Key Takeaways
- In Greater Montreal, the highest-paid specialist engineers work in automation and electrical engineering: more than $120,000 per year after 7 years of experience in the role.
- Leadership roles go higher: more than $140,000 for a project director and more than $150,000 for a plant director.
- An experienced specialist engineer can earn more than a director in another department: the automation engineer (more than $120,000) out-earns the production director (more than $110,000).
- These ranges are benchmarks in gross Canadian dollars. Industry, company size, and team management all move them.
What is the highest-paid type of engineer in Quebec?
In Greater Montreal, the highest-paid specialist engineers work in automation and electrical engineering: more than $120,000 per year after seven years of experience. Leadership roles go higher: more than $140,000 for a project director and more than $150,000 for a plant director.
These amounts are gross annual salaries in Canadian dollars, at the “experienced” tier (7 or more years in the role). The ranking partly reflects scarcity: the guide notes a persistent shortage of qualified candidates in technical trades such as electrical work and automation. Plant and project directors come out ahead, but those roles also involve managing teams, one of the criteria the guide cites as affecting salaries.
Engineer salaries by experience: The table by specialty
The gap between the entry-level and experienced tiers ranges from more than $15,000 (laboratory engineer) to more than $40,000 (electrical engineer, quality engineer). The Fed Manutech guide defines three tiers: entry-level (first experience in the role), mid-level (3 to 5 years in the role), and experienced (7 years or more). These ranges come from a compensation map of Greater Montreal, built from the industrial engineering mandates handled by our advisors and from professionals in the region interviewed by its experts. The tables below, in thousands of gross Canadian dollars per year, separate technical specialties from leadership roles.
| Specialty | Entry-level | Mid-level | Experienced |
| Automation engineer | 85 | 100 | > 120 |
| Electrical engineer | 80 | 105 | > 120 |
| Quality engineer | 70 | 90 | > 110 |
| Continuous improvement engineer | 80 | 95 | > 110 |
| Commissioning engineer | 90 | 100 | > 110 |
| Mechanical engineer | 80 | 95 | 110 |
| R&D engineer | 80 | 95 | > 105 |
| Production engineer | 80 | 90 | > 100 |
| Maintenance engineer | 80 | 90 | > 100 |
| Process engineer | 80 | 90 | > 100 |
| QHSE engineer | 70 | 80 | 90 |
| Laboratory engineer | 70 | 75 | > 85 |
Source: Fed Manutech salary guide, Greater Montreal (industrial engineering mandates and interviews with professionals in the region). “>” means “more than.”
The electrical engineer (105,000) and the automation engineer (100,000) are among the best paid starting at the mid-level tier. The quality engineer and the continuous improvement engineer start lower but exceed $110,000 once experienced. The laboratory engineer has the lowest ranges in the table at the mid-level and experienced tiers. To learn what each of these roles involves, see our guide to types of engineers and their specialties.
Leadership roles
| Role | Entry-level | Mid-level | Experienced |
| Plant director | 100 | 125 | > 150 |
| Project director | 100 | 120 | > 140 |
| Engineering director | 120 | 120 | > 130 |
Source: Fed Manutech salary guide, Greater Montreal (industrial engineering mandates and interviews with professionals in the region).
The plant director has the highest ceiling in the table (more than $150,000), ahead of the project director (more than $140,000) and the engineering director (more than $130,000). A specialist engineer aiming for these roles should expect a change in the nature of the work: less technical work, more team management and results.
A public benchmark for comparison
Job Bank reports a median hourly wage of $52.00 for civil engineers in the Montreal region, ranging from $36.06 to $69.23 depending on level. At 37.5 hours per week, that works out to about $101,000 per year at the median and $70,000 to $135,000 across the full range. These orders of magnitude are consistent with the Fed Manutech guide’s tiers, even though the specialties are not the same.
Why the ranges vary so much
Engineer salaries vary mainly with experience in the role, team management, industry, and company size, four factors we spell out in our guide. Market conditions and professional title also play a part. The next three subsections review these levers.
