What does it cost to hire an engineering technologist in Grand Rapids?

Tier I to Tier VI, $6,240 to $54,340 per search, set by the seniority of the role and never by salary or location. A contingency firm billing 20 to 30% of this role's $60,150 median wage in the Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI area (BLS OEWS, May 2025) would charge roughly $12,030 to $18,045 on the first year salary alone.

What should an offer for an engineering technologist in Grand Rapids look like?

Employers in the Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI area pay engineering technologists and technicians, except drafters, all other a median of $60,150, with the middle half of the market between $48,350 and $64,900 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). A band set below $48,350 competes for the bottom quarter of that market.

Hiring an engineering technologist in Grand Rapids, MI

Employers in the Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI area pay engineering technologists and technicians, except drafters, all other a median of $60,150 a year, with the middle half of the market between $48,350 and $64,900 (BLS OEWS, May 2025, SOC 17-3029). Filling it through recruitlocalpros runs Tier I to Tier VI, $6,240 to $54,340 per search, set by the seniority of the role rather than by salary or location, and our vetted recruiting partner handles sourcing, screening and placement end to end.

Do Grand Rapids residents in architecture and engineering work earn more than employers in the Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI area pay?

Grand Rapids residents working in architecture and engineering occupations earn a median of $83,086 (Census ACS 5-year 2023, tables S2401 and B24011), against $77,670 as the median of the 27 wages BLS publishes for that same occupation group in the Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI area (BLS OEWS, May 2025), a difference of 7%, with the residents figure the higher of the two.

Both sides of that figure describe the whole architecture and engineering group, not this one role. In the Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI area the group covers 27 occupations BLS publishes a wage for, from surveying and mapping technicians at $52,150 to aerospace engineers at $144,020 (BLS OEWS, May 2025), with engineering technologists and technicians, except drafters, all other at $60,150 inside it.

That comparison is between two different measures, not a pay gap. The two weight the same occupation group differently: the Census figure is the midpoint across the people who actually hold those jobs, so a group carrying a few very well paid occupations is pulled toward them, while the BLS figure is the midpoint across the 27 published occupation wages, which counts each of those occupations once whatever its headcount. Census also counts where people live and BLS counts where the jobs are, and the two cover different populations, Census the civilian employed population 16 and over, BLS wage-and-salary jobs only. Read the number against other cities, where the same definitional difference applies on both sides, rather than as a shortfall.

The two sit within 10% of each other, so residents of Grand Rapids and employers across the metro are priced about the same in this field, and pay alone is unlikely to be what wins or loses this hire.

What does an engineering technologist earn here?

Place of work

What employers pay

Annual wages paid to engineering technologists and technicians, except drafters, all other by employers in the Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI area. BLS OEWS, May 2025, SOC 17-3029.
25th percentile	$48,350
Median	$60,150
75th percentile	$64,900

Half of engineering technologists and technicians, except drafters, all other in this area earn between $48,350 and $64,900 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). A band set below $48,350 competes for the bottom quarter of the market. Occupation detail for SOC 17-3029 at O*NET OnLine.

Place of residence

What Grand Rapids residents earn

$83,086

Median annual earnings of Grand Rapids residents working in architecture and engineering occupations, 2,616 people (Census ACS 5-year 2023, tables S2401 and B24011). An occupation group rather than this one role, and where people live rather than where they work, so it is not the same measurement as the wages beside it.

What does the role actually involve?

Core tasks

Interpret the results of all methods of non-destructive testing (NDT), such as acoustic emission, electromagnetic, leak, liquid penetrant, magnetic particle, neutron radiographic, radiographic, thermal or infrared, ultrasonic, vibration analysis, and visual testing.
Interpret or evaluate test results in accordance with applicable codes, standards, specifications, or procedures.
Identify defects in solid materials, using ultrasonic testing techniques.
Make radiographic images to detect flaws in objects while leaving objects intact.
Prepare reports on non-destructive testing results.

Task statements for SOC 17-3029, O*NET OnLine 29.1.

Tools and technologies in demand

Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Office software, Microsoft Outlook, Microsoft PowerPoint, Microsoft Word, Autodesk AutoCAD, Microsoft Access, Microsoft Project.

Flagged in demand or hot for SOC 17-3029 by O*NET OnLine 29.1. Useful as a screen, not as a checklist.

Is the talent actually in Grand Rapids?

This is a job zone three: medium preparation needed occupation. Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree. O*NET OnLine, SOC 17-3029.

It does not require a degree, which widens the pool considerably. For context, 40.1% of Grand Rapids adults hold one. Census ACS 5-year 2023, table S1501, residents of Grand Rapids aged 25 and over.

The average Grand Rapids commute runs 19.4 minutes, which is roughly how far your catchment reaches before candidates start saying no. 12.3% of Grand Rapids workers already work from home, so a fully onsite requirement here is competing against that. Census ACS 5-year 2023, place-level commuting characteristics for Grand Rapids.

What does the search cost?

The fee is set by the seniority of the role, never by salary and never by location. Across all six tiers it runs $6,240 to $54,340 per search. A contingency firm hiring at this role's $60,150 median in the Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI area (BLS OEWS, May 2025) would bill roughly $12,030 to $18,045 on the first year salary alone.

One owner runs the search from market map to signed offer. Searches typically fill in 23 to 35 days, which is a typical window rather than a promise, and the replacement guarantee runs 45 days at 50% off.

Questions employers ask about hiring an engineering technologist in Grand Rapids

What does it cost to hire an engineering technologist in Grand Rapids?: Tier I to Tier VI, $6,240 to $54,340 per search, set by the seniority of the role and never by salary or location. A contingency firm billing 20 to 30% of this role's $60,150 median wage in the Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI area (BLS OEWS, May 2025) would charge roughly $12,030 to $18,045 on the first year salary alone.
What should an offer for an engineering technologist in Grand Rapids look like?: Employers in the Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI area pay engineering technologists and technicians, except drafters, all other a median of $60,150, with the middle half of the market between $48,350 and $64,900 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). A band set below $48,350 competes for the bottom quarter of that market.
Do Grand Rapids residents in architecture and engineering work earn more than employers in the Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI area pay?: Grand Rapids residents working in architecture and engineering occupations earn a median of $83,086 (Census ACS 5-year 2023, tables S2401 and B24011), against $77,670 as the median of the 27 wages BLS publishes for that same occupation group in the Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI area (BLS OEWS, May 2025), a difference of 7%. Both figures cover the whole occupation group rather than this one role, and one counts where people live while the other counts where the jobs are, so the percentage is not a pay gap.
Is the talent for this role already in Grand Rapids?: This is a job zone 3 occupation and does not require a degree, which widens the pool considerably. For context, 40.1% of Grand Rapids adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher (Census ACS 5-year 2023, table S1501).

Price this search

Eight questions about the role. Your tier range appears on screen.

Hiring an engineering technologist somewhere else?

Same role, different market. The wage band moves with the metro.

Other architecture and engineering roles in Grand Rapids

Grand Rapids is the 2nd largest of 2 Michigan cities in this dataset.