers has the edge on projected growth

Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors has the edge on median pay

Environmental Engineers vs Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors

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