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Senior tester salary
Average senior tester salary
$84,660
Understanding the Senior Tester Salary
As of October 2025, the average salary for a Senior Tester stands at $84,660 annually. This position typically requires significant experience in software testing, often involving both manual and automated testing techniques. Senior Testers play a vital role in identifying bugs and ensuring product quality, which is crucial for customer satisfaction.
Salary Variations by Location
Salaries can vary significantly based on geographic location. For instance, Senior Testers in major metropolitan areas tend to earn higher salaries due to the demand for skilled professionals. Cities such as San Francisco, New York, and Seattle are known for offering competitive compensation packages.
Industry Insights
The technology and finance sectors offer some of the highest salaries for Senior Testers, with additional benefits often included. Industries focusing on software development, mobile applications, and financial services are actively seeking qualified candidates, providing ample job opportunities.
In summary, pursuing a career as a Senior Tester not only offers a solid salary but also numerous pathways for growth and advancement in an ever-evolving job market.
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Where can a Senior Tester earn more?
Average senior tester salary by state
The highest-paying states for senior testers are Oregon, Washington, and Maryland. The lowest average senior tester salary states are Louisiana, Arkansas, and Missouri.
- State view
- County view
Highest paying states for senior testers
| Rank | State | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Utah | $97,491 | $46.87 |
| 2 | Oregon | $101,785 | $48.94 |
| 3 | Washington | $100,863 | $48.49 |
| 4 | Arizona | $96,323 | $46.31 |
| 5 | Maryland | $97,811 | $47.02 |
| 6 | Wisconsin | $90,778 | $43.64 |
| 7 | Connecticut | $92,521 | $44.48 |
| 8 | District of Columbia | $97,589 | $46.92 |
| 9 | New Hampshire | $89,555 | $43.06 |
| 10 | Virginia | $88,406 | $42.50 |
| 11 | Alabama | $86,810 | $41.74 |
| 12 | Colorado | $87,325 | $41.98 |
| 13 | North Carolina | $86,835 | $41.75 |
| 14 | Michigan | $86,822 | $41.74 |
| 15 | Wyoming | $82,667 | $39.74 |
| 16 | Minnesota | $87,977 | $42.30 |
| 17 | Kentucky | $88,298 | $42.45 |
| 18 | Nevada | $84,976 | $40.85 |
| 19 | California | $86,631 | $41.65 |
| 20 | Massachusetts | $85,859 | $41.28 |
| 21 | Vermont | $81,765 | $39.31 |
| 22 | New York | $89,044 | $42.81 |
| 23 | Rhode Island | $80,657 | $38.78 |
| 24 | Ohio | $81,798 | $39.33 |
| 25 | Illinois | $86,466 | $41.57 |
| 26 | Montana | $81,049 | $38.97 |
| 27 | New Jersey | $86,427 | $41.55 |
| 28 | Texas | $79,979 | $38.45 |
| 29 | Delaware | $80,736 | $38.82 |
| 30 | Idaho | $82,163 | $39.50 |
| 31 | Iowa | $79,015 | $37.99 |
| 32 | South Dakota | $78,038 | $37.52 |
| 33 | West Virginia | $77,600 | $37.31 |
| 34 | North Dakota | $74,594 | $35.86 |
| 35 | Pennsylvania | $74,692 | $35.91 |
| 36 | Alaska | $75,984 | $36.53 |
| 37 | Nebraska | $75,513 | $36.30 |
| 38 | Georgia | $77,030 | $37.03 |
| 39 | New Mexico | $68,446 | $32.91 |
| 40 | Mississippi | $75,384 | $36.24 |
| 41 | South Carolina | $75,348 | $36.23 |
| 42 | Arkansas | $66,455 | $31.95 |
| 43 | Indiana | $70,566 | $33.93 |
| 44 | Tennessee | $71,148 | $34.21 |
| 45 | Maine | $71,177 | $34.22 |
| 46 | Kansas | $68,964 | $33.16 |
| 47 | Florida | $65,605 | $31.54 |
| 48 | Louisiana | $66,668 | $32.05 |
| 49 | Missouri | $66,131 | $31.79 |
| 50 | Oklahoma | $64,350 | $30.94 |
| 51 | Hawaii | $58,730 | $28.24 |
Highest paying cities for senior testers
The highest-paying cities for senior testers are Portland, OR, Seattle, WA, and Baltimore, MD.
| Rank | City | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Portland, OR | $102,053 | $49.06 |
| 2 | Seattle, WA | $101,321 | $48.71 |
| 3 | Baltimore, MD | $97,992 | $47.11 |
| 4 | Washington, DC | $97,626 | $46.94 |
| 5 | Salt Lake City, UT | $97,105 | $46.69 |
| 6 | Phoenix, AZ | $96,694 | $46.49 |
| 7 | San Francisco, CA | $95,246 | $45.79 |
| 8 | Stamford, CT | $92,772 | $44.60 |
| 9 | Madison, WI | $90,559 | $43.54 |
| 10 | New York, NY | $89,276 | $42.92 |
| 11 | McLean, VA | $88,516 | $42.56 |
| 12 | Minneapolis, MN | $87,913 | $42.27 |
| 13 | Jacksonville, NC | $87,848 | $42.23 |
| 14 | Denver, CO | $87,247 | $41.95 |
| 15 | Dearborn, MI | $86,982 | $41.82 |
| 16 | Chicago, IL | $86,578 | $41.62 |
| 17 | Quincy, MA | $85,948 | $41.32 |
| 18 | Las Vegas, NV | $84,625 | $40.69 |
| 19 | Columbus, OH | $81,768 | $39.31 |
| 20 | Austin, TX | $80,420 | $38.66 |
Senior tester salary details
A senior tester's salary ranges from $62,000 a year at the 10th percentile to $114,000 at the 90th percentile.
