What Is the Salary of a Mechanical Engineer in Germany?

Due to the focus of the German industry, mechanical engineers are always needed in the country. They can work in areas where construction is involved, such as automotive, shipbuilding, and manufacturing sectors. An engineer is a highly paid profession in Germany, and mechanical engineering is one of the paid occupations in the field.

The average salary of a mechanical engineer in Germany is 49,600 EUR gross per year. The starting salary is 46,391 EUR gross with a Bachelor’s degree and 48,749 EUR with a Master’s degree.

Mechanical engineering is the most popular engineering type in Germany. Both locals and foreigners by far prefer to study this subject, and not without reason. There are many jobs available on the market, and salary is above the average. Read this article to know more about the salary of mechanical engineers in Germany and what to expect from this job.

Salary of Mechanical Engineer in Germany

Mechanical engineers in Germany are considered to be one of the best-paid engineers in the country. As a mechanical engineer, your starting salary after Bachelor’s program without work experience is 46,391 EUR, and 48,749 EUR with a Master’s degree.

However, if you are looking to study in Germany, keep in mind that mechanical engineering is a very popular major in Germany. Therefore, one should expect competition for a spot at university.

One-third of all engineering graduates in Germany are mechanical. Completing the master’s program will be beneficial since your entry salary will increase instantly.

The average salary of a mechanical engineer ranges between 46,800 EUR and 48,200 EUR annually, with a median of 47,500 EUR. The wages in Germany depend on many factors. The range can be even bigger; we will discuss it later.

The highest salary can be achieved in the vehicle construction industry. No surprise that automotive corporations like BMW, Volkswagen, and Daimler pay their employees up to 80,000 EUR per year, of course, with appropriate professional experience.

If you come fresh from the university as a career entry, your academic degree determines the amount of your mechanical engineering entry salary.

• Mechanical engineer with Bachelor of Engineering: 46,391 EUR
• Mechanical engineer with Master of Engineering: 48,749 EUR

Other Factors which influence Salary of Mechanical Engineers

Every profession has some factors which impact the future salary of the employee. Especially for engineers, things like experience, educational background, industry, and others are highly relevant.

Profesional experience

Influence factor number one on your mechanical engineer salary remains your professional experience. The longer you are in the field, the more you get.

The following table shows how your work experience impacts your annual salary:

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE	MECHANICAL ENGINEER SALARY
Up to 2 years	49,605 EUR
3-5 years	51,600 EUR
6-10 years	54,209 EUR
More than 10 years	64,543 EUR

Industry

Mechanical engineers are required in many different parts of the German economy, and not all of them pay the same. Your mechanical engineering salary depends on the products you manufacture and develop.

For example, if you design components for expensive German cars, you earn a different wage than in the mechanical engineering of the food industry. Here are the five top industries:

• Automotive
• Vehicles: aerospace, trains
• Electronics
• Industrial engineering

By far, the best paid is the automotive industry, with salaries up to 80k.

Company size

Not only an industry plays a role in the salary of mechanical engineers but also a company size! So large corporations always offer higher paychecks to their employees. In Germany following rule is applicable: the bigger the company, the higher your income.

If the company is working internationally, your earnings look even better. For example, a mechanical engineer in manufacturing technology or construction at a globally operating company will earn around 15,000 EUR more per year than in some small businesses.

As you can see, in a company with over 20,000 employees, mechanical engineers earn on average 77,590 EUR annually, with 1,001 – 20,000 employees – 66,133 EUR, with 101 – 1,000 employees – 59,950 EUR, and with under 100 employees just 51,744 EUR.

Region

Regionality plays a significant role in salaries in Germany. People earn more in the west and south, especially in the industrial companies in Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg.

The mechanical engineers should expect the highest paycheck in the state of Hessen (66,008 EUR), Bavaria (62,416 EUR), and Baden-Württemberg (64,390 EUR).

Working as a Mechanical Engineer in Germany

Mechanical engineers are needed in different parts of the German industry, including automotive, ship construction, aerospace, electrical, and others. What to expect when working as a mechanical engineer in Germany?

As a mechanical engineer, you are responsible for the development, design, and production of machines and devices of all kinds. There are many various areas in which you can specialize, for example, technical mechanics, automotive technology, and electronic technology.

The core areas for mechanical engineering are design and manufacturing. You have the choice of your area of expertise between the large areas of materials technology, design, conception, calculation, production, planning, implementation, production, and maintenance.

What will be your tasks as a mechanical engineer in Germany?

Your tasks and activities can range depending on the industry and produced product. The classic areas of responsibility pursued by mechanical engineers are:

• Project planning
• Development and conception of an idea
• Research
• Construction
• Installation and maintenance of systems
• Vehicle construction
• Sale
• Marketing
• Consulting
• Technical expertise
• Technical management

Traditionally mechanical engineers construct things, which involve not just machines, but range from individual mechanical, mechatronic, and electronic devices to complex production plants.

Everything is conceivable, from a simple hairdryer to a robotics production line to a marine engine. As a mechanical engineer, you take care of the development, design, or production of the device or manufacturing plant. In some companies, you will be responsible for all three levels at the same time.

Building and construction of machines

You work on the idea, design, construction, optimization, research, development, and production of a machine. Depending on the position, you may also be involved in the sales, service, or marketing of this item.

In most cases, the process of building a machine is as follows: you conduct a design concept in which you specify the individual components and materials, calculate all potential costs for the production, and describe the operation exactly.

As a next step, you will finish the first prototype to check whether the concept can be implemented as you imagined it or not. Only as the last step can you, together with your colleagues, start the final production of the device or machine.

Further development and optimization of existing machines

The further development and optimization of existing devices are also part of your tasks as a mechanical engineer. Your future employer may already have decades-old printing machines or filling systems that need to be maintained on the one hand and adapted to innovations and new technologies on the other.

Which technologies do mechanical engineers build in Germany?

General mechanical engineers without specialization can construct and maintain different machines; the most common in Germany are:

• Vehicles such as cars, planes, ships, trains
• Production machines for factories
• Mechatronics and electronics: gadgets, computer technologies, microsystems
• Environmental technics

As well as some smaller industries: printing and packaging technology, surface technology, ship technology, transport, and traffic.

Most used technologies by mechanical engineer

In Germany, mechanical engineers work on some particular technologies that include a wide range of optics, robotics, microsystems, measurement and control techniques, CAD (computer-aided design), Fem (finite element method), and CFD (computer fluid dynamics).