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 287 reviews)); "Work life balance is great when you don’t go through management and let HR inform them of any accommodations" ((in 91 reviews)); "This makes it easy to win the best place to work in federal government awards year after year." ((in 81 reviews)); "Great benefits and time off." ((in 66 reviews)); "Good work environment and people" ((in 59 reviews))

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

"Low pay and bureaucracy to deal with" ((in 149 reviews)); "Government salaries are low and therefore it's hard to subsist in CA without a higher salary." ((in 59 reviews)); "no management pretty much do what u want" ((in 31 reviews)); "Long hours and lots of talking about sending people into space." ((in 30 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.

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NASA

NASA 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

5.0

Oct 2, 2010

NASA Great Place!

Anonymous employee

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

-ultimate coolness -chance to work on amazing things -technological growth keeps employees stimulated

Cons

-politics -agenda set at very high government level -less of science push, more interest in missions

2.0

Sep 9, 2010

It's a mixed-bag

Anonymous employee

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Ames has a casual work environment and people always think it's cool when you say you work at NASA. Work life balance is generally easy to obtain.

Cons

You'll probably end up working on a lot of canceled projects. Also, it's not that great for moving around and advancing as you get pigeon-holed pretty quickly. A lot of people have been there for way too long. Half the workforce is contractor-based which leads to confusing relationships between employees.

4.0

Sep 7, 2010

one of the best nasa facilities to work

Anonymous employee

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

interesting work, professional people, shaping the future of the human space flight program!

Cons

politics, stress, emphasis on missions

Viewing 1756 - 1758 of 1,788 Reviews

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