Responsible Engineer - Responsible Engineer SpaceX Employee Review

3.0
17 Aug 2014
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

-Food (quality) -Flexible hours -Culture: very open; wear what you want, speak your mind (except to upper management) -Lots of opportunities. It's easy to get lost in tasks. Know its YOUR career - and take control so that you are growing yourself; not just always fighting fires.

Cons

-Company expects a LOT from you, and you will be treated like you can be replaced anytime with a younger, more energetic body. -Poor work life balance. It's up to you to use your time wisely, and know your limits. -Production are a bunch of cliques. You're either in, or not. Get rid of them! -Compensation drops significantly after 5 years. -COL is high in LA, yet the pay is the same at all locations. -Stock given out nowadays is negligible. Compensate by giving salary that is at least competitive. -Stacked rankings -Elon changes his mind on what he wants on a regular basis. Sure the company is his conception, but he is not helpful. He often sends company wide emails asking us to change what our focus is. It's never thought through - and tells everyone to drop what they are doing; attend the next fire; all while what we were working on's fire keeps growing. Oh, and schedule doesn't slip because of this - he expects we just take on more because he said so. It's obvious he does not think of any details if you listen to what he says (eg. company meetings) Can I live with the above? Yes. Do I love it? Yes. But I doubt I'll stay after my stocks are invested.

Explore other reviews about SpaceX

5.0
30 May 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Very open and cooperative culture Can-do mindset Break-through mindset

Cons

Weak HR with weak processes to protect employees Always on survival mode culture Less of training and more of performance management Some managers use review process as a weapon to bring people in-line

1
4.0
6 Apr 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

You learn so much because the work is so freaking intense, its a lot of fun if you're the type of person who loves to get emerged in hard problems. The hours for me were not too bad but I was the exception, all the other interns I was with dealt with 60-70+ hour weeks, some interns came in at 10am and left at 12am, when I say its intense, I'm not joking. This is however very unique to the Starbase location. I've heard Hawthorne is a lot more chill. I honestly despite how challenging the role was always look back on it with a sense of pride in my work, and longing to be back there. It really does feel that you're doing world changing things.

Cons

Very un diverse upper management, I'd say the company is pretty diverse in the lower ranks, but once you start to look at the org chart and see who's in charge, you realize that its mainly just white people. Makes you wonder if as a person of color you too will be able to move up. Housing sucks: there was limited housing on campus for full time employees, you have to wait a year plus to get off the queue and once you're off you only really get tiny homes as the option that are in an inconvenient location. Interns don't even have the option to get on campus housing, they give you 3k in a housing stipend and expect you to find a place in Brownsville. I'd say its very hard to maintain a relationship while working here if you don't have an understanding partner, the work schedule is brutal and you really can't slack off.

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