Oil and Gas Stays the Top-Paying Automation Segment in 2025

Oil, gas and petroleum remains the highest-earning industry segment for automation professionals in 2025. That's the headline finding of the Automation Professional Salary Survey 2025, published by Automation.com. It's not a new position — the sector has held the top spot before, and this year's data confirms the pattern.

For engineers and technicians working in industrial automation (the systems that run factories, pipelines and process plants without direct human control), the message is simple. Where you work matters as much as what you do. The same skillset pays differently depending on the industry segment that employs it.

What does the survey actually measure?

The survey maps salaries across industry segments for automation professionals — a category covering control engineers, instrumentation specialists, systems integrators and related roles. Automation.com has run this benchmark for years, which gives the rankings some continuity. The 2025 edition puts oil, gas and petroleum at the top of the segment table again.

Takeaway: petroleum's lead is a repeat result, not a one-year spike.

Why does energy still pay the premium?

Process industries such as oil and gas run continuous, high-value operations. Downtime costs are enormous, so employers pay up for automation talent that keeps systems stable. Hazardous environments and remote-site work add compensation pressure too.

That said, the survey is a segment ranking, not a verdict on every individual salary. Role, region and experience still move the numbers within each segment.

Takeaway: the premium reflects the cost of failure in energy operations.

What should an automation professional do with this?

If you're weighing sectors, the data point is straightforward. Energy employers remain the top of the pay scale for automation skills in 2025. The full survey breakdown on Automation.com carries the segment-by-segment detail worth checking against your own situation.

Expect the next edition to show whether renewables and manufacturing segments close the gap.