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Software engineer/technical lead salary
Average software engineer/technical lead salary
$123,110
Average Software Engineer/Technical Lead Salary
The average salary for a Software Engineer/Technical Lead stands at $123,110 per year. This figure represents a competitive compensation rate, reflecting the expertise required to manage software projects and lead technical teams.
Salary Distribution by Experience
Entry-level positions may start around $85,000, while those with substantial experience can earn upwards of $160,000. Geographic location also plays a significant role in salary variations.
Highest Paying States
California, New York, and Washington rank as the top-paying states for this role, often offering salaries that exceed the national average. In California, for example, the average salary can reach $140,000.
Industry Insights
Industries such as finance, technology, and healthcare often pay the most for Software Engineer/Technical Leads. These sectors demand advanced technical skills and leadership capabilities, which are reflected in their compensation packages.
Conclusion
For those looking to enter or advance in this field, understanding salary trends and regional differences is essential. By aligning skills and experience with market demands, professionals can enhance their career trajectories and earning potential.
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Where can a Software Engineer/Technical Lead earn more?
Average software engineer/technical lead salary by state
The highest-paying states for software engineers/technical lead are California, Oregon, and Washington. The lowest average software engineer/technical lead salary states are Minnesota, Alabama, and Nebraska.
- State view
- County view
Highest paying states for software engineers/technical lead
| Rank | State | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California | $149,199 | $71.73 |
| 2 | New Hampshire | $131,365 | $63.16 |
| 3 | Washington | $131,656 | $63.30 |
| 4 | Utah | $126,392 | $60.77 |
| 5 | Oregon | $134,479 | $64.65 |
| 6 | Nevada | $130,987 | $62.97 |
| 7 | Delaware | $122,771 | $59.02 |
| 8 | Virginia | $124,618 | $59.91 |
| 9 | District of Columbia | $133,681 | $64.27 |
| 10 | Idaho | $118,291 | $56.87 |
| 11 | Pennsylvania | $123,843 | $59.54 |
| 12 | Vermont | $114,663 | $55.13 |
| 13 | North Carolina | $120,938 | $58.14 |
| 14 | Rhode Island | $114,042 | $54.83 |
| 15 | Texas | $114,725 | $55.16 |
| 16 | Massachusetts | $121,626 | $58.47 |
| 17 | Kentucky | $115,384 | $55.47 |
| 18 | Hawaii | $122,604 | $58.94 |
| 19 | New Jersey | $115,926 | $55.73 |
| 20 | Arkansas | $108,594 | $52.21 |
| 21 | Alaska | $111,220 | $53.47 |
| 22 | Mississippi | $115,720 | $55.63 |
| 23 | Arizona | $115,510 | $55.53 |
| 24 | Maryland | $115,410 | $55.49 |
| 25 | West Virginia | $113,122 | $54.39 |
| 26 | Oklahoma | $113,962 | $54.79 |
| 27 | Michigan | $106,725 | $51.31 |
| 28 | New York | $113,353 | $54.50 |
| 29 | Wyoming | $102,864 | $49.45 |
| 30 | Iowa | $112,673 | $54.17 |
| 31 | New Mexico | $108,443 | $52.14 |
| 32 | Florida | $112,785 | $54.22 |
| 33 | Colorado | $105,825 | $50.88 |
| 34 | Wisconsin | $106,446 | $51.18 |
| 35 | South Carolina | $108,633 | $52.23 |
| 36 | Montana | $102,212 | $49.14 |
| 37 | Illinois | $106,769 | $51.33 |
| 38 | Maine | $107,498 | $51.68 |
| 39 | Kansas | $100,688 | $48.41 |
| 40 | Louisiana | $105,330 | $50.64 |
| 41 | Connecticut | $104,753 | $50.36 |
| 42 | North Dakota | $101,008 | $48.56 |
| 43 | Ohio | $102,600 | $49.33 |
| 44 | Missouri | $99,718 | $47.94 |
| 45 | Nebraska | $97,242 | $46.75 |
| 46 | South Dakota | $94,338 | $45.35 |
| 47 | Georgia | $100,142 | $48.15 |
| 48 | Minnesota | $98,590 | $47.40 |
| 49 | Alabama | $97,256 | $46.76 |
| 50 | Tennessee | $92,953 | $44.69 |
| 51 | Indiana | $94,663 | $45.51 |
Highest paying cities for software engineers/technical lead
The highest-paying cities for software engineers/technical lead are San Francisco, CA, Hillsboro, OR, and Washington, DC.
