On November 3, 2026 we looked at 11,214 open software engineer jobs in the US, collected from employers' own hiring systems. 7,864 of them post an annual base salary range.
The median is $188K a year. The middle half of listings pays between $151K and $225K.
These are advertised base salaries, taken as the midpoint of each posted range. Bonuses, commission and equity are not included.
How the pay is spread
| Midpoint of the posted range | Share of listings |
|---|---|
| Under $125K | 11% |
| $125K–$150K | 12% |
| $150K–$175K | 19% |
| $175K–$200K | 16% |
| $200K–$225K | 16% |
| $225K–$250K | 10% |
| $250K–$275K | 7% |
| $275K–$300K | 3% |
| $300K and up | 7% |
About one listing in four pays under $150K. One in six pays $250K or more.
By level
| Level | Jobs | Typical range | Median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Intern | 59 | $87K–$110K | $96K |
| Entry level | 210 | $99K–$140K | $117K |
| Mid level | 3,302 | $135K–$200K | $170K |
| Senior | 2,213 | $155K–$225K | $191K |
| Lead / Staff | 1,987 | $177K–$275K | $224K |
| Manager | 93 | $170K–$230K | $205K |
Each step up adds $21K to $53K. The biggest jump is from entry to mid level. Lead and staff engineers have a higher median than managers: $224K against $205K.
Entry-level jobs are rare. Only 210 of 7,864 salaried listings, under 3%, are entry level.
By city
| Metro | Jobs | Median |
|---|---|---|
| New York | 1,010 | $225K |
| San Francisco Bay Area | 2,725 | $220K |
| Seattle | 662 | $219K |
| Boston | 297 | $188K |
| Austin | 167 | $188K |
| Remote, US | 982 | $178K |
| Los Angeles | 515 | $175K |
| Washington, DC | 638 | $165K |
New York edges out the Bay Area by $5K at the median, although the Bay Area has 2.7 times as many salaried listings. Remote roles sit $10K below the national median.
Who pays the most
Companies with at least 3 salaried software engineer listings, by median posted salary: Anthropic ($445K, 94 listings), General Intuition & Medal ($412K), Vmax AI Corp ($400K), OpenAI ($356K, 129 listings), Lambda ($330K). Several companies near the top have only a handful of listings, so one wide range can move their median.
FAQ
How much does a software engineer make in the US?
The median advertised base salary is $188K a year, with the middle half of listings between $151K and $225K.
What is the starting salary for a software engineer?
Entry-level listings have a median of $117K, interns $96K.
How much do senior software engineers make?
Senior listings have a median of $191K. Lead and staff roles reach $224K.
Where do software engineers earn the most?
New York ($225K), the San Francisco Bay Area ($220K) and Seattle ($219K).
Do remote software engineers earn less?
In these listings, yes, a little: $178K against $188K nationally.
The numbers are recalculated daily from live listings. Source: software engineer salaries on Sudo Get Job.
This post was written with AI assistance and checked against the source data.
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