Start with the answer
Engineers, All Other pay in New Mexico and Tennessee
The May 2025 BLS OEWS median for Engineers, All Other is $162,070 per year in New Mexico. It is $96,640 per year in Tennessee. New Mexico is 67.7% above Tennessee on the published median.
Both rows use SOC 17-2199 and the same annual wage metric. Median means the middle of each area's published wage spread. It is not one worker's pay. The larger median is not proof that one place gives a better job or a better result. It is one wage fact from one source period.
BLS lists 2,190 wage and salary jobs in New Mexico and 4,400 in Tennessee. Those are survey job counts, not open posts. Read pay, job scale, local share, and price level as separate facts before you make a choice.
Evidence: bls-oews-may-2025 · Rule: same-soc-same-metric-pair · nominal-median-gap · employment-not-openings
