Does NASA pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, NASA employees rate their compensation and benefits as 4.0 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at NASA. This rating has been stable over the past 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at NASA?

86% of NASA employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated NASA 4.4 out of 5 for work life balance, 4.4 for culture and values and 4.3 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at NASA?

Intern (291) , Aerospace Engineer (125) , Engineer (101) , Astronaut (95) , Internship (77) , Software Engineer (58) , Systems Engineer (38) , Software Engineer(Internship) (37) , Mechanical Engineer (35) , Engineering Intern (31) , Research Scientist (24) , Summer Intern (23) , Contract Specialist (22) , Astrophysicist (21) , Pathways Intern (21)

What are the pros of working at NASA according to real employee reviews?

"Great people and learning experiences" ((in 285 reviews)); "Work life balance is great when you don’t go through management and let HR inform them of any accommodations" ((in 97 reviews)); "This makes it easy to win the best place to work in federal government awards year after year." ((in 82 reviews)); "Good work environment and people" ((in 68 reviews)); "benefits are good and useful" ((in 67 reviews))

What are the cons of working at NASA according to real employee reviews?

"Low pay and bureaucracy to deal with" ((in 146 reviews)); "Government salaries are low and therefore it's hard to subsist in CA without a higher salary." ((in 56 reviews)); "Long hours and lots of talking about sending people into space." ((in 32 reviews)); "no management pretty much do what u want" ((in 31 reviews)); "Some non performers and very poor managers." ((in 13 reviews))

What are employees saying about NASA layoffs in 2026?

Explore Glassdoor’s employee reviews to understand what current and former employees are saying about NASA layoffs and their outlook for job security at NASA in 2026.

NASA reviews

4.4

86% would recommend to a friend

(1,797 total reviews)

Charles F. Bolden, Jr.

83% approve of CEO

61% positive business outlook

Company ratings over time

Ratings trend for the last 6 months (1,797 reviews)

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

Sexual orientation

Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

NASA has an employee rating of 4.4 out of 5 stars, based on 1,797 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have an excellent working experience there. The NASA employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Gobierno y administración pública industry (3.7 stars).

Reviews by job title

2K reviews

5.0

Jun 20, 2023

Great Community

Engineer

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

A wonderful community to work in. Really cares about employees.

Cons

Things change at very short notice.

4.0

Jun 19, 2023

Typical Gov't Job at NASA

Anonymous employee

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Flexibility Interesting work Cool projects

Cons

Promotion potential Lack of journal access for scientist

4.0

Jun 19, 2023

Space Launch Engineering

Materials engineer

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Space industry is growing at the moment and KSC needs engineering support with ground support equipment, and customers seek support with problems with their satellites and rockets.

Cons

Much of the work can be hands-off, such as certification work for flight readiness. Pay has fallen behind what the industry offers engineers, even after adding in benefits, when compared to the working level (GS-13). And there tends to be a bottleneck trying to get promoted to GS-14, but then seems to ease a bit for those that get above that. Unfortunately, OPM defines the pay and engineering is lumped in with all other professions across the government, so your pay is bound to other lagging fields of work.

Viewing 535 - 537 of 1,797 Reviews

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