Launch League

Engineering & technical · Building & Making

Computer engineer: what the job actually is

Designing the physical side of computing, such as chips, circuit boards, networks and the systems that connect them.

Published Last reviewed How we research and correct this

Computer engineer: quick facts

Computer engineer salary in Ontario: the median pay is $52.88 an hour, according to Job Bank (reference period 2023-2024). Its three-year outlook in Ontario is limited. The job usually needs a university degree.

Median pay in Ontario
$52.88 an hour
Pay range (low to high)
$33.65 to $86.54 an hour
Job outlook, 2025-2027
Limited
People working in it in Ontario
15,250
Usually needs
Usually a university degree

Source: Job Bank wages (updated 19 November 2025) and job prospects (updated 10 December 2025), NOC 21311. Pay varies by region and experience.

The work

What this job actually is

  • Designing, testing and improving computer hardware and the systems around it, such as circuits, communications equipment and networks.
  • Job Bank's group is computer engineers except software engineers and designers. It is the hardware and systems side, different from the software developer page on this site.
  • Much of the day is design, simulation, testing and working out why a prototype does not behave. Documentation and meetings take as much time as you expect.
  • You work in a team with software people, electrical engineers and technologists, and have to explain constraints to people who want the impossible.
  • Job Bank says the outlook is Limited, and that the pace of job growth may be affected by recent restructuring in the technology sector.

A Tuesday

What a normal day looks like

Not a good day or a bad one. The ordinary version, which is what you would actually be living.

  1. 8:45 — Check the overnight test run. One board failed and nobody knows why yet.
  2. 9:15 — Stand-up with the team. Software says it is hardware, and hardware says it is software.
  3. 10:00 — Read the schematic and the test logs. Narrow the fault down to one part of the circuit.
  4. 11:30 — Change the design in the simulator and run it again. Wait.
  5. 12:30 — Lunch.
  6. 13:15 — Meeting with a customer or a product manager who wants a feature the hardware cannot support.
  7. 14:30 — Bench work. Probe the prototype, measure, and write down what you see.
  8. 15:45 — Document the change so the next engineer understands why you did it.
  9. 16:30 — Review a colleague's design and find the thing they did not account for.
  10. 17:00 — Kick off another test run overnight.

Honestly

Who loves this, and who should not do it

The second list is the useful one. Nearly every careers page leaves it out, which is why nearly every careers page reads like an advert.

You may like this if
  • You enjoy working out why a physical system does not behave and tracking the fault down.
  • You like both maths and building things, and are happy moving between a screen and a bench.
  • You can work in a team with software and hardware people who see the problem differently.
  • You are careful and write things down so someone else can follow your design.
  • You are curious about how the machines behind everything else work.
You may hate this if
  • You hate slow feedback. A prototype can take a long time to build and test, and a fault can hide for days.
  • You dislike documentation and process. Much engineering work is writing down what you did and why.
  • You want the best-looking job outlook. Job Bank rates it Limited and says employment is expected to decline.
  • You do not enjoy a lot of maths and physics. The degree is full of both.
  • You want to see an end user. Most of your work disappears into a product somebody else sells.

The route in

How you actually get there in Ontario

  1. Get an engineering degree

    Job Bank says a bachelor's degree in computer engineering, electrical or electronics engineering, engineering physics or computer science is required, and a master's or doctoral degree may be needed. Ontario universities offer computer and electrical engineering programmes, so compare them, including co-op options. The engineering degree page on this site is a place to start.

  2. Do supervised engineering work

    Job Bank says three to four years of supervised work experience in engineering is needed before professional registration. Co-op terms and your first job both count toward building it, but check the regulator's current rules.

  3. Become a licensed professional engineer

    Job Bank says the occupation is regulated in Ontario by Professional Engineers Ontario, that the P.Eng. needs an accredited degree, supervised experience and a professional practice exam, and that the licence is compulsory to practise engineering and use the title. The PEO's own site blocked an automated read, so read its application requirements before you plan.

  4. Know not every job needs the P.Eng.

    Many people in technology work in jobs that do not call for a licence, but Job Bank's page says it is compulsory to practise as an engineer. If you want the title, plan for it.

Where this comes from: Job Bank — Requirements for computer engineers in Ontario · Job Bank — Outlook for computer engineers in Ontario

The money

Computer engineer salary in Ontario

Job Bank's own figures, quoted rather than summarised, with the period they describe — so you can tell how old they are and go and check them.

$33.65
Low (hourly)
$52.88
Median (hourly)
$86.54
High (hourly)

Ontario, NOC 21311. Reference period 2023-2024, last updated by Job Bank on 19 November 2025. Wages vary a lot by region inside Ontario and by how long you have been doing it — the low figure is roughly where you start, not what the job is worth.

Source: Job Bank — Computer engineer wages in Ontario

Where it is heading

The outlook for the next three years

Job Bank publishes a three-year outlook for every job in every province. It is the closest thing to an honest forecast, and it moves, so read it as a weather report rather than a verdict.

