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Software engineer salary

Average software engineer salary

$100,260

$48.2 hourly rate

Entry-level software engineer salary
$73,000 yearly salary
Updated January 8, 2025

Average Software Engineer Salary

The average salary for a software engineer in the United States is $100,260 per year. This figure reflects a competitive earning potential, which can vary significantly based on geographic location and industry. For instance, software engineers in tech hubs like San Francisco and New York often earn above average due to the high demand for specialized skills.

Salary by State

States such as California, Washington, and New York consistently rank among the highest-paying for software engineers. In California, for example, the average salary can reach up to $120,000. Additionally, factors like years of experience play a crucial role in salary progression. Entry-level positions may start around $70,000, while seasoned professionals can command salaries exceeding $150,000 annually.

Top Industries

Software engineers find opportunities in various sectors, including finance, healthcare, and tech. The highest-paying industries often include finance and insurance, where salaries may be significantly higher than the national average. Companies are increasingly seeking software engineers with expertise in artificial intelligence, machine learning, and data science, which can further enhance earning potential.

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Where can a Software Engineer earn more?

Compare salary by location
Vs
142k
122k
102k
82k
62k
42k
Columbus, OH$126,992
Tampa, FL$71,875
Compare salary by company
Vs
195k
175k
155k
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The Citadel$174,309
Upstart Network$144,806

Software engineer salary estimates from across the web

Based on the latest salary information compiled by Zippia, Salary.com, Indeed, Glassdoor, Ziprecruiter, SalaryExpert, Comparably, Payscale and CareerExplorer, the average salary for a software engineer typically falls between $92,821 and $134,500.
zippia
$100,260yearly
glassdoor[1]
$124,161yearly
indeed[2]
$119,623yearly
comparably[3]
$103,295yearly
Salary.com[4]
$125,916yearly
ZipRecruiter[5]
$134,500yearly
payscale[6]
$92,821yearly
SalaryExpert[7]
$127,890yearly
CareerExplorer[8]
$92,824yearly

Average software engineer salary by state

The average software engineer salary in California, Washington, and New York are the highest in the U.S. The lowest average software engineer salary states are Kansas, Alabama, and Wyoming.

  • State view
  • County view
Average salary:

Highest paying states for software engineers

RankStateAvg. salaryHourly rate
1Washington$112,080$53.88
2California$115,477$55.52
3Oregon$91,473$43.98
4New York$92,846$44.64
5Nevada$92,651$44.54
6Arizona$83,602$40.19
7Delaware$82,336$39.58
8Massachusetts$83,582$40.18
9Vermont$80,333$38.62
10Virginia$82,022$39.43
11Pennsylvania$80,444$38.67
12Rhode Island$78,726$37.85
13Idaho$78,961$37.96
14Texas$79,419$38.18
15New Hampshire$79,926$38.43
16District of Columbia$84,121$40.44
17Maryland$82,645$39.73
18Utah$77,120$37.08
19North Carolina$78,301$37.64
20North Dakota$77,541$37.28
21New Jersey$82,074$39.46
22Montana$77,348$37.19
23Connecticut$80,498$38.70
24Minnesota$76,300$36.68
25Ohio$74,727$35.93
26Maine$75,766$36.43
27Michigan$74,406$35.77
28Arkansas$73,164$35.17
29Illinois$75,772$36.43
30Louisiana$76,258$36.66
31Indiana$72,602$34.90
32West Virginia$72,788$34.99
33Colorado$72,814$35.01
34Georgia$74,244$35.69
35Iowa$72,892$35.04
36Alaska$75,692$36.39
37New Mexico$72,743$34.97
38Wisconsin$72,793$35.00
39Nebraska$71,346$34.30
40Tennessee$71,046$34.16
41Wyoming$68,674$33.02
42Kentucky$71,499$34.37
43South Carolina$72,455$34.83
44South Dakota$69,944$33.63
45Alabama$69,250$33.29
46Florida$70,541$33.91
47Kansas$69,300$33.32
48Mississippi$70,644$33.96
49Hawaii$66,259$31.86
50Missouri$68,403$32.89
51Oklahoma$68,061$32.72

Highest paying cities for software engineers

The highest-paying cities for software engineers are San Bruno, CA, Seattle, WA, and New York, NY.

RankCityAvg. salaryHourly rate
1San Bruno, CA$126,992$61.05
2Seattle, WA$113,141$54.39
3New York, NY$93,074$44.75
4Hillsboro, OR$91,839$44.15
5Washington, DC$84,161$40.46
6Phoenix, AZ$83,740$40.26
7Boston, MA$83,520$40.15
8Reston, VA$82,203$39.52
9Edison, NJ$82,155$39.50
10Austin, TX$81,355$39.11
11Raleigh, NC$79,096$38.03
12Pittsburgh, PA$78,490$37.74
13Austin, MN$76,098$36.59
14Chicago, IL$75,952$36.52
15Washington, MI$74,612$35.87
16Columbus, OH$74,590$35.86
17Alpharetta, GA$74,229$35.69
18Richmond, IN$72,911$35.05
19Bentonville, AR$72,900$35.05
20Tampa, FL$71,875$34.56

Software Engineers are the most in-demand in these five cities:

  1. Seattle, WA
  2. New York, NY
  3. Hillsboro, OR
  4. Washington, DC
  5. Phoenix, AZ

Software engineer salary details

A software engineer's salary ranges from $73,000 a year at the 10th percentile to $136,000 at the 90th percentile.

