optical engineer
Optical engineers design and develop different industrial applications with optics. They have knowledge of light, light transmission principles, and optics in order to design engineering specs of equipment such as microscopes, lenses, telescopes, and other optical devices.
optical engineer optical engineers design and develop different industrial applications with optics. The role shows moderate AI exposure (0.50 on a 0-1 scale) — some tasks are being automated but the role adapts. The most in-demand skills for the role include optical equipment standards, optical glass characteristics, engineering principles, optics, types of optical instruments.
Pay in the UK
UK: median £48,776 a year for Engineering professionals n.e.c. (ONS ASHE 2025, full-time)
Middle half of full-time jobs: £39,653 to £61,717 a year
UK jobs are grouped differently; this is the closest UK occupation group (ONS SOC 2020 2129). ONS rates this estimate precise. 2025 provisional figures; ONS revises them a year later. Source: ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (Open Government Licence)
Pay in India (occupation group)
Average monthly earnings of salaried employees in the occupation group “Professionals” in India, from the Government of India's Periodic Labour Force Survey (January–December 2025). It covers everyone in this group, not only optical engineer, and it is not US pay converted to rupees.
Source: MoSPI (Government of India), Periodic Labour Force Survey Annual Report 2025, Table 51 — average wage/salary earnings of regular wage/salaried employees, NCO-2015 division 2. Official India data gives one average per occupation group: there are no official India figures for single careers, experience levels or cities. Read the report
Top skills
Knowledge you'll build
- Engineering and Technology
- Physics
- Mathematics
- Computers and Electronics
- Design
- English Language
- Mechanical
- Telecommunications
What you'd actually do
- Analyze system performance or operational requirements.
- Develop optical or imaging systems, such as optical imaging products, optical components, image processes, signal process technologies, or optical systems.
- Develop or test photonic prototypes or models.
- Design, integrate, or test photonics systems or components.
- Assist in the transition of photonic prototypes to production.
- Read current literature, talk with colleagues, continue education, or participate in professional organizations or conferences to keep abreast of developments in the field.
Tools & technology you'd use
Frequently asked questions
What does optical engineer do?
Optical engineers design and develop different industrial applications with optics. They have knowledge of light, light transmission principles, and optics in order to design engineering specs of equipment such as microscopes, lenses, telescopes, and other optical devices.
What skills does optical engineer need?
The most in-demand skills for this role include optical equipment standards, optical glass characteristics, engineering principles, optics, types of optical instruments, design drawings. These are the skills O*NET identifies as most important for competent performance.
Will AI replace optical engineer?
Our AI-durability model gives optical engineer a score of 0.50 on a 0-1 scale (higher = more exposure). That places it at moderate AI exposure — some tasks are being automated but the role adapts. Learning to work with AI tools rather than against them is the path forward.