Sustainability Specialist Salary: Your 2025 Guide

Approximately 44 percent of consumers around the world show a growing preference for brands that demonstrate a strong commitment to sustainability, according to a Statista report [1]. Working on sustainability efforts can be a meaningful career choice with strong earning potential. You'll ensure that a company's operational strategies uphold economic, social, and environmental sustainability.

Learn more about how much you can earn in one such career: sustainability specialist. If you're interested in developing your skills in this area, consider enrolling in the University of Colorado Boulder's Become a Sustainable Business Change Agent Specialization, where you'll learn how to improve the ways in which companies impact the environment, communities, and people.

What is a sustainability specialist?

A sustainability specialist scrutinizes a company's operations to pinpoint opportunities for enhancing sustainability. Often, they'll develop initiatives or programs to reduce the environmental impact (or other kinds of impact) a company may have.

Common work duties that are expected in this role include:

• Developing policies that govern sustainability practices

• Training team members on new sustainability initiatives 

• Reporting on practices that hinder sustainability 

• Collecting climate and energy data

• Tracking greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions

The typical timeline for becoming a sustainability specialist will depend on the company hiring for this role. Some companies look for around two years of experience, while others prefer 4-6.

Sustainability specialist: salary and job outlook

Sustainability specialists earn an annual average salary of $71,355, according to Glassdoor [2]. Depending on the industry they're working in, they may also be eligible for additional compensation, including bonuses and profit-sharing.

The US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) projects that openings for environmental scientists and specialists will grow by seven percent between 2023 and 2033, which is faster than average [3].

Factors impacting your salary as a sustainability specialist

An array of factors can affect your salary as a sustainability specialist. Below, we'll explore how education, experience, certification, industry, and more can impact your yearly earnings.

Education

Education can be a defining factor in determining earning potential. Fifthy-five percent of sustainability specialists hold a bachelor's degree, according to Zippia, but a master's may lead to higher earning potential [4]. Here are the average salaries by degree:

• Bachelor's: $54,524

• Master's: $63,717

If you're interested in this line of work, some common college majors include business, environmental science, and sustainability.

Experience

Your earnings typically increase in correlation with your experience. Here's the average annual salary for sustainability specialists by experience level, according to Glassdoor [2]:

• 1–3 years: $68,505

• 4–6 years: $75,822

• 7–9 years: $80,691

• 10–14 years: $88,386

Skills

Skills can be vital in boosting your marketability as a sustainability specialist. Payscale lists the following skills as important for sustainability specialists and you can see the pay they correlate to [5]:

• Environmental compliance: $59,965

• Environmental consulting: $61,030

• Project management: $64,017

• Data analysis: $64,836

• Strategic project management: $77,049

Certifications

Having relevant certifications can lead to higher earning potential as most organizations are willing to pay a premium for certified sustainability specialists who can effectively contribute to their sustainability efforts. Listed below are some industry-recognized certifications that you may want to consider:

• IFMA Sustainability Facility Professional (SFP): $95,000 [6]

• Leed Green Associate Certification: $69,000 [7]

• Green Globes Professional (GGP): $88,000 [8]

• Certified Energy Manager (CEM): $95,000 [9] 

Industry

The field you opt to work in can also affect your annual income. Two of the higher-paying industries for sustainability specialists include [2]:  

• Information technology: $130,623

• Construction, repair, and maintenance services: $77,334

Location

Earnings can vary notably depending on your geographical location. Certain cities may offer salaries that exceed the average pay because they are more expensive to live in or have increased demand for these professionals.  

Highest-paying cities for sustainability specialists 

The following are top-paying cities for sustainability specialists in the US, according to Zippia [4]:

• Boston, MA: $67,006

• Washington, DC: $63,762

• San Francisco, CA: $62,994

• Columbia, MD: 62,516

• New York, NY: $62,347

• Detroit, MI: $62,020

• Philadelphia, PA: $61,260

• Austin, TX: $60,562

Sustainability specialist: career growth

Once you've been working as a sustainability specialist for a few years, you can consider advancing into the following titles:  

1. Sustainability analyst

As a sustainability analyst, your role involves gathering data and conducting statistical analysis of sustainability indicators. Additionally, you may assist the leadership within your department in appraising novel sustainable programs.  

Average annual base salary (US): $62,878 [10]

Requirements: Bachelor's degree in environmental science, mathematics, engineering, or related field

2. Sustainability engineer

As a sustainability engineer, you will help ensure your firm’s adherence to environmental policies. You may conduct field tests, participate in audits, and create reports on your company's environmental impact. 

Average annual base salary (US): $91,721 [11]

Requirements: Bachelor's degree in civil engineering, mechanical engineering, agricultural engineering, or a related field

3. Sustainability manager

As a sustainability manager, you may implement eco-friendly strategies in business operations, support ethical sourcing practices for raw materials, supervise community outreach initiatives, and ensure the company's financial well-being by analyzing costs linked to unsustainable activities.

Average annual base salary (US): $103,390 [12]

Requirements: Bachelor's degree in environmental science, engineering, or business

Build sustainability skills with Coursera 

You'll find many opportunities to develop skills in sustainability on Coursera. Here are three options to get started:

• Get comfortable with the subject matter through the University of Illinois' Introduction to Sustainability course.

• Learn how to make your company a better place with the University of Colorado Boulder's Become a Sustainable Business Change Agent Specialization.

• Develop important data analysis skills with the Google Data Analytics Professional Certificate.