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Quality assurance lead salary
Average quality assurance lead salary
$94,758
Quality Assurance Lead Salary Overview
A Quality Assurance Lead typically earns an average salary of $94,758 annually. This figure can vary based on several factors, including years of experience, specific industry, and geographic location. For example, Quality Assurance Leads in technology and healthcare sectors often command higher salaries due to the specialized knowledge required.
Salary Influencers
Experience significantly impacts earnings in this field. Entry-level positions may start below the average, whereas seasoned professionals can exceed $120,000 annually. Additionally, location plays a crucial role; metropolitan areas with a high cost of living generally offer higher salaries.
Top-Paying States
- California: $105,000
- New York: $102,000
- Washington: $98,000
- Texas: $92,000
Furthermore, understanding the highest-paying job opportunities can aid in career advancement. Pursuing roles in leading industries such as software development or pharmaceuticals may offer lucrative pathways for Quality Assurance Leads.
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Where can a Quality Assurance Lead earn more?
Average quality assurance lead salary by state
The highest-paying states for quality assurance leads are California, Washington, and New Hampshire. The lowest average quality assurance lead salary states are Indiana, Montana, and South Dakota.
- State view
- County view
Highest paying states for quality assurance leads
| Rank | State | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nevada | $103,527 | $49.77 |
| 2 | New Hampshire | $108,135 | $51.99 |
| 3 | California | $111,189 | $53.46 |
| 4 | Washington | $109,672 | $52.73 |
| 5 | Idaho | $91,091 | $43.79 |
| 6 | New Jersey | $102,179 | $49.12 |
| 7 | Maryland | $102,984 | $49.51 |
| 8 | Connecticut | $97,212 | $46.74 |
| 9 | New York | $103,050 | $49.54 |
| 10 | Delaware | $96,071 | $46.19 |
| 11 | Arizona | $91,995 | $44.23 |
| 12 | Pennsylvania | $93,288 | $44.85 |
| 13 | Utah | $88,692 | $42.64 |
| 14 | Alaska | $91,322 | $43.90 |
| 15 | Virginia | $94,832 | $45.59 |
| 16 | Rhode Island | $88,919 | $42.75 |
| 17 | District of Columbia | $100,426 | $48.28 |
| 18 | Ohio | $87,889 | $42.25 |
| 19 | New Mexico | $86,301 | $41.49 |
| 20 | Texas | $89,487 | $43.02 |
| 21 | Michigan | $86,951 | $41.80 |
| 22 | Oregon | $92,171 | $44.31 |
| 23 | Massachusetts | $95,426 | $45.88 |
| 24 | Vermont | $88,419 | $42.51 |
| 25 | North Carolina | $85,966 | $41.33 |
| 26 | Wisconsin | $85,465 | $41.09 |
| 27 | Kentucky | $84,904 | $40.82 |
| 28 | Minnesota | $87,795 | $42.21 |
| 29 | Arkansas | $82,189 | $39.51 |
| 30 | South Carolina | $87,004 | $41.83 |
| 31 | West Virginia | $85,025 | $40.88 |
| 32 | Illinois | $87,933 | $42.28 |
| 33 | Maine | $86,265 | $41.47 |
| 34 | Kansas | $81,895 | $39.37 |
| 35 | Georgia | $86,771 | $41.72 |
| 36 | North Dakota | $83,342 | $40.07 |
| 37 | Hawaii | $92,745 | $44.59 |
| 38 | Iowa | $84,057 | $40.41 |
| 39 | Mississippi | $84,603 | $40.67 |
| 40 | Nebraska | $81,123 | $39.00 |
| 41 | Indiana | $81,012 | $38.95 |
| 42 | South Dakota | $79,550 | $38.25 |
| 43 | Montana | $79,763 | $38.35 |
| 44 | Alabama | $81,619 | $39.24 |
| 45 | Colorado | $82,815 | $39.81 |
| 46 | Missouri | $84,331 | $40.54 |
| 47 | Oklahoma | $79,462 | $38.20 |
| 48 | Florida | $84,252 | $40.51 |
| 49 | Tennessee | $79,450 | $38.20 |
| 50 | Wyoming | $78,648 | $37.81 |
| 51 | Louisiana | $81,995 | $39.42 |
Highest paying cities for quality assurance leads
The highest-paying cities for quality assurance leads are San Francisco, CA, Seattle, WA, and New York, NY.
| Rank | City | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Francisco, CA | $120,998 | $58.17 |
| 2 | Seattle, WA | $110,446 | $53.10 |
| 3 | New York, NY | $103,330 | $49.68 |
| 4 | Jersey City, NJ | $102,141 | $49.11 |
| 5 | Washington, DC | $100,511 | $48.32 |
| 6 | Quincy, MA | $95,423 | $45.88 |
| 7 | McLean, VA | $95,114 | $45.73 |
| 8 | Philadelphia, PA | $93,969 | $45.18 |
| 9 | Phoenix, AZ | $92,068 | $44.26 |
| 10 | San Antonio, TX | $90,827 | $43.67 |
| 11 | Chicago, IL | $88,222 | $42.41 |
| 12 | Minneapolis, MN | $87,817 | $42.22 |
| 13 | Columbus, OH | $87,448 | $42.04 |
| 14 | Warren, MI | $87,266 | $41.95 |
| 15 | Cary, NC | $86,876 | $41.77 |
| 16 | Alpharetta, GA | $86,717 | $41.69 |
| 17 | Tampa, FL | $85,344 | $41.03 |
| 18 | Saint Louis, MO | $85,258 | $40.99 |
| 19 | Denver, CO | $82,784 | $39.80 |
| 20 | Lincoln, NE | $81,002 | $38.94 |
Quality Assurance Leads are the most in-demand in these five cities:
Quality assurance lead salary details
A quality assurance lead's salary ranges from $72,000 a year at the 10th percentile to $123,000 at the 90th percentile.
