Architecture
Everything OPM FedScope (June 2026) reports about the Architecture occupation series (code 0808): headcount, average salary, length of service, and pay comparison.
The verdict
Architecture is a smaller, specialized federal occupation: 1,652 employees (0.1% of the federal civilian workforce) in the Engineering and Architecture Group family. At an average salary of $141,947 it pays above the federal average, and headcount edged down from the prior period.
- Headcount change
- -1.0%
- Pay change
- +0.0%
- Avg tenure
- 13 yrs
- Rank in family
- #12 of 29
FedScope read on Architecture (dense series)
For job seekers weighing career length: this series shows a mid-length average tenure, reflecting a mix of career employees and those who transfer or exit mid-career. Headcount moved down versus the prior period, a modest but trackable signal for anyone considering this specialized federal career path. As for pay, the latest move was a small shift, within the range of normal year-to-year rounding rather than a broad pay-table change.
The Engineering and Architecture Group family (code 08) groups Architecture together with 28 other related occupations across the federal government. Candidates browsing USAJOBS for Architecture postings should also review these sibling occupations in the Engineering and Architecture Group family. Across the Engineering and Architecture Group family, 120,278 employees work in 29 occupations; Architecture is 1.4% of that headcount. Its average salary ranks in the top half (56th percentile) of pay among Engineering and Architecture Group occupations.
Salary context · rich-pay series
How Architecture pay compares to the federal average
Occupation Average
$141,947
Federal Average
$117,339
vs. Federal Avg
+21.0%
Where Architecture ranks on rich federal pay
Architecture earns more on average than 84% of federal occupation series (452 of 541). The highlighted bar marks where Architecture sits in the federal pay distribution.
Average-salary distribution across all 541 federal occupation series; the highlighted bar marks Architecture.
Related Occupations in Engineering and Architecture Group
10 other occupations in the same family
| Occupation | Employees | Avg Salary | Avg LOS |
|---|---|---|---|
| General Engineering | 27,619 | $158,941 | 16.9 yrs |
| Engineering Technical | 14,443 | $93,062 | 15.2 yrs |
| Mechanical Engineering | 12,920 | $136,601 | 11.9 yrs |
| Electronics Engineering | 12,889 | $155,270 | 16.8 yrs |
| Civil Engineering | 10,260 | $124,230 | 14.7 yrs |
| Aerospace Engineering | 8,359 | $155,848 | 14.8 yrs |
| Electronics Technical | 7,298 | $103,713 | 15.6 yrs |
| Electrical Engineering | 5,231 | $142,419 | 13.5 yrs |
| Computer Engineering | 3,753 | $160,672 | 14.2 yrs |
| Nuclear Engineering | 2,813 | n/a | 13.5 yrs |
Nationwide peers near this dense headcount
Two peer sets for Architecture outside the Engineering and Architecture Group family, on headcount and average salary axes that vary across all OPM occupation series.
Similar dense headcount
Nearest employee counts in other occupation families (1,652 here).
Similar rich average salary
Nearest average salaries in other occupation families ($141,947 here).
Key takeaways
- Place Architecture pay in context with the pay-rank chart above, then compare it with another occupation.
- Turn an average salary into a grade: the GS pay grade tables show how grades and steps map to pay.
- Browse the Engineering and Architecture Group family occupations in the table above, or search current Architecture postings on USAJOBS.
OPM FedScope and Federal Workforce Data figures are federal civilian headcounts, average salaries, and length-of-service statistics - not job-quality scores, hiring advice, or a live vacancy listing. A larger or higher-paid agency is not a better employer.