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Senior software development engineer salary
Average senior software development engineer salary
$116,926
Average Senior Software Development Engineer Salary
The average salary for a Senior Software Development Engineer in the United States is $116,926 annually, translating to approximately $56 per hour. This salary level reflects the demand for experienced professionals who possess a blend of technical expertise and problem-solving skills.
Salary Variation by State
Geographical location significantly influences salary levels. States such as California and Washington often report higher salaries due to the concentration of tech firms and cost of living considerations. For example, Senior Software Development Engineers in San Francisco can earn considerably more than their counterparts in less tech-centric areas.
Industries Offering Competitive Salaries
Industries like finance, healthcare, and technology are known to offer some of the highest salaries for this role. The ongoing digital transformation across various sectors continues to drive demand for skilled software engineers, making this field a lucrative career choice.
- Highest Paying Industries: Finance, Healthcare, Technology
- Top Paying States: California, Washington, New York
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Where can a Senior Software Development Engineer earn more?
Average senior software development engineer salary by state
The highest-paying states for senior software development engineers are Washington, California, and Oregon. The lowest average senior software development engineer salary states are North Carolina, Mississippi, and South Dakota.
- State view
- County view
Highest paying states for senior software development engineers
| Rank | State | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Washington | $147,708 | $71.01 |
| 2 | California | $139,289 | $66.97 |
| 3 | Oregon | $125,985 | $60.57 |
| 4 | Arizona | $112,219 | $53.95 |
| 5 | Montana | $104,292 | $50.14 |
| 6 | Nevada | $115,638 | $55.60 |
| 7 | Wyoming | $102,318 | $49.19 |
| 8 | Utah | $102,214 | $49.14 |
| 9 | Arkansas | $100,683 | $48.41 |
| 10 | Idaho | $105,210 | $50.58 |
| 11 | New Mexico | $100,554 | $48.34 |
| 12 | Virginia | $101,312 | $48.71 |
| 13 | Pennsylvania | $98,498 | $47.35 |
| 14 | Texas | $97,214 | $46.74 |
| 15 | New York | $104,340 | $50.16 |
| 16 | Indiana | $98,293 | $47.26 |
| 17 | Louisiana | $101,604 | $48.85 |
| 18 | West Virginia | $99,934 | $48.05 |
| 19 | Connecticut | $103,839 | $49.92 |
| 20 | District of Columbia | $100,578 | $48.35 |
| 21 | Minnesota | $94,902 | $45.63 |
| 22 | Colorado | $99,242 | $47.71 |
| 23 | New Jersey | $100,825 | $48.47 |
| 24 | North Dakota | $93,913 | $45.15 |
| 25 | Massachusetts | $97,522 | $46.89 |
| 26 | Vermont | $93,826 | $45.11 |
| 27 | Maryland | $97,242 | $46.75 |
| 28 | Georgia | $94,460 | $45.41 |
| 29 | Ohio | $95,026 | $45.69 |
| 30 | Michigan | $94,222 | $45.30 |
| 31 | Illinois | $96,570 | $46.43 |
| 32 | Delaware | $95,148 | $45.74 |
| 33 | Maine | $94,386 | $45.38 |
| 34 | Wisconsin | $92,086 | $44.27 |
| 35 | Kansas | $89,413 | $42.99 |
| 36 | Alaska | $93,233 | $44.82 |
| 37 | Hawaii | $95,580 | $45.95 |
| 38 | Alabama | $91,479 | $43.98 |
| 39 | Rhode Island | $89,287 | $42.93 |
| 40 | Florida | $93,802 | $45.10 |
| 41 | Iowa | $92,040 | $44.25 |
| 42 | South Dakota | $86,980 | $41.82 |
| 43 | New Hampshire | $92,289 | $44.37 |
| 44 | Nebraska | $89,360 | $42.96 |
| 45 | Tennessee | $89,386 | $42.97 |
| 46 | South Carolina | $89,374 | $42.97 |
| 47 | North Carolina | $87,324 | $41.98 |
| 48 | Mississippi | $87,080 | $41.87 |
| 49 | Missouri | $86,350 | $41.51 |
| 50 | Oklahoma | $86,580 | $41.63 |
| 51 | Kentucky | $84,797 | $40.77 |
Highest paying cities for senior software development engineers
The highest-paying cities for senior software development engineers are San Francisco, CA, Seattle, WA, and New York, NY.
| Rank | City | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Francisco, CA | $151,186 | $72.69 |
| 2 | Seattle, WA | $148,278 | $71.29 |
| 3 | New York, NY | $104,483 | $50.23 |
| 4 | Arlington, VA | $102,409 | $49.24 |
| 5 | Salt Lake City, UT | $101,818 | $48.95 |
| 6 | Jersey City, NJ | $100,915 | $48.52 |
| 7 | Englewood, CO | $99,186 | $47.69 |
| 8 | Philadelphia, PA | $98,938 | $47.57 |
| 9 | Austin, TX | $97,696 | $46.97 |
| 10 | Boston, MA | $97,557 | $46.90 |
| 11 | Bowie, MD | $97,225 | $46.74 |
| 12 | Chicago, IL | $96,783 | $46.53 |
| 13 | Newark, DE | $95,170 | $45.75 |
| 14 | Orlando, FL | $94,397 | $45.38 |
| 15 | Atlanta, GA | $94,346 | $45.36 |
| 16 | Merrimack, NH | $92,386 | $44.42 |
| 17 | Omaha, NE | $89,307 | $42.94 |
| 18 | Cary, NC | $87,665 | $42.15 |
| 19 | OFallon, MO | $86,255 | $41.47 |
Senior software development engineer salary details
A senior software development engineer's salary ranges from $87,000 a year at the 10th percentile to $156,000 at the 90th percentile.
