Chemical Engineer salary in Knoxville, TN

Based on 17 certified H-1B filings in the Knoxville, TN metro area, FY2025–FY2026. Includes Oak Ridge.

Also listed as: Process Engineer

Median salary$120,480
Middle 50%$87.3k–$131.7k
vs. national median+1%comparison median $118,700
Filings17FY2025–FY2026 · latest two fiscal years

Salary range

Box: middle 50% of filings. Whiskers: 10th–90th percentile. 99% of filings are between $81,558 and $180,000.
PercentileSalary
10th$83,833
25th$87,261
50th (median)$120,480
75th$131,700
90th$169,637

Cost of living

Knoxville's median Chemical Engineer salary of $120,480 is worth about $130,200 at national average prices.

Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024 (U.S. = 100; Knoxville = 92.6).

Top employers filing

EmployerMedianFilings
Ut-Battelle, Llc (Oak Ridge National Laboratory)$104,21814
Occidental Petroleumtoo few2

Employers with at least 2 filings here. Median shown at 10+ filings.

By experience level

Wage levelMedianFilings
Entry-level · Level I – 0
Mid-level · Level II $87,956 10
Senior · Level III too few 3
Expert · Level IV too few 2

Median shown when a level has at least 10 filings.

Minimum H-1B salary by level

Wage levelPrevailing wage (most common)Median offered salaryFilings
Mid-level · Level II$65,416$87,95610

The prevailing wage is the minimum an employer must pay for this job and area. Amounts vary by county within a metro and by wage source.