Experience and team management
The “entry-level” tier refers to a first experience in the role, not in the career: an “entry-level” engineering director therefore starts at $120,000. Experience then pushes salaries up in steps, sometimes sharply. For example, the production engineer goes from $80,000 to $90,000, then to more than $100,000. Team management adds a second lever: experienced directors exceed $130,000 (engineering), $140,000 (projects), or $150,000 (plant).
Industry, company size, and economic conditions
We stress that our ranges should be adjusted for industry, company size, and team management. We also see a two-speed industrial market in Greater Montreal. On one side, a structural tension in technical trades (maintenance, electrical, automation), tied to a persistent shortage of qualified candidates, an aging workforce, and increasingly specialized technologies. On the other, cyclical volatility in production: fluctuations in trade with the United States are causing hiring freezes or targeted reductions at export-heavy sites.
This scarcity helps explain why automation and electrical work sit at the top of the table. Some companies are also bringing certain production steps back in-house or refocusing on the Canadian market, which supports demand for equipment and automation. Hybrid profiles, both technical and digital, are gaining appeal.
OIQ license and the engineer title
In Quebec, the title of engineer is reserved for members of the Order of Engineers of Quebec (Ordre des ingénieurs du Québec, OIQ). Under the Professional Code, engineering is a reserved-title, exclusive-practice profession: only members of the Order may use the title and perform the professional acts the law reserves for them. Obtaining a license involves, among other things, a professional exam on the profession’s professional, regulatory, and ethical framework. The license gives access to the title and the reserved acts. Salary scales, for their part, are read by role and experience tier.
How to place your salary and negotiate it
To place your salary, compare your role and experience tier with market ranges, then set a minimum acceptable figure and a realistic target. A solid negotiation aligns the value of your profile with the market instead of demanding a raise. Salary is only one part of the offer, though: benefits, work environment, and career growth also weigh in.
Base your case on concrete arguments
Start by finding your row in the tables above: your role, your tier, your region. Then back up your request with concrete arguments, such as compensation studies, your accomplishments, and the scarcity of your specialty. Set two numbers before the interview: the minimum below which you’d decline, and the target you’ll defend. To go further, read our tips for negotiating your salary.
What engineers weigh beyond salary
According to Job Bank, 96.6% of civil engineers in Quebec (NOC 21300) receive at least one type of benefit, such as an employer pension plan, insurance, or leave. So compare two offers on the whole package, not on base salary alone. We also see that work environment and alignment with company values weigh on candidates’ decisions, as do prospects for advancement.
From These Benchmarks to Your Own Salary
The highest-paid engineering jobs in Greater Montreal combine technical scarcity and responsibility: automation and electrical engineering among specialists, plant and project leadership at the top. Find your role and tier in the tables, adjust for your industry and the employer’s size, then prepare your range. Looking for your next job? Browse our engineering job openings or talk with one of our advisors specializing in engineering recruitment, who can refine these benchmarks for your situation.
Your questions about engineer salaries in Quebec
Does a director always earn more than a specialist engineer?
No. An experienced automation or electrical engineer (more than $120,000) earns more than an experienced production director (more than $110,000) and is on par with a maintenance director (more than $120,000). Plant, project, and engineering directors, however, come out ahead, with ceilings of more than $150,000, $140,000, and $130,000, respectively.
Can a technician earn as much as an engineer?
At the end of a career, sometimes. An experienced automation technician (110,000) earns more than an entry-level automation engineer (85,000), but less than an experienced engineer (more than $120,000). In quality, the gap is clearer: $45,000 to $65,000 for a technician, versus $70,000 to more than $110,000 for an engineer.
Does a master’s degree or an MBA raise an engineer’s salary?
The sources we consulted don’t quantify the effect of a graduate degree on salary. What the data does show is the weight of experience in the role and of team management. Before investing in further education, ask an advisor or your future employer how it would be valued for the position you’re targeting.
Do these ranges apply outside Montreal?
They cover Greater Montreal. For comparison, Job Bank publishes median hourly wages for civil engineers: $52.00 in the Montreal region, $49.74 in Quebec, and $48.56 in Canada. The gap is modest for this profession, but it varies by specialty and industry.
