Introduction:
Looking for a career in space travel? The good news is, astronauts, get paid quite well. Here's how much astronauts are paid for their work and which companies pay them the most.
Astronauts are lucky to be able to do what they want with their lives. It doesn't hurt that they are probably also one of the best-paid jobs in the world. Unfortunately, most people don't know how much astronauts make so we'll take a look here at how much astronauts actually make in their careers.
The answer is… complicated
There's a lot of money in space, but it's not all paid by NASA or the government. There are also many private companies that send astronauts into space, and they get paid for it too. The first commercial spaceflight was in 1965 when the Soviet Union launched Sputnik I (the first man-made object to orbit Earth). It cost $100 million, which was a lot of money at the time — about $1 billion today. Once NASA realized that commercial space flights could help pay for its missions, it started offering contracts to private companies as well. In 1969, NASA awarded contracts to both Boeing and McDonnell Douglas for their Gemini capsules. Both companies had already built spacecraft for military missions; now they were going to be used for something even more important: sending astronauts into space! The Gemini program was canceled after one mission due to budget cuts, but it paved the way for today's Blue Origin and SpaceX launches — both of which are owned by Jeff Bezos (who also owns The Washington Post).
The answer is… complicated. Astronauts make a lot more money than the average American, but they don't make as much as astronauts in other fields. According to NASA's website, astronauts are paid $18.7 million per year when they're on board a space shuttle or International Space Station. They also get $20,000 per month during training. Astronauts do have some expenses that aren't covered by their paychecks such as flights and hotel rooms while at NASA facilities, but they don't have to pay for these themselves.
As of January 2019, the United States is paying its astronauts $82,000 per year. That's not bad! But just how much do the astronauts get paid? Well, it depends on how long they're in space. The U.S. Federal Salary Scale for non-career SES employees (i.e., non-career astronauts) starts at $14,000 and tops out at $180,000. That's a lot of money! The most recent U.S. astronaut pay rate was published in 2016 on NASA's website under the heading "Current Pay Rates." The current rate is $81,300 per year—not bad for someone who has spent hundreds of hours in space and is training for another mission!
Who's an "astronaut"?
There's a lot of confusion around who's an astronaut. You might think it's just NASA astronauts, or that it's only people who have ever flown in space. But the truth is that there are several different kinds of astronauts, and they're all paid differently depending on what kind of work they do. Some astronauts fly in space, some don't. Some work on the International Space Station (ISS), while others don't even get close to the ISS. Some stay on the ground, others go into orbit or deep space. Some are experts in technology and science, others are more artistic or creative. And some are just plain lucky enough to be selected as an astronaut in the first place!
Astronauts are people who travel in space, and they're paid to do it. NASA's basic pay scale starts at $22,300 per year for a GS-7 (general schedule) employee. That's about $10.20 per hour, and it increases with experience up to $36,350 for a GS-12 (professional). The highest pay grade in the federal government is GS-18, which tops out at about $59,000. But there are other ways astronauts can make money. For example, they can work moonlighting jobs on Earth that give them credit toward retirement or health care benefits after they retire from NASA.
An astronaut is a human being who travels into space to travel in space, which is not only a very complex technological task but also an incredibly dangerous one. To be an astronaut, you need to be an extremely talented person with a lot of dedication to science and technology. You also need to be in the good physical condition and have enough stamina to stay awake for long periods of time without getting tired. The salary range for astronauts is between $100,000 and $1 million dollars per year depending on their level of experience. Of course, there are other factors that go into determining how much astronauts get paid like their agency's budget and the country they work for.
What about regular employees?
The average annual salary of astronauts is $63,000. But that's before they have to pay for food and lodging. Odyssey astronauts also earn more than regular employees because they are in space longer: six months to a year compared with four weeks.
Astronauts make a lot of money. The average NASA astronaut makes $78,000 per year. That's more than double the salary of the president of the United States. Astronauts typically get paid more than any other government employee. In fact, it's more than most people make in their entire lifetime. That's because most people don't fly into space and live there for months on end. Astronauts do! And when they're there, they need to be fed and clothed and house-trained; they need to be able to shower; they need to brush their teeth. They have very expensive contracts with NASA that include all of these things, plus medical insurance and other benefits that would be costly for anyone else but astronauts get way more money because they're so rare and valuable!
But what about the unique experiences?
The amount of money astronauts make depends on their job. For example, pilots earn more than spacewalkers, but not much more. Astronauts' salaries are determined by the job they do and how long they have been doing it. NASA pays its astronauts starting at $20,000 to $25,000 a year depending on experience and location. The top pay is between $31,000 and $36,000 for its most experienced astronauts who travel to the International Space Station as part of a crew mission.
Conclusion:
No, astronauts work for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration or NASA. Also known as America's space agency, NASA was created in 1958 by the National Aeronautics and Space Act. Given the immense task of exploring space and furthering the understanding of astronautical science, just how much do astronauts get paid? The truth is that they aren't paid on salary. To date, 748 people have been to space aboard American spacecraft. However, only a handful have seen paying work in space like construction workers or conducting commercial experiments.