Mechanical Engineer salary in Lafayette, IN

Based on 50 certified H-1B filings in the Lafayette-West Lafayette, IN metro area, FY2025–FY2026. Includes West Lafayette, Lafayetta, Newburgh.

Also listed as: Mechanical Design Engineer

Median salary$88,525
Middle 50%$77.5k–$107.2k
vs. national median−18%comparison median $108,000
Filings50FY2025–FY2026 · latest two fiscal years

Salary range

Box: middle 50% of filings. Whiskers: 10th–90th percentile. 99% of filings are between $56,535 and $125,653.
PercentileSalary
10th$66,755
25th$77,532
50th (median)$88,525
75th$107,168
90th$124,669

Salary by year

Median salary

$60k $80k $100k FY2020: median $75,234 (19 filings) FY2021: median $79,730 (20 filings) FY2022: median $78,167 (24 filings) FY2023: median $89,720 (26 filings) FY2024: median $80,000 (21 filings) FY2025: median $83,100 (24 filings) FY2026: median $88,737 (26 filings) FY20 FY21 FY22 FY23 FY24 FY25 FY26

Filings per year

FY2020: 19 filings FY20 FY2021: 20 filings FY21 FY2022: 24 filings FY22 FY2023: 26 filings FY23 FY2024: 21 filings FY24 FY2025: 24 filings FY25 FY2026: 26 filings FY26 26
Shaded: FY2025–FY2026, the years behind the figures above. Median shown for years with at least 10 filings. FY2026 covers Q1–Q3 only.
Show as table
Fiscal yearMedianP25P75Filings
FY2020$75,234$63,200$78,64519
FY2021$79,730$72,244$91,52020
FY2022$78,167$77,459$86,53824
FY2023$89,720$81,403$108,16026
FY2024$80,000$71,074$92,00021
FY2025$83,100$77,168$99,48824
FY2026$88,737$88,525$113,29026

Cost of living

Lafayette's median Mechanical Engineer salary of $88,525 is worth about $94,800 at national average prices.

Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024 (U.S. = 100; Lafayette = 93.4).

Compared with all workers here

All Mechanical Engineers in the Lafayette, IN area earned a median of $100,690 in May 2025 (510 employed). The H-1B median here is $88,525, 12% lower.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS metropolitan area estimates. BLS wages include some incentive pay; H-1B figures are base salary.

Top employers filing

EmployerMedianFilings
Purdue Universitytoo few8
Infonerotoo few5
ZF Active Safety and Electronicstoo few5
Tata Technologiestoo few4
Axiscadestoo few3
M3Simtoo few3
Aditi Consultingtoo few2
Belcan Services Group, LTD Partnershiptoo few2
Caterpillartoo few2
MASE Insightstoo few2

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

By experience level

Wage levelMedianFilings
Entry-level · Level I $67,426 12
Mid-level · Level II $88,525 23
Senior · Level III too few 2
Expert · Level IV too few 4

Median shown when a level has at least 10 filings.

Minimum H-1B salary by level

Wage levelPrevailing wage (most common)Median offered salaryFilings
Entry-level · Level I$69,950$67,42612
Mid-level · Level II$88,525$88,52523

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.