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Application development director salary
Average application development director salary
$151,898
Understanding Salary Trends for Application Development Directors
As of October 2025, the average salary for an Application Development Director is approximately $151,898 per year, translating to about $73 per hour. Salaries can differ based on several factors, including geographic location, years of experience, and industry. For instance, directors in high-demand sectors such as technology and finance may command higher wages.
States like California, New York, and Washington report the highest salaries for this position, with metropolitan areas such as San Francisco and New York City leading the way. Moreover, the highest paying industries include software development, financial services, and consulting. The demand for skilled directors continues to grow as organizations seek to innovate and improve their application development processes.
For professionals aiming to maximize their earning potential, pursuing advanced certifications and gaining experience in leadership roles can be beneficial. Understanding the salary landscape is crucial for making informed career decisions, enabling you to negotiate effectively and choose job opportunities that align with your financial goals.
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Where can an Application Development Director earn more?
Average application development director salary by state
The highest-paying states for application development directors are Washington, California, and Massachusetts. The lowest average application development director salary states are Iowa, Nebraska, and Missouri.
- State view
- County view
Highest paying states for application development directors
| Rank | State | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Washington | $180,807 | $86.93 |
| 2 | Nevada | $150,614 | $72.41 |
| 3 | Ohio | $156,531 | $75.26 |
| 4 | Alaska | $154,415 | $74.24 |
| 5 | Massachusetts | $160,468 | $77.15 |
| 6 | California | $169,147 | $81.32 |
| 7 | Arizona | $144,704 | $69.57 |
| 8 | Pennsylvania | $140,790 | $67.69 |
| 9 | Rhode Island | $148,120 | $71.21 |
| 10 | Connecticut | $157,402 | $75.67 |
| 11 | New Hampshire | $154,294 | $74.18 |
| 12 | Utah | $146,895 | $70.62 |
| 13 | South Dakota | $138,679 | $66.67 |
| 14 | Kentucky | $141,366 | $67.96 |
| 15 | Idaho | $147,168 | $70.75 |
| 16 | Montana | $136,588 | $65.67 |
| 17 | New Jersey | $148,918 | $71.60 |
| 18 | New Mexico | $135,925 | $65.35 |
| 19 | New York | $150,204 | $72.21 |
| 20 | West Virginia | $136,769 | $65.75 |
| 21 | Wisconsin | $135,522 | $65.15 |
| 22 | Maine | $140,904 | $67.74 |
| 23 | Louisiana | $131,102 | $63.03 |
| 24 | Delaware | $142,844 | $68.67 |
| 25 | Oregon | $140,378 | $67.49 |
| 26 | Vermont | $139,454 | $67.05 |
| 27 | District of Columbia | $136,398 | $65.58 |
| 28 | North Carolina | $137,506 | $66.11 |
| 29 | Georgia | $133,613 | $64.24 |
| 30 | Minnesota | $132,678 | $63.79 |
| 31 | Michigan | $132,017 | $63.47 |
| 32 | Illinois | $140,171 | $67.39 |
| 33 | Indiana | $133,190 | $64.03 |
| 34 | Arkansas | $129,268 | $62.15 |
| 35 | Maryland | $147,163 | $70.75 |
| 36 | Virginia | $141,273 | $67.92 |
| 37 | Kansas | $130,760 | $62.87 |
| 38 | South Carolina | $134,739 | $64.78 |
| 39 | Tennessee | $128,065 | $61.57 |
| 40 | Mississippi | $121,675 | $58.50 |
| 41 | Texas | $132,481 | $63.69 |
| 42 | North Dakota | $121,684 | $58.50 |
| 43 | Hawaii | $127,900 | $61.49 |
| 44 | Alabama | $118,650 | $57.04 |
| 45 | Oklahoma | $117,104 | $56.30 |
| 46 | Nebraska | $119,415 | $57.41 |
| 47 | Missouri | $118,999 | $57.21 |
| 48 | Florida | $111,337 | $53.53 |
| 49 | Iowa | $120,133 | $57.76 |
| 50 | Wyoming | $123,266 | $59.26 |
| 51 | Colorado | $128,319 | $61.69 |
Highest paying cities for application development directors
The highest-paying cities for application development directors are Seattle, WA, San Francisco, CA, and Boston, MA.
| Rank | City | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Seattle, WA | $182,953 | $87.96 |
| 2 | San Francisco, CA | $177,927 | $85.54 |
| 3 | Boston, MA | $160,606 | $77.21 |
| 4 | Garfield Heights, OH | $158,481 | $76.19 |
| 5 | Windsor, CT | $158,050 | $75.99 |
| 6 | New York, NY | $150,155 | $72.19 |
| 7 | Parsippany-Troy Hills, NJ | $149,282 | $71.77 |
| 8 | Bethesda, MD | $146,904 | $70.63 |
| 9 | Tempe, AZ | $144,928 | $69.68 |
| 10 | Chicago, IL | $140,404 | $67.50 |
| 11 | Portland, OR | $140,107 | $67.36 |
| 12 | Charlotte, NC | $136,646 | $65.70 |
| 13 | Washington, DC | $136,457 | $65.60 |
| 14 | Dalton, GA | $134,980 | $64.89 |
| 15 | Austin, TX | $133,162 | $64.02 |
| 16 | Minneapolis, MN | $132,721 | $63.81 |
| 17 | Farmington Hills, MI | $132,048 | $63.48 |
| 18 | Denver, CO | $128,308 | $61.69 |
| 19 | Des Moines, IA | $119,826 | $57.61 |
| 20 | Lincoln, NE | $119,300 | $57.36 |
Application development director salary details
An application development director's salary ranges from $116,000 a year at the 10th percentile to $198,000 at the 90th percentile.
