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 (289) , Aerospace Engineer (125) , Engineer (101) , Astronaut (95) , Internship (76) , Software Engineer (56) , Systems Engineer (38) , Software Engineer(Internship) (37) , Mechanical Engineer (34) , 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 284 reviews)); "Work life balance is great when you don’t go through management and let HR inform them of any accommodations" ((in 100 reviews)); "This makes it easy to win the best place to work in federal government awards year after year." ((in 80 reviews)); "Good work environment and people" ((in 65 reviews)); "benefits are good and useful" ((in 63 reviews))

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

"low pay and old buildings" ((in 151 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)); "Some non performers and very poor managers." ((in 13 reviews)); "We have had 5 company changes in 6 years; but the upper management at White Sands has not changed." ((in 9 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.

Skip to content Skip to footer

Notifications

NASA

NASA reviews

Compare reviews

4.4

86% would recommend to a friend

(1,788 total reviews)

Charles F. Bolden, Jr.

82% approve of CEO

58% positive business outlook

Ratings by category

4.4

Culture & values

4.4

Work/Life balance

4.3

Diversity & inclusion

4.3

Career opportunities

4.1

Senior management

4.0

Compensation and benefits

NASA has an employee rating of 4.4 out of 5 stars, based on 1,788 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

3.0

May 4, 2011

OK, not much opportunity now

Test eng

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Was good now declining due too lack of jobs

Cons

Not enough work for engineers and too much competition

5.0

Apr 20, 2011

Excellent, everyone works as a team and is very supportive

Intern

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Solid place to learn Leaders and mentors are excellent in providing insight

Cons

Dependent on government funding, advancement may be difficult

3.0

Mar 25, 2011

The NASA "brand" and the work experience are 180-degrees out from one another.

Anonymous employee

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Campus is open and green. Salaries for mid-level management make it difficult to consider other options.

Cons

Public service is a challenging environment currently, but the shine at Ames is gone. It's a shame, really, that the organization is foundering under budget pressures and lack of clear direction. Leaders tend to act with less-than-ideal integrity in an effort to overcome budget shortfalls, backing working-level staff into corners to cover up their unrealistic promises. 60 to 80 hour work-weeks are the norm.

Viewing 1750 - 1752 of 1,788 Reviews

Top companies for "Compensation and Benefits" near you

US Army

4.1★Compensation & Benefits

US Air Force

4.2★Compensation & Benefits

UNDP

3.7★Compensation & Benefits

US Navy

4.0★Compensation & Benefits

Jobs at NASA

Emergency Management Specialist (Direct Hire)

Aerospace Engineer, AST, Aerospace Flight Systems (Direct Hire)

NASA reviews FAQs

Related searches: NASA jobs | NASA salaries | NASA benefits | NASA interviews | NASA conversations

Reviews NASA reviews

NASA

NASA reviews

Ratings by category

Ratings by demographic groups

Reviews by job title

OK, not much opportunity now

Excellent, everyone works as a team and is very supportive

The NASA "brand" and the work experience are 180-degrees out from one another.

Top companies for "Compensation and Benefits" near you

Jobs at NASA

NASA reviews FAQs

Want the inside scoop on your own company?

Bowls

Followed companies

Job searches

Top companies for "Compensation and Benefits" near you

Jobs at NASA

NASA reviews FAQs