What is a senior software development engineer's salary?
| Percentile | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 90th Percentile | $156,000 | $13,000 | $75 |
| 75th Percentile | $136,000 | $11,333 | $65 |
| Average | $116,926 | $9,744 | $56 |
| 25th Percentile | $100,000 | $8,333 | $48 |
| 10th Percentile | $87,000 | $7,250 | $42 |
Highest paying senior software development engineer jobs
The highest paying types of senior software development engineers are staff software engineer, software development manager, and principal software engineer.
| Job title | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate | Job openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Software Architect | $114,406 | $9,534 | $55.00 | 319,594 |
| Lead Engineer | $84,927 | $7,077 | $40.83 | 301,777 |
| Software Engineer-Consultant | $113,987 | $9,499 | $54.80 | 317,033 |
| Software Engineer Lead | $125,565 | $10,464 | $60.37 | 342,462 |
| Principal Software Engineer | $134,230 | $11,186 | $64.53 | 345,893 |
| Software Engineer | $100,260 | $8,355 | $48.20 | 339,938 |
Top companies hiring senior software development engineers now:
Which companies pay senior software development engineers the most?
Senior software development engineer salaries at Roku and Netflix are the highest-paying according to our most recent salary estimates. In addition, the average senior software development engineer salary at companies like CrowdStrike and Microsoft are highly competitive.
| Rank | Company | Average salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Roku | $167,416 | $80.49 |
| 2 | Netflix | $166,266 | $79.94 |
| 3 | CrowdStrike | $165,983 | $79.80 |
| 4 | Microsoft | $164,969 | $79.31 |
| 5 | Snowflake Computing | $163,903 | $78.80 |
| 6 | Atlassian | $163,418 | $78.57 |
| 7 | Upstart Network | $162,700 | $78.22 |
| 8 | $161,325 | $77.56 | |
| 9 | MongoDB | $161,029 | $77.42 |
| 10 | Thumbtack | $159,612 | $76.74 |
| 11 | Rubrik | $159,511 | $76.69 |
| 12 | Apptio | $158,933 | $76.41 |
| 13 | Zulily | $156,832 | $75.40 |
| 14 | Aspiration | $156,774 | $75.37 |
| 15 | Apple | $155,721 | $74.87 |
| 16 | Palo Alto Networks | $154,905 | $74.47 |
| 17 | Marin Software | $153,694 | $73.89 |
| 18 | OpenX | $153,259 | $73.68 |
| 19 | TripActions | $152,453 | $73.29 |
| 20 | Shopify | $151,580 | $72.88 |
Wage gap by gender, race and education
Senior Software Development Engineer salary by industry
The average senior software development engineer salary varies across industries:
- The average senior software development engineer salary in the automotive industry is $134,736, the highest of any industry.
- The average senior software development engineer salary in the finance industry is $131,453.
- Senior software development engineers in the finance industry earn an average salary of $101,645, the lowest of any industry.
Highest paying industries for senior software development engineers
| Rank | Industry | Average salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Automotive | $134,736 | $64.78 |
| 2 | Internet | $131,453 | $63.20 |
| 3 | Technology | $129,364 | $62.19 |
| 4 | Insurance | $124,055 | $59.64 |
| 5 | Finance | $101,645 | $48.87 |
High paying senior software development engineer jobs
Senior software development engineer salary trends
The average senior software development engineer salary has risen by $21,707 over the last ten years. In 2014, the average senior software development engineer earned $95,219 annually, but today, they earn $116,926 a year. That works out to a 10% change in pay for senior software development engineers over the last decade.
Compare senior software development engineer salaries for cities or states with the national average over time.
Average senior software development engineer salary over time
Compare senior software development engineer salaries for individual cities or states with the national average.
Senior software development engineer salary by year
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $117,000 | $56.21 | +3.3% |
| 2024 | $113,000 | $54.36 | +2.3% |
| 2023 | $111,000 | $53.13 | +1.8% |
| 2022 | $109,000 | $52.19 | +1.7% |
| 2021 | $107,000 | $51.32 | +1.8% |
Recently added senior software development engineer salaries
| Company | Job | Location | Date added | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jeppesen | Software Engineer-Developer (Mid-Level, Senior) | Seal Beach, CA | 06/30/2025 | $136,850 |
| LPL Financial | Senior Sdet-Automation Engineer | Fort Mill, SC | 06/30/2025 | $91,425 |
| Blue Origin | Senior Software Development Engineer | Seattle, WA | 06/30/2025 | $177,567 |
| Covermymeds | SR. Software Developer/Engineer-Ruby On Rails | Columbus, OH | 06/30/2025 | $119,100 |
| Enova | Senior Software Development Engineer In Test (Hybrid) | Chicago, IL | 06/29/2025 | $107,000 |
| T-Mobile Usa | Senior Engineer, Sdet | Overland Park, KS | 06/29/2025 | $89,400 |
| The New York Times Company | Senior Software Engineer, Developer Platforms-SRE | New York, NY | 06/29/2025 | $140,000 |
| Perspecta | Senior Software Engineer-Cybersecurity R&D | Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD | 06/29/2025 | $112,000 |
| Lucid Motors | SR. Software Development Engineer In Test (Sdet)-Infotainment | Southfield, MI | 06/29/2025 | $127,000 |
| Freddie Mac | Senior Software Development Engineer | McLean, VA | 06/28/2025 | $116,000 |
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