Best Online Engineering Programs in Madison, WI (2026)

Madison, Wisconsin has 5 accredited schools offering engineering programs, with tuition ranging from $4,696 to $12,397 per year for indexed programs. Madison has a population of about 275,568. Median household income is $76,983 (Census ACS 2023, 5-year). About 59.2% of adults 25+ hold a bachelor’s degree or higher. In the Madison, WI metro area, the top-earning engineering-related role is Architectural and Engineering Manager at a median $160,700 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).


Closest Engineering Schools to Madison

The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer engineering programs near Madison, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from Madison city center. The list is rebuilt from federal IPEDS data on every site update.

How We Rank Schools

Every school list on this site is ordered by the BOC Score, computed from the most recent school-level data published by the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard and IPEDS). To qualify, a school must be currently operating and accredited by an agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Each eligible school is then scored on five measures, percentile-ranked against schools at the same credential level:

  • Graduation rate 30%
  • Median earnings, 10 years after entry 25%
  • Average net price (lower is better) 20%
  • Retention rate 15%
  • Fully online availability 10%

Schools without enough outcome data appear after ranked schools, without a score. On this page, schools are ordered by distance from Madison. Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.

#1

University of Wisconsin-Madison

Madison, WI 0.7 miles from Madison BOC Score 86.9
  • 4 year
  • Campus + Online
Graduation rate 89%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $73,792
Avg net price $17,354/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 95%
  • Programs offered: 62

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#2

Madison Area Technical College

Madison, WI 4.3 miles from Madison BOC Score 59.1
  • 4 year
  • Campus + Online
Graduation rate 45%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $45,413
Avg net price $14,238/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Programs offered: 128

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

Source: IPEDS / College Scorecard (2023 cohort). Browse all Wisconsin schools on the Wisconsin engineering page.


Engineering Wages Near Madison

Madison is part of the Madison, WI metro area (BLS area code 31540). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to Wisconsin statewide.

OccupationMedian WageSourceCOL-Adjusted (US=100)
Civil Engineer$99,010Madison, WI$101,757
Electrical Engineer$102,420Madison, WI$105,262
Mechanical Engineer$99,680Madison, WI$102,446
Chemical Engineer$97,190Madison, WI$99,887
Aerospace Engineer$88,400WI statewide$90,853
Biomedical Engineer$103,170Madison, WI$106,033
Environmental Engineer$90,560Madison, WI$93,073
Architectural and Engineering Manager$160,700Madison, WI$165,159

Source: BLS, May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes wage data at the metro (MSA) and state level – not by individual city.


Madison at a Glance

MetricValueSource
Population275,568Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B01003)
Median household income$76,983Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B19013)
Adults 25+ with bachelor’s+59.2%Census ACS 2023 5-yr (B15003)
Regional Price Parity (US=100)97.3 (below U.S. average)BEA RPP 2024
Engineering-related employment in Dane County5,859 workers, 426 establishmentsBLS QCEW 2024 annual

Other Madison-Area Cities With Engineering Programs


Frequently Asked Questions

How many accredited engineering schools are near Madison, WI?

Accredited schools offering engineering programs near Madison are listed on this page, ranked by BOC Score and distance from the city center. The list is rebuilt from federal IPEDS and College Scorecard data on every site update, so it stays current as programs open and close.

What are the highest-paying engineering roles near Madison?

Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying engineering-related roles near Madison are: Architectural and Engineering Manager ($160,700), Biomedical Engineer ($103,170), Electrical Engineer ($102,420). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with Wisconsin statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.

Should I look at programs in Fitchburg instead of Madison?

Fitchburg, WI is 6.8 miles from Madison and has its own set of local engineering programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.

Is Madison an affordable place to study engineering?

Madison’s median household income of $76,983 (Census ACS 2023) is one input. Online programs let students stay in Madison while attending lower-cost out-of-state schools, and Wisconsin public universities often offer reduced in-state online tuition.

How do I verify a program is accredited?

Confirm institutional accreditation via the U.S. Department of Education database (U.S. Dept. of Education database), and check for any program-specific accreditation listed by the school.


Learn More About Engineering Programs

Other Programs Available in Madison

Compare every accredited online degree program with city-level data for Madison:

Data verified: July 23, 2026. Salary, employment, and tuition figures on this page are sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2025; Employment Projections 2024โ€“2034) and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2023 cohort). The source agency and data year are cited inline with every statistic.