Average software engineer salary graph
Average software engineer salary graph, trends, and summary

What is a software engineer's salary?

PercentileAnnual salaryMonthly salaryHourly rate
90th Percentile$136,000$11,333$65
75th Percentile$118,000$9,833$57
Average$100,260$8,355$48
25th Percentile$85,000$7,083$41
10th Percentile$73,000$6,083$35

Highest paying software engineer jobs

The highest paying types of software engineers are staff software engineer, principal software engineer, and software engineer lead.

Job titleAnnual salaryMonthly salaryHourly rateJob openings
Software Analyst$78,400$6,533$37.69274,053
Software Consultant$88,605$7,384$42.60275,746
Software Programmer$71,612$5,968$34.43253,235
Software Developer$87,521$7,293$42.08294,329
Computer Engineer$96,805$8,067$46.54126,709
Software Development Engineer$109,147$9,096$52.47356,971

Top companies hiring software engineers now:

  1. Meta jobs (14,909)
  2. Google jobs (56,365)
  3. PayPal jobs (5,106)
  4. eBay jobs (4,889)
  5. Microsoft jobs (30,638)

Which companies pay software engineers the most?

Software engineer salaries at The Citadel and BandPage are the highest-paying according to our most recent salary estimates. In addition, the average software engineer salary at companies like Meta and Airbnb are highly competitive.

RankCompanyAverage salaryHourly rate
1The Citadel$174,309$83.80
2BandPage$158,055$75.99
3Meta$153,335$73.72
4Airbnb$153,070$73.59
5Credit Karma$152,581$73.36
6Brex$148,309$71.30
7BitGo$148,002$71.15
8ByteDance$147,866$71.09
9Netflix$147,779$71.05
10Conning$147,043$70.69
11Wealthfront$146,765$70.56
12Apple$146,613$70.49
13Pacific Investment Management Company LLC$146,595$70.48
14TikTok$146,303$70.34
15Mixpanel$145,994$70.19
16Quora$145,651$70.02
17Jane Street$145,558$69.98
18StumbleUpon$145,226$69.82
19Nuxeo$144,828$69.63
20Upstart Network$144,806$69.62

Wage gap by gender, race and education

$98,000$96,600$95,200$93,800$92,400$91,000
MaleFemale

Software Engineer salary by industry

The average software engineer salary varies across industries:

  • The average software engineer salary in the start-up industry is $122,617, the highest of any industry.
  • The average software engineer salary in the finance industry is $111,876.
  • Software engineers in the manufacturing industry earn an average salary of $100,102, the lowest of any industry.

Highest paying industries for software engineers

RankIndustryAverage salaryHourly rate
1Start-up$122,617$58.95
2Technology$111,876$53.79
3Finance$104,574$50.28
4Professional$101,089$48.60
5Manufacturing$100,102$48.13

High paying software engineer jobs

Software engineer salary trends

The average software engineer salary has risen by $18,613 over the last ten years. In 2014, the average software engineer earned $81,647 annually, but today, they earn $100,260 a year. That works out to a 10% change in pay for software engineers over the last decade.

Compare software engineer salaries for cities or states with the national average over time.

Average software engineer salary over time

Compare software engineer salaries for individual cities or states with the national average.

Software engineer salary by year

YearAvg. salaryHourly rate% Change
2025$100,000$48.20+3.3%
2024$97,000$46.61+2.3%
2023$94,800$45.56+1.8%
2022$93,100$44.75+1.7%
2021$91,500$44.00+1.8%

Recently added software engineer salaries

CompanyJobLocationDate addedSalary
F5 NetworksSoftware Engineer IIISeattle, WA06/30/2025$128,099
Red HatSoftware Engineer, AI Platform (Release Engineering)-AI EngineeringBoston, MA06/30/2025$108,760
CarrierSoftware Engineer II-Codes & Standard (Noresco)Commerce City, CO06/30/2025$76,516
JeppesenExperienced Software Engineer (Secure Network & Protocols)Titusville, FL06/30/2025$107,100
JeppesenExperienced Full-Stack Software EngineerAurora, CO06/30/2025$114,750
JeppesenExperienced Software EngineerHazelwood, MO06/30/2025$107,100
JeppesenSoftware Engineer (MID or Senior) (Real Time Software Engineer)Seal Beach, CA06/30/2025$141,950
JeppesenSoftware Engineer-Simulation (Simulation)Seattle, WA06/30/2025$118,150
Imeg ConsultantsRevit API Software EngineerAberdeen, SD06/30/2025$90,000
Northwestern MutualSoftware Engineer IIIMilwaukee, WI06/30/2025$92,750

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