Does NASA pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, NASA employees rate their compensation and benefits as 4.1 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 (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) , Senior Software Engineer (21)

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

"Great people and learning experiences" ((in 290 reviews)); "Work life balance is great when you don’t go through management and let HR inform them of any accommodations" ((in 93 reviews)); "This makes it easy to win the best place to work in federal government awards year after year." ((in 80 reviews)); "benefits are good and useful" ((in 65 reviews)); "Good work environment and people" ((in 56 reviews))

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

"low pay and old buildings" ((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 31 reviews)); "no management pretty much do what u want" ((in 31 reviews)); "Some non performers and very poor managers." ((in 15 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

(1,793 total reviews)

Charles F. Bolden, Jr.

83% approve of CEO

60% positive business outlook

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 1,793 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

Jul 29, 2016

Great place to work

Anonymous employee

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Great benefits and work hours, low stress

Cons

Does not provide benefits of most high tech employers

2.0

Jul 29, 2016

Contract Specialist

Contract specialist

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

The work atmosphere is Great. The people in General are really helpful & made adjusting to a new job very easy.

Cons

There is very limited room for growth. If you didn't grow "up" at Marshall then you won't advance. Some fresh blood is needed....

5.0

Jul 28, 2016

Awesome place to work!

Aerospace engineer

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

It's NASA. At AFRC I get to see and work with numerous x-planes as well as get exposure to many different challenges like research, systems engineering and flight research/test.

Cons

Some programs like grad school tuition payment have uncertain funding, making participation stressful.

Viewing 1444 - 1446 of 1,793 Reviews

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NASA

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Awesome place to work!

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