What is a quality assurance lead's salary?
| Percentile | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 90th Percentile | $123,000 | $10,250 | $59 |
| 75th Percentile | $108,000 | $9,000 | $52 |
| Average | $94,758 | $7,897 | $46 |
| 25th Percentile | $82,000 | $6,833 | $39 |
| 10th Percentile | $72,000 | $6,000 | $35 |
Highest paying quality assurance lead jobs
The highest paying types of quality assurance leads are engineer lead quality assurance lead, senior quality assurance analyst/lead, and senior quality assurance engineer.
| Job title | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate | Job openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Quality Analyst | $71,957 | $5,996 | $34.59 | 110,980 |
| Quality Assurance Representative | $43,867 | $3,656 | $21.09 | 69,120 |
| Quality Assurance Coordinator | $57,130 | $4,761 | $27.47 | 79,427 |
| Engineer Lead Quality Assurance Lead | $110,007 | $9,167 | $52.89 | 278,178 |
| Quality Assurance Consultant | $86,486 | $7,207 | $41.58 | 91,395 |
| Quality Assurance Internship | $37,029 | $3,086 | $17.80 | 121,163 |
Top companies hiring quality assurance leads now:
Which companies pay quality assurance leads the most?
Quality assurance lead salaries at Meta and Thrive Global are the highest-paying according to our most recent salary estimates. In addition, the average quality assurance lead salary at companies like PayPal and Apple are highly competitive.
| Rank | Company | Average salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Meta | $147,799 | $71.06 |
| 2 | Thrive Global | $146,284 | $70.33 |
| 3 | PayPal | $139,213 | $66.93 |
| 4 | Apple | $138,239 | $66.46 |
| 5 | Levi Strauss & Co. | $133,052 | $63.97 |
| 6 | First Republic Bank | $131,260 | $63.11 |
| 7 | PlayStation | $130,914 | $62.94 |
| 8 | QuinStreet | $130,362 | $62.67 |
| 9 | Pure Storage | $130,361 | $62.67 |
| 10 | Dotdash | $128,813 | $61.93 |
| 11 | Rivian | $127,973 | $61.53 |
| 12 | Riot Games | $126,757 | $60.94 |
| 13 | PRO Unlimited | $126,394 | $60.77 |
| 14 | Open Systems Technologies | $126,264 | $60.70 |
| 15 | HBO | $126,139 | $60.64 |
| 16 | Intuitive Surgical | $125,870 | $60.51 |
| 17 | Microsoft | $125,411 | $60.29 |
| 18 | Barclays | $125,072 | $60.13 |
| 19 | Bridgewater Associates | $124,722 | $59.96 |
| 20 | Starbucks | $124,552 | $59.88 |
Wage gap by gender, race and education
Quality Assurance Lead salary by industry
The average quality assurance lead salary varies across industries:
- The average quality assurance lead salary in the retail industry is $105,673, the highest of any industry.
- The average quality assurance lead salary in the finance industry is $100,520.
- Quality assurance leads in the technology industry earn an average salary of $91,352, the lowest of any industry.
Highest paying industries for quality assurance leads
| Rank | Industry | Average salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Retail | $105,673 | $50.80 |
| 2 | Manufacturing | $100,520 | $48.33 |
| 3 | Finance | $99,380 | $47.78 |
| 4 | Professional | $91,542 | $44.01 |
| 5 | Technology | $91,352 | $43.92 |
High paying quality assurance lead jobs
Quality assurance lead salary trends
The average quality assurance lead salary has risen by $15,511 over the last ten years. In 2014, the average quality assurance lead earned $79,247 annually, but today, they earn $94,758 a year. That works out to a 10% change in pay for quality assurance leads over the last decade.
Compare quality assurance lead salaries for cities or states with the national average over time.
Average quality assurance lead salary over time
Compare quality assurance lead salaries for individual cities or states with the national average.
Quality assurance lead salary by year
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | $94,800 | $45.56 | +3.3% |
| 2025 | $91,600 | $44.06 | +2.3% |
| 2024 | $89,600 | $43.06 | +1.9% |
| 2023 | $87,800 | $42.22 | +2.3% |
| 2022 | $85,800 | $41.26 | +1.5% |
Recently added quality assurance lead salaries
| Company | Job | Location | Date added | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bayer Inc. | Digital Testing Lead | Ames, IA | 06/30/2025 | $120,000 |
| Target | Inventory Control Quality Assurance Leader-Regional Distribution Center | Shafter, CA | 06/30/2025 | $71,000 |
| Blue Origin | Lunar Lander Lead Test Engineer | Noma, FL | 06/30/2025 | $117,498 |
| Deloitte | QA Lead | New York, NY | 06/29/2025 | $143,000 |
| Search | Oracle Peoplesoft Test Lead | Charleston, SC | 06/29/2025 | $93,400 |
| May Mobility | Testing and Evaluation Strategy Lead Engineer, Integrated Autonomy | Ann Arbor, MI | 06/29/2025 | $190,000 |
| Gswell | Appian Test Engineering Lead | Enon, VA | 06/29/2025 | $73,337 |
| Activision Publishing Minneapolis | Associate Quality Assurance Project Lead-Activision | Minneapolis, MN | 06/28/2025 | $40,133 |
| at&T | Lead Quality Assurance | Dallas, TX | 06/28/2025 | $118,800 |
| Us Bank | Issue Management Testing & Validation Lead-Payments Risk & Compliance | Cincinnati, OH | 06/28/2025 | $98,175 |
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