Ontario, 2025-2027

Limited2 out of 5 stars

  • Employment decline will lead to the loss of some positions.
  • A moderate number of positions will become available due to retirements.

What that rating means: how many openings Job Bank expects in Ontario for this kind of work against how many people are likely to be looking — not whether it is a good job. A “limited” rating means more competition for each opening; it does not close the door, and it can change before you are ready to walk through it.

What is changing in this work

  • The extensive use of advanced digital tools across all industries will continue to create job opportunities
  • However the pace of job growth may be affected by recent restructuring in the technology sector

Who hires for it

  • Employed by nearly all major sectors of the economy, but the leading share is in computer systems design and related services
  • Telecommunication carriers
  • Wholesalers and manufacturers of computer and communications equipment
15,250
people work in this job in Ontario
13%
are women (48% across all jobs)
9%
are self-employed (15% across all jobs)

Source: Job Bank — Computer engineers (except software engineers and designers) job prospects in Ontario (NOC 21311). Outlook updated by Job Bank on 10 December 2025; read by us on 5 October 2026.

Before you leave school

Things you can do now

  • Take the highest maths and physics you can. Engineering programmes ask for them.
  • Take any computer science, electronics or technology course your school offers, and join a robotics club if there is one.
  • Build a small circuit or a microcontroller project from a free tutorial and finish it.
  • Look at the entrance requirements of two Ontario university engineering programmes now, so you can choose courses for them.

Test it

Do this before you decide anything

Reading about a job tells you almost nothing. This is designed to be done alone, this week, for free.

Build a tiny circuit and break it on purpose

About 90 minutes
  1. Find a free online circuit simulator and a beginner tutorial. Build a simple circuit with a battery, a resistor and an LED.
  2. Change one value, such as the resistor, and predict what will happen before you run it. Write the prediction down.
  3. Run it and compare. When you are wrong, work out why before moving on.
  4. Repeat three times. Then ask yourself whether you wanted to keep going or kept checking the clock.

What it tells you. If you enjoyed predicting, testing and finding out why you were wrong, engineering suits your way of thinking. If you found the maths and the waiting tedious, you may prefer software or a hands-on trade. If you liked the circuit but not the maths, look at electronics technologist programmes, which are a different route.

Better than any article

Questions for somebody who does this job

Most people say yes to a teenager who asks good questions. These are the ones that get real answers rather than encouragement.

  1. “What do you work on, and how much is design versus testing?”
  2. “How long did it take you to get your P.Eng., and did you need it?”
  3. “How do hardware and software people work together where you are?”
  4. “How did the technology restructuring affect your area?”
  5. “What would you study again if you started over?”
  6. “What does a bad week look like?”

Could you own one of these?

The part other career sites never mention

Sometimes. Job Bank's figures show some people in this group are self-employed, for example as consultants or designing a product. A hardware business costs more to start than a software one, and engineering work you sign for needs the right licence, so most people build experience first.

Business 101 is free and teaches that part

Quick answers

Questions people ask about this job

How much does a computer engineer make in Ontario?

The median pay for a computer engineer in Ontario is $52.88 an hour, according to Job Bank (reference period 2023-2024, updated 19 November 2025). The range Job Bank publishes runs from $33.65 to $86.54 an hour. Pay varies by region, employer and experience.

What is the job outlook for a computer engineer in Ontario?

Job Bank rates the employment outlook for this work in Ontario as limited for 2025-2027 (updated 10 December 2025). Employment decline will lead to the loss of some positions. A moderate number of positions will become available due to retirements. A lower rating means more competition for each opening, not that no one is hiring.

What do you need to become a computer engineer in Ontario?

Job Bank says this work usually needs a university degree. The usual route in Ontario, in order: Get an engineering degree; Do supervised engineering work; Become a licensed professional engineer.

Where does a computer engineer work in Ontario?

Employed by nearly all major sectors of the economy, but the leading share is in computer systems design and related services. Telecommunication carriers. Wholesalers and manufacturers of computer and communications equipment. (Job Bank.)

How many people work as a computer engineer in Ontario, and how many are women?

Job Bank counts about 15,250 people working in this job in Ontario. 13% of them are women, compared with 48% across all jobs. That describes who does the work today, not who can.

Tech and engineering jobs: who is hiring What can you do with your degree?

Not sure this is the right list to be reading

Start from yourself, not from the job.

Future Finder is free, takes about ten minutes, needs no account and stores nothing. It will tell you which kinds of work you lean toward, and which of these pages are worth your time.

Try Future Finder — freeAll jobs

Parent of a teenager weighing this up? Career coaching for teens gets them talking to people who do the work, anywhere in Ontario.

If this appeals, look at these too

electrical engineer software developer mechanical engineer cybersecurity specialist it manager

Read next

University vs college vs apprenticeship Careers that match your strengths Ontario diploma requirements All careers guides

Wages and training requirements change. Every figure on this page is linked to the body that publishes it, and the review date above says when we last checked. If you find something out of date, tell us and we will fix it.