Rynda Crewing

Second Engineer salary at sea: October 2026

Engine Department

The median monthly salary offered to a Second Engineer is $8,200. Half of the vacancies offer between $7,500 and $10,500. The typical contract is 4 months. Based on 1,632 vacancies from 161 companies in July–September 2026.

Median
$8,200per month
Middle half
$7,500–10,50025th to 75th percentile
80% of vacancies
$7,000–11,80010th to 90th percentile
Vacancies
1,632161 companies, 01/07–30/09/2026
Contents8

1Pay distribution

How many vacancies offer each amount.

  • median $8,200
  • middle half, $7,500–10,500
200400under $4,999: 535,000–$5,999: 226,000–$6,999: 677,000–$7,999: 5348,000–$8,999: 3649,000–$9,999: 9010,000–$10,999: 14911,000–$11,999: 20212,000–$12,999: 6413,000–$13,999: 2514,000–$14,999: 21$15,000 and above: 41median $8,200<56810121415+
Horizontal axis: pay in the vacancy, thousand US dollars per month; vertical axis: number of vacancies. 1,632 vacancies from 161 companies.
Table
Monthly payVacancies
under $4,99953
5,000–$5,99922
6,000–$6,99967
7,000–$7,999534
8,000–$8,999364
9,000–$9,99990
10,000–$10,999149
11,000–$11,999202
12,000–$12,99964
13,000–$13,99925
14,000–$14,99921
$15,000 and above41

2By vessel type

Median and range by vessel type. The vertical line is the rank's median across all vessels. The range is shown from 30 vacancies and 5 companies; otherwise only the median.

  • median
  • middle half
  • median across all vessels, $8,200
Second Engineer: median and range by vessel type
Vessel typeMedianPay distributionMiddle half
Gas carrier174 vacancies, 49 companies$11,550Gas carrier: middle half $8,100–15,000; 174 vacancies from 49 companiesmiddle half $8,100–15,000
Chemical tanker201 vacancies, 64 companies$11,000Chemical tanker: middle half $9,700–11,500; 201 vacancies from 64 companiesmiddle half $9,700–11,500
Oil tanker320 vacancies, 65 companies$10,500Oil tanker: middle half $9,850–11,050; 320 vacancies from 65 companiesmiddle half $9,850–11,050
Reefer11 vacancies, 8 companies$8,000Reefer: range not shown, fewer than 30 vacancies; 11 vacancies from 8 companiesrange: not enough data
Bulk carrier329 vacancies, 79 companies$7,800Bulk carrier: middle half $7,500–8,300; 329 vacancies from 79 companiesmiddle half $7,500–8,300
Container ship327 vacancies, 59 companies$7,600Container ship: middle half $7,500–8,100; 327 vacancies from 59 companiesmiddle half $7,500–8,100
General cargo and multipurpose139 vacancies, 46 companies$7,500General cargo and multipurpose: middle half $5,250–7,700; 139 vacancies from 46 companiesmiddle half $5,250–7,700
Ro-ro and car carriers60 vacancies, 17 companies$7,500Ro-ro and car carriers: middle half $7,400–8,100; 60 vacancies from 17 companiesmiddle half $7,400–8,100
The vessel type is not stated in 42 vacancies; another 29 are on other vessel types with fewer than 10 vacancies each. So the rows add up to less than the total.

Second Engineer: on gas carriers the median is $11,550, on chemical tankers $11,000, on oil tankers $10,500, on reefers $8,000, on bulk carriers $7,800, on container ships $7,600, on general cargo and multipurpose vessels $7,500, on ro-ro ships and car carriers $7,500.

3By sailing area

The sailing area is stated in only 579 vacancies of 1,632, so there are few rows. One vacancy can name several areas.

Second Engineer: median by sailing area
Sailing areaMedianPay distributionMiddle half
Worldwide484 vacancies, 71 companies$8,500Worldwide: middle half $7,500–11,000; 484 vacancies from 71 companiesmiddle half $7,500–11,000
Europe27 vacancies, 17 companies$7,600Europe: range not shown, fewer than 30 vacancies; 27 vacancies from 17 companiesrange: not enough data
Mediterranean18 vacancies, 11 companies$6,600Mediterranean: range not shown, fewer than 30 vacancies; 18 vacancies from 11 companiesrange: not enough data
Africa13 vacancies, 8 companies$8,500Africa: range not shown, fewer than 30 vacancies; 13 vacancies from 8 companiesrange: not enough data

4Contract length

Share of vacancies by contract length, as stated in the vacancy. The length is stated in 1,618 vacancies of 1,632.

  • 1 month13%
  • 2 months3%
  • 3 months19%
  • 4 months52%
  • 5 months9%
  • 6 months4%
  • 7 or more<1%

5By month

MonthMedian of new vacanciesVacancies
July 2026$8,500391
August 2026$8,000572
September 2026$8,200630

September vs July: −3.5%. This is within normal variation: a difference under 5% happens month to month without any market movement.

6Related ranks

7Methodology

Vacancies published on Rynda Crewing and open for at least one day in July–September 2026. Each vacancy counts once; the lower bound of the pay range is used; monthly pay only; conversion to US dollars at the rate on the day the vacancy appeared. More on the methodology

How to cite

According to Rynda Crewing, vacancies for the Second Engineer rank in July–September 2026 offered a median of $8,200 per month (1,632 vacancies). https://crewing.rynda.io/en/salaries/2026-10/second-engineer

8Questions and answers

What is a Second Engineer offered on a bulk carrier?

The median in vacancies on bulk carriers is $7,800 per month (329 vacancies from 79 companies in July–September 2026).

What is the pay range for a Second Engineer?

Half of the vacancies offer between $7,500 and $10,500 per month; the median is $8,200.

What contract length is typical for a Second Engineer?

Most often 4 months: stated in 838 vacancies of 1,618 vacancies that give a length.

Where can I find Second Engineer vacancies?

Open vacancies for this rank are collected in its Jobs section and updated daily: https://crewing.rynda.io/en/jobs/second-engineer

Looking for a job? Open vacancies with pay are in this rank's Jobs section. Create your CV: seafarers don't pay.

Edition

Edition 10/2026, methodology v2. Vacancies open 01/07–30/09/2026. Published 09/10/2026. These are employers' offers in vacancies, not actual pay.

Second Engineer salary, edition 10/2026: median and range | Rynda Crewing