What is a senior tester's salary?
| Percentile | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 90th Percentile | $114,000 | $9,500 | $55 |
| 75th Percentile | $99,000 | $8,250 | $48 |
| Average | $84,660 | $7,055 | $41 |
| 25th Percentile | $72,000 | $6,000 | $35 |
| 10th Percentile | $62,000 | $5,167 | $30 |
Highest paying senior tester jobs
The highest paying types of senior testers are senior quality assurance analyst/lead, senior quality assurance engineer, and quality assurance team leader.
| Job title | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate | Job openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Quality Assurance Consultant | $86,486 | $7,207 | $41.58 | 91,395 |
| Quality Assurance Analyst | $73,532 | $6,128 | $35.35 | 108,078 |
| Quality Analyst | $71,957 | $5,996 | $34.59 | 110,980 |
| Quality Assurance Team Leader | $97,476 | $8,123 | $46.86 | 131,886 |
| Quality Assurance Engineer | $82,215 | $6,851 | $39.53 | 243,536 |
| Test Analyst | $70,997 | $5,916 | $34.13 | 91,308 |
Top companies hiring senior testers now:
Which companies pay senior testers the most?
Senior tester salaries at Amazon and Nordstrom are the highest-paying according to our most recent salary estimates. In addition, the average senior tester salary at companies like Gillette and SAS Institute are highly competitive.
| Rank | Company | Average salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Amazon | $122,352 | $58.82 |
| 2 | Nordstrom | $119,047 | $57.23 |
| 3 | Gillette | $112,491 | $54.08 |
| 4 | SAS Institute | $111,037 | $53.38 |
| 5 | Mandiant | $109,556 | $52.67 |
| 6 | Bosch USA | $103,829 | $49.92 |
| 7 | American Family Insurance | $103,564 | $49.79 |
| 8 | SHI International | $103,349 | $49.69 |
| 9 | FireEye | $103,326 | $49.68 |
| 10 | Paylocity | $101,021 | $48.57 |
| 11 | Randstad North America, Inc. | $99,855 | $48.01 |
| 12 | Spectraforce Technologies | $99,018 | $47.60 |
| 13 | Thomson Reuters | $98,683 | $47.44 |
| 14 | Lenovo | $98,429 | $47.32 |
| 15 | EMD Millipore | $97,651 | $46.95 |
| 16 | Populus Group | $97,647 | $46.95 |
| 17 | Gartner | $96,879 | $46.58 |
| 18 | SOS International | $96,379 | $46.34 |
| 19 | h3 Technologies | $96,195 | $46.25 |
| 20 | Mettler-Toledo International | $96,102 | $46.20 |
Wage gap by gender, race and education
Senior Tester salary by industry
The average senior tester salary varies across industries:
- The average senior tester salary in the telecommunication industry is $93,416, the highest of any industry.
- The average senior tester salary in the finance industry is $92,678.
- Senior testers in the technology industry earn an average salary of $76,209, the lowest of any industry.
Highest paying industries for senior testers
| Rank | Industry | Average salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Telecommunication | $93,416 | $44.91 |
| 2 | Professional | $92,678 | $44.56 |
| 3 | Finance | $91,080 | $43.79 |
| 4 | Technology | $76,209 | $36.64 |
High paying senior tester jobs
Senior tester salary trends
The average senior tester salary has risen by $13,859 over the last ten years. In 2014, the average senior tester earned $70,801 annually, but today, they earn $84,660 a year. That works out to a 10% change in pay for senior testers over the last decade.
Compare senior tester salaries for cities or states with the national average over time.
Average senior tester salary over time
Compare senior tester salaries for individual cities or states with the national average.
Senior tester salary by year
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | $84,700 | $40.70 | +3.3% |
| 2025 | $81,900 | $39.36 | +2.3% |
| 2024 | $80,000 | $38.47 | +1.9% |
| 2023 | $78,500 | $37.72 | +2.3% |
| 2022 | $76,700 | $36.87 | +1.5% |
Recently added senior tester salaries
| Company | Job | Location | Date added | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cypress HCM | SR. Android Penetration Tester | Mountain View, CA | 06/25/2025 | $123,133 |
| Tata Consulting Services | Senior Penetration Tester | Milford, OH | 06/18/2025 | $58,600 |
| TRC Companies, Inc. | Senior Scada P2P Tester | Phoenix, AZ | 05/26/2025 | $120,000 |
| Gcom Ondemand | NYS IES PRD Senior Tester | Albany, NY | 05/24/2025 | $114,785 |
| Focuskpi | SR. Penetration Tester (Android)/Mobile Tester | Mountain View, CA | 05/21/2025 | $141,916 |
| Capital One | Senior Compliance Tester II-Corporate Functions | Richmond, VA | 05/09/2025 | $94,600 |
| Citizens | Senior Penetration Tester | Charlotte, NC | 05/04/2025 | $130,000 |
| Citizens | Senior Penetration Tester | Iselin, NJ | 05/03/2025 | $130,000 |
| Citizens | Senior Penetration Tester | Phoenix, AZ | 05/03/2025 | $130,000 |
| Citizens | Senior Penetration Tester | Plano, TX | 05/03/2025 | $130,000 |
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