| Rank | City | Avg. salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Francisco, CA | $160,964 | $77.39 |
| 2 | Hillsboro, OR | $134,611 | $64.72 |
| 3 | Washington, DC | $133,756 | $64.31 |
| 4 | Seattle, WA | $133,032 | $63.96 |
| 5 | Salt Lake City, UT | $125,659 | $60.41 |
| 6 | Sterling, VA | $125,384 | $60.28 |
| 7 | Philadelphia, PA | $124,439 | $59.83 |
| 8 | Wilmington, DE | $122,895 | $59.08 |
| 9 | Raleigh, NC | $122,058 | $58.68 |
| 10 | Boston, MA | $121,706 | $58.51 |
| 11 | Austin, TX | $115,337 | $55.45 |
| 12 | New York, NY | $113,552 | $54.59 |
| 13 | Las Cruces, NM | $109,330 | $52.56 |
| 14 | Chicago, IL | $107,169 | $51.52 |
| 15 | Boulder, CO | $105,658 | $50.80 |
| 16 | Dublin, OH | $102,109 | $49.09 |
| 17 | Olathe, KS | $100,776 | $48.45 |
| 18 | OFallon, MO | $100,165 | $48.16 |
| 19 | Alpharetta, GA | $99,862 | $48.01 |
| 20 | Eden Prairie, MN | $98,589 | $47.40 |
Software engineer/technical lead salary details
A software engineer/technical lead's salary ranges from $92,000 a year at the 10th percentile to $164,000 at the 90th percentile.
What is a software engineer/technical lead's salary?
| Percentile | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 90th Percentile | $164,000 | $13,667 | $79 |
| 75th Percentile | $143,000 | $11,917 | $69 |
| Average | $123,110 | $10,259 | $59 |
| 25th Percentile | $105,000 | $8,750 | $50 |
| 10th Percentile | $92,000 | $7,667 | $44 |
Highest paying software engineer/technical lead jobs
The highest paying types of software engineers/technical lead are software engineering manager, staff software engineer, and principal software engineer.
| Job title | Annual salary | Monthly salary | Hourly rate | Job openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lead Software Developer | $115,072 | $9,589 | $55.32 | 309,029 |
| Lead Engineer | $84,927 | $7,077 | $40.83 | 301,777 |
| Software Architect | $114,406 | $9,534 | $55.00 | 319,594 |
| Software Developer | $87,521 | $7,293 | $42.08 | 294,329 |
| Technical Team Lead | $90,219 | $7,518 | $43.37 | 254,215 |
| Principal Software Engineer | $134,230 | $11,186 | $64.53 | 345,893 |
How would you rate the starting salaries for software engineer/technical leads, as well as the prospects for salary advancement?
Michael Rudisill
Department Head and Professor of Engineering Technology, Northern Michigan University
Top companies hiring software engineers/technical lead now:
Which companies pay software engineers/technical lead the most?
Software engineer/technical lead salaries at Meta and Aspiration are the highest-paying according to our most recent salary estimates. In addition, the average software engineer/technical lead salary at companies like Google and DoorDash are highly competitive.
| Rank | Company | Average salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Meta | $189,550 | $91.13 |
| 2 | Aspiration | $176,293 | $84.76 |
| 3 | $174,848 | $84.06 | |
| 4 | DoorDash | $166,660 | $80.13 |
| 5 | The Walt Disney Company | $163,455 | $78.58 |
| 6 | $161,531 | $77.66 | |
| 7 | Twilio | $157,801 | $75.87 |
| 8 | Apple | $156,542 | $75.26 |
| 9 | Walmart | $153,069 | $73.59 |
| 10 | Safeway | $152,261 | $73.20 |
| 11 | Gap Inc. | $151,086 | $72.64 |
| 12 | Macy's | $150,320 | $72.27 |
| 13 | Health Nucleus | $149,150 | $71.71 |
| 14 | Logitech | $148,957 | $71.61 |
| 15 | Über | $148,621 | $71.45 |
| 16 | Bloomberg | $147,780 | $71.05 |
| 17 | Cisco | $147,403 | $70.87 |
| 18 | Upwork | $145,844 | $70.12 |
| 19 | Varian Medical Systems | $145,712 | $70.05 |
| 20 | Deluxe Entertainment Services Group Inc. | $144,514 | $69.48 |
Wage gap by gender, race and education
Software Engineer/Technical Lead salary by industry
The average software engineer/technical lead salary varies across industries:
- The average software engineer/technical lead salary in the utilities industry is $139,104, the highest of any industry.
- The average software engineer/technical lead salary in the finance industry is $125,180.
- Software engineers/technical lead in the insurance industry earn an average salary of $120,560, the lowest of any industry.
Highest paying industries for software engineers/technical lead
| Rank | Industry | Average salary | Hourly rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Utilities | $139,104 | $66.88 |
| 2 | Technology | $125,180 | $60.18 |
| 3 | Retail | $125,104 | $60.15 |
| 4 | Automotive | $124,458 | $59.84 |
| 5 | Finance | $122,086 | $58.70 |
| 6 | Insurance | $120,560 | $57.96 |
High paying software engineer/technical lead jobs
Software engineer/technical lead salary trends
The average software engineer/technical lead salary has risen by $22,854 over the last ten years. In 2014, the average software engineer/technical lead earned $100,256 annually, but today, they earn $123,110 a year. That works out to a 10% change in pay for software engineers/technical lead over the last decade.
Compare software engineer/technical lead salaries for cities or states with the national average over time.
Average software engineer/technical lead salary over time
Compare software engineer/technical lead salaries for individual cities or states with the national average.
Software engineer/technical lead salary by year
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $123,000 | $59.19 | +3.3% |
| 2024 | $119,000 | $57.24 | +2.3% |
| 2023 | $116,000 | $55.94 | +1.8% |
| 2022 | $114,000 | $54.95 | +1.7% |
| 2021 | $112,000 | $54.03 | +1.8% |
Recently added software engineer/technical lead salaries
| Company | Job | Location | Date added | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Capital One | Lead Software Engineer, Front End-Card Tech | Richmond, VA | 06/30/2025 | $175,800 |
| LPL Financial | AVP-.NET Software Engineer/Tech Lead | Fort Mill, SC | 06/30/2025 | $140,475 |
| ZP Group | Technical Lead-Embedded Software | Arlington, VA | 06/29/2025 | $150,000 |
| Agilent Technologies | Technical Lead-Software Management and Entitlements | Wilmington, DE | 06/28/2025 | $121,600 |
| LPL Financial | AVP-.NET Software Engineer/Tech Lead | New York, NY | 06/28/2025 | $140,475 |
| Generali Global Assistance | Software Engineer Technical Lead | Pembroke Pines, FL | 06/28/2025 | $150,000 |
| WGU Corporation | Tech Lead Mobile Software Engineer | Salt Lake City, UT | 06/27/2025 | $157,000 |
| JAJ Consults | Tech Lead/Software Engineer-Grit Energy Group | New Orleans, LA | 06/27/2025 | $80,000 |
| Keybank National Association | Technical Lead Software Engineer | Brooklyn, OH | 06/25/2025 | $94,000 |
| Sargent & Lundy, L.L.C | Technical Lead, Software Engineer | Chicago, IL | 06/25/2025 | $112,410 |
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