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The average salary for a Software Designer is approximately $107,449 annually or $52 hourly. This figure can fluctuate based on factors such as location, experience, and specific skill sets. For instance, software designers in states like California and Washington tend to earn higher salaries due to the higher cost of living and demand for technical talent.
In California, the average salary for a software designer can exceed $120,000, while states like Texas may offer around $95,000. Understanding these variations helps candidates target their job searches effectively.
As technology continues to evolve, the demand for skilled software designers remains strong. Factors such as cloud computing, artificial intelligence, and user experience design are shaping new job roles and opportunities. Staying updated on these trends can provide candidates with a competitive advantage in salary negotiations and job applications.
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The highest-paying states for software designers are California, Nevada, and Oregon. The lowest average software designer salary states are Alabama, Wisconsin, and Kansas.
| Rank | State | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California | $127,980 | $61.53 |
| 2 | Oregon | $110,551 | $53.15 |
| 3 | Idaho | $108,044 | $51.94 |
| 4 | Utah | $100,443 | $48.29 |
| 5 | Wyoming | $96,245 | $46.27 |
| 6 | Arizona | $101,496 | $48.80 |
| 7 | Vermont | $95,488 | $45.91 |
| 8 | Nevada | $114,335 | $54.97 |
| 9 | Washington | $95,324 | $45.83 |
| 10 | Montana | $93,046 | $44.73 |
| 11 | Texas | $92,345 | $44.40 |
| 12 | Mississippi | $99,576 | $47.87 |
| 13 | Colorado | $94,366 | $45.37 |
| 14 | New Mexico | $96,368 | $46.33 |
| 15 | Minnesota | $91,335 | $43.91 |
| 16 | Arkansas | $90,675 | $43.59 |
| 17 | Delaware | $90,378 | $43.45 |
| 18 | New York | $93,355 | $44.88 |
| 19 | Rhode Island | $88,821 | $42.70 |
| 20 | Pennsylvania | $89,821 | $43.18 |
| 21 | West Virginia | $90,854 | $43.68 |
| 22 | Georgia | $89,176 | $42.87 |
| 23 | Tennessee | $90,402 | $43.46 |
| 24 | Oklahoma | $90,865 | $43.69 |
| 25 | Massachusetts | $88,791 | $42.69 |
| 26 | Florida | $90,293 | $43.41 |
| 27 | Louisiana | $89,362 | $42.96 |
| 28 | District of Columbia | $88,054 | $42.33 |
| 29 | Michigan | $85,630 | $41.17 |
| 30 | Iowa | $87,677 | $42.15 |
| 31 | Hawaii | $91,942 | $44.20 |
| 32 | New Hampshire | $86,570 | $41.62 |
| 33 | Maine | $84,162 | $40.46 |
| 34 | North Carolina | $83,035 | $39.92 |
| 35 | Connecticut | $83,873 | $40.32 |
| 36 | South Dakota | $83,038 | $39.92 |
| 37 | New Jersey | $84,846 | $40.79 |
| 38 | Kentucky | $83,551 | $40.17 |
| 39 | Alaska | $85,496 | $41.10 |
| 40 | Maryland | $80,881 | $38.89 |
| 41 | North Dakota | $81,878 | $39.36 |
| 42 | Virginia | $80,138 | $38.53 |
| 43 | Illinois | $81,210 | $39.04 |
| 44 | Alabama | $80,654 | $38.78 |
| 45 | Kansas | $80,370 | $38.64 |
| 46 | Nebraska | $82,097 | $39.47 |
| 47 | Ohio | $81,317 | $39.09 |
| 48 | Missouri | $82,921 | $39.87 |
| 49 | Wisconsin | $80,424 | $38.67 |
| 50 | Indiana | $78,117 | $37.56 |
| 51 | South Carolina | $79,475 | $38.21 |
The highest-paying cities for software designers are San Francisco, CA, Corvallis, OR, and American Fork, UT.
