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 (290) , Aerospace Engineer (125) , Engineer (101) , Astronaut (95) , Internship (77) , Software Engineer (56) , Systems Engineer (38) , Software Engineer(Internship) (37) , Mechanical Engineer (35) , Engineering Intern (31) , Research Scientist (24) , Summer Intern (23) , Contract Specialist (22) , Astrophysicist (21) , Senior Software Engineer (21)

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

"Great people and learning experiences" ((in 282 reviews)); "Work life balance is great when you don’t go through management and let HR inform them of any accommodations" ((in 99 reviews)); "This makes it easy to win the best place to work in federal government awards year after year." ((in 81 reviews)); "The work that we do also provides great benefit to life here on Earth." ((in 67 reviews)); "Good work environment and people" ((in 62 reviews))

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

"low pay and old buildings" ((in 149 reviews)); "Government salaries are low and therefore it's hard to subsist in CA without a higher salary." ((in 58 reviews)); "there are no cons, very good management" ((in 30 reviews)); "Long hours and lots of talking about sending people into space." ((in 29 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

(1,790 total reviews)

Charles F. Bolden, Jr.

83% approve of CEO

59% positive business outlook

Ratings by category

4.4

Culture & values

4.4

Work/Life balance

4.3

Diversity & inclusion

4.3

Career opportunities

4.2

Senior management

4.0

Compensation and benefits

NASA has an employee rating of 4.4 out of 5 stars, based on 1,790 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).

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

Sexual orientation

Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

Reviews by job title

2K reviews

4.0

Dec 4, 2013

Great place to work

Aerospace technician

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Great co-workers, good benefits, decent pay, flexible hours, flexible vacation. Excellent work environment.

Cons

Civil service type work is not for everybody

4.0

Mar 21, 2013

NASA offers an un-paralleled experience for "out of this world" projects, but politics & red tape can crush innovation.

It specialist

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Ability to work on projects that do not exist anywhere else: Hubble Space Telescope, International Space Station, and so on. Research is cutting edge, redefining the boundaries of science and rewriting textbooks with discoveries we make in Earth Science, Global Climate Change, Nanotechnology, Electronics Research, Planetary Science, and much more. As a new hire you could have the opportunity to do very significant contributions and there are tracks to jump into a very important position at a very early age if you prove yourself competent and responsible.

Cons

There are some really innovative ambitious people, but there still is a lot of dead-weight of those who just come into work and do the bare minimum, but do not really contribute to NASA as a organization moving forward.

5.0

Jun 20, 2012

New challenges and new discoveries every minute.

Graduate research fellowship

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Great Career and Growth Job security and worldwide recognition Good Salary Packages

Cons

Hectic Schedules Time Demanding On the go traveling

Viewing 94 - 96 of 1,790 Reviews

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NASA reviews

Ratings by category

Ratings by demographic groups

Reviews by job title

Great place to work

NASA offers an un-paralleled experience for "out of this world" projects, but politics & red tape can crush innovation.

New challenges and new discoveries every minute.

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