Legal - Anonymous employee SpaceX Employee Review

4.0
Oct 12, 2018
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

The company has an awesome, worthwhile mission, and the workforce comprises top talent. People always find it interesting when I tell them where I work. The pay/benefits are decent, but not great. For those who started a few years ago, the stock options have more than made up for mediocre pay, but that may not be the case going forward.

Cons

Expectations are based almost exclusively on results and take little regard for effort. That might be an ideal metric for manufacturing or even engineering where if you apply enough brain power, creativity, and time you can almost always get results. But for other functions, where results may be determined by factors wholly beyond SpaceX's or any SpaceX employee's control, this can be unreasonable.

Explore other reviews about SpaceX

5.0
Jul 5, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

The vision No desk jobs here Powerful company with determined employees Pays below avg and for full time employees and extract as many hours as they can

Cons

Long hours can be challenging if you don’t have a good manager or understanding partner Stocks are good Vacation starts with 3 week/year On site food is not bad Sabbatical at 5 years

5.0
Jun 29, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

* **Unmatched Mission & Impact:** You are literally working on rockets and spacecraft. The cool factor is 10/10. * **Brilliant Coworkers:** You will be surrounded by some of the smartest, most driven engineers in the world. * **Insane Career Growth:** SpaceX on your resume is a golden ticket. You will learn more here in 3 months than in 3 years at a normal company. * **Hands-on Experience:** They actually trust interns with real, critical hardware. No boring coffee-fetching tasks.

Cons

**Cons:** * **Zero Work-Life Balance:** 70-80 hours a week is the norm, not the exception. Say goodbye to your social life and sleep. * **Extreme Burnout:** The "hustle culture" is toxic. You are expected to treat the company as your entire life. * **Mediocre Pay:** The hourly pay is average, especially when you factor in the insane hours and the high cost of living in LA/Hawthorne. * **Chaotic Management:** Decisions can change overnight based on whatever Elon Musk tweets or feels like doing that morning.

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