| Rank | City | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Francisco, CA | $137,083 | $65.91 |
| 2 | Corvallis, OR | $110,621 | $53.18 |
| 3 | American Fork, UT | $100,256 | $48.20 |
| 4 | Vancouver, WA | $95,921 | $46.12 |
| 5 | Fort Collins, CO | $94,208 | $45.29 |
| 6 | New York, NY | $93,456 | $44.93 |
| 7 | Austin, TX | $92,629 | $44.53 |
| 8 | Bentonville, AR | $90,457 | $43.49 |
| 9 | Franklin, TN | $90,136 | $43.33 |
| 10 | Atlanta, GA | $89,074 | $42.82 |
| 11 | Boston, MA | $88,786 | $42.69 |
| 12 | Nashua, NH | $86,619 | $41.64 |
| 13 | Lansing, MI | $85,531 | $41.12 |
| 14 | Cary, NC | $83,064 | $39.93 |
| 15 | Chicago, IL | $81,186 | $39.03 |
| 16 | Rockville, MD | $80,595 | $38.75 |
A software designer's salary ranges from $80,000 a year at the 10th percentile to $144,000 at the 90th percentile.

| Percentile | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 90th Percentile | $144,000 | $12,000 | $69 |
| 75th Percentile | $125,000 | $10,417 | $60 |
| Average | $107,449 | $8,954 | $52 |
| 25th Percentile | $92,000 | $7,667 | $44 |
| 10th Percentile | $80,000 | $6,667 | $38 |
The highest paying types of software designers are staff software engineer, software engineer lead, and senior systems software engineer.
| Job title | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate | Job openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Software Engineering Internship | $47,164 | $3,930 | $22.67 | 301,105 |
| Software Developer Internship | $38,480 | $3,207 | $18.50 | 314,860 |
| Software Engineer-Consultant | $113,987 | $9,499 | $54.80 | 317,033 |
| Software Analyst | $78,400 | $6,533 | $37.69 | 274,053 |
| Software Consultant | $88,605 | $7,384 | $42.60 | 275,746 |
| Lead Software Developer | $115,072 | $9,589 | $55.32 | 309,029 |
Top companies hiring software designers now:
Software designer salaries at Globant and AVI are the highest-paying according to our most recent salary estimates. In addition, the average software designer salary at companies like Artemis Health and HP are highly competitive.
| Rank | Company | Average salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Globant | $120,208 | $57.79 |
| 2 | AVI | $116,146 | $55.84 |
| 3 | Artemis Health | $115,251 | $55.41 |
| 4 | HP | $113,330 | $54.49 |
| 5 | NEOTech | $111,845 | $53.77 |
| 6 | Hewlett Packard Enterprise | $111,320 | $53.52 |
| 7 | Ericsson | $111,244 | $53.48 |
| 8 | Qualcomm | $110,288 | $53.02 |
| 9 | Keysight Technologies | $110,211 | $52.99 |
| 10 | Skyworks Solutions | $109,828 | $52.80 |
| 11 | Vertex | $109,604 | $52.69 |
| 12 | Everest Holdings LLC | $109,386 | $52.59 |
| 13 | NextCapital | $109,237 | $52.52 |
| 14 | Delta Dental of Michigan | $108,309 | $52.07 |
| 15 | Resource/Ammirati | $106,482 | $51.19 |
| 16 | Snapfish | $105,745 | $50.84 |
| 17 | Skyworks | $105,714 | $50.82 |
| 18 | Kyyba | $104,892 | $50.43 |
| 19 | International Plant Nutrition | $104,580 | $50.28 |
| 20 | BlackBerry | $104,229 | $50.11 |
The average software designer salary has risen by $19,947 over the last ten years. In 2014, the average software designer earned $87,502 annually, but today, they earn $107,449 a year. That works out to a 10% change in pay for software designers over the last decade.
Compare software designer salaries for cities or states with the national average over time.
Compare software designer salaries for individual cities or states with the national average.
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $107,000 | $51.66 | +3.3% |
| 2024 | $104,000 | $49.96 | +2.3% |
| 2023 | $102,000 | $48.82 | +1.8% |
| 2022 | $99,800 | $47.96 | +1.7% |
| 2021 | $98,100 | $47.16 | +1.8% |
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