What is an application development director's salary?
| Percentile | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 90th Percentile | $198,000 | $16,500 | $95 |
| 75th Percentile | $174,000 | $14,500 | $84 |
| Average | $151,898 | $12,658 | $73 |
| 25th Percentile | $131,000 | $10,917 | $63 |
| 10th Percentile | $116,000 | $9,667 | $56 |
Highest paying application development director jobs
The highest paying types of application development directors are chief technology officer, vice president product development, and director of software development.
| Job title | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate | Job openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Systems Manager | $107,156 | $8,930 | $51.52 | 145,551 |
| Chief Technology Officer | $172,989 | $14,416 | $83.17 | 124,289 |
| Technical Services Manager | $104,419 | $8,702 | $50.20 | 186,807 |
| Director Of Information Management | $135,276 | $11,273 | $65.04 | 134,762 |
| Technical Manager | $116,619 | $9,718 | $56.07 | 116,732 |
| Information Technology Manager | $119,589 | $9,966 | $57.49 | 108,179 |
Top companies hiring application development directors now:
Which companies pay application development directors the most?
Application development director salaries at ServiceNow and Jo-Ann Stores are the highest-paying according to our most recent salary estimates. In addition, the average application development director salary at companies like First Republic Bank and Brown-Forman are highly competitive.
| Rank | Company | Average salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ServiceNow | $193,159 | $92.86 |
| 2 | Jo-Ann Stores | $179,497 | $86.30 |
| 3 | First Republic Bank | $175,014 | $84.14 |
| 4 | Brown-Forman | $171,307 | $82.36 |
| 5 | Backoffice Associates | $164,134 | $78.91 |
| 6 | Austin Industries | $163,439 | $78.58 |
| 7 | ViacomCBS | $163,334 | $78.53 |
| 8 | Citi | $161,144 | $77.47 |
| 9 | StructuredWeb | $160,935 | $77.37 |
| 10 | Arkansas Children's Hospital | $160,669 | $77.24 |
| 11 | Pwc | $160,570 | $77.20 |
| 12 | Druva | $156,413 | $75.20 |
| 13 | Mohawk Industries | $155,856 | $74.93 |
| 14 | NTT Data International L.L.C. | $155,823 | $74.91 |
| 15 | MKP Capital Management | $155,178 | $74.60 |
| 16 | Aetna | $153,879 | $73.98 |
| 17 | Westlake Chemical | $152,837 | $73.48 |
| 18 | DFS Corporate Services LLC | $152,689 | $73.41 |
| 19 | cabi Clothing | $152,425 | $73.28 |
| 20 | American College of Chest Physicians | $151,823 | $72.99 |
Wage gap by gender, race and education
Application Development Director salary by industry
The average application development director salary varies across industries:
- The average application development director salary in the manufacturing industry is $157,492, the highest of any industry.
- The average application development director salary in the finance industry is $156,547.
- Application development directors in the health care industry earn an average salary of $139,132, the lowest of any industry.
Highest paying industries for application development directors
| Rank | Industry | Average salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Manufacturing | $157,492 | $75.72 |
| 2 | Technology | $156,547 | $75.26 |
| 3 | Finance | $153,462 | $73.78 |
| 4 | Professional | $143,874 | $69.17 |
| 5 | Insurance | $143,758 | $69.11 |
| 6 | Health Care | $139,132 | $66.89 |
High paying application development director jobs
Application development director salary trends
The average application development director salary has risen by $33,304 over the last ten years. In 2014, the average application development director earned $118,594 annually, but today, they earn $151,898 a year. That works out to a 11% change in pay for application development directors over the last decade.
Compare application development director salaries for cities or states with the national average over time.
Average application development director salary over time
Compare application development director salaries for individual cities or states with the national average.
Application development director salary by year
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $152,000 | $73.03 | +3.2% |
| 2024 | $147,000 | $70.71 | +2.6% |
| 2023 | $143,000 | $68.86 | +2.3% |
| 2022 | $140,000 | $67.26 | +2.5% |
| 2021 | $136,000 | $65.61 | +3.1% |
Recently added application development director salaries
| Company | Job | Location | Date added | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BNY Mellon | Director, Application Development Manager | New York, NY | 06/27/2025 | $142,000 |
| BNY External | Director, Application Development Manager | New York, NY | 06/27/2025 | $142,000 |
| Delhaize America | Director II, Applications Development-Nextgen POS | Quincy, MA | 06/24/2025 | $161,600 |
| Delhaize America | Director II, Applications Development-Nextgen POS | Chicago, IL | 06/24/2025 | $161,600 |
| Delhaize America | Director II, Applications Development-Nextgen POS | Salisbury, NC | 06/24/2025 | $161,600 |
| Morgan Stanley | Application Development Engineering Lead, Executive Director | New York, NY | 06/22/2025 | $195,000 |
| Citigroup | Director of Engineering and Application Development | Rutherford, NJ | 06/19/2025 | $170,000 |
| Citigroup Inc. | Director of Engineering and Application Development | New York, NY | 06/18/2025 | $170,000 |
| ADP | Director, Application Development | Parsippany-Troy Hills, NJ | 06/02/2025 | $102,100 |
| Cargill | Director Application Development-Animal Nutrition and Health (Hybrid) | Wayzata, MN | 06/01/2025 | $148,000 |
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