Software Engineer Salary

Software engineering roles are some of the most sought after positions in the world due to their high demand, impact, and career earning potential. Career professionals who land a role as a software engineer gain not only leading technical knowledge, but also enjoy some of the best benefits, perks, and compensation that companies offer.

Most companies compensate its software engineers extremely well but a software engineer salary will vary based on role level, location, and a few other factors. So, how much do software engineers make? Our salary negotiation team is here to help you figure that out.

With extensive experience negotiating many software engineer job offers, we provide insights based on real-world salary negotiations and compensation research. In this guide, you'll find detailed information on software engineer levels, the key components of a software engineer salary, and a breakdown of average software engineer base salaries and total compensation packages by level and location.

Want to Negotiate Your Offer? Get offer-specific guidance from a Salary Negotiation Coach. We help software engineers negotiate competitive job offers.

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Understanding software engineer levels are important before interviewing with and accepting a job offer, as they influence your software engineering responsibilities, total compensation, and career trajectory within a company. Most companies determine the software engineer levels based on a combination of factors, including years of experience, the scope of responsibilities, software engineering focus, and the overall impact of the position.

Most companies organize their software engineering roles using a tiered software engineer level structure. These SWE levels are often designated by a title or a numerical code such as IC (Individual Contributor), E (Engineering), or L (Level), followed by a number (i.e., IC6, E6, L6). While the software engineer job titles may appear similar across companies, the internal software engineer level structure and what each SWE level means can vary from company to company.

We provide an overview of the software engineer levels to help you navigate SWE levels at your next company. As a software engineer, you can typically pursue the engineering track as an individual contributor (IC) or the Engineering Manager (EM) track for leadership roles. Below are the typical software engineer levels for the software engineer IC track at most companies:

• Junior Software Engineer

• Software Engineer

• Senior Software Engineer

• Staff Software Engineer

• Senior Staff Software Engineer

• Principal Software Engineer

• Senior Principal Software Engineer

• Distinguished Software Engineer

We focus on the software engineering levels for the software engineer IC track on this page, but for reference here the typical engineering manager levels for the EM track at most companies:

• Lead Software Engineer

• Software Engineering Manager

• Senior Software Engineering Manager

• Director of Software Engineering

• Senior Director of Software Engineering

• VP of Software Engineering

• Senior VP of Software Engineering

Keep in mind that each company may have its own unique software engineer level structure so it’s important to review how SWE levels are defined at the specific company you’re considering.

In a software engineer salary package, you will typically find all or a few of the four core SWE salary components. Below is a quick overview of what to expect before we cover the average compensation for a software engineer salary.

Software Engineer Base Salary

This is the fixed amount you’ll receive in each paycheck as a software engineer. There are set base salary ranges for all software engineer levels and locations – they will also differ depending on the company.

Software Engineer Bonus

The software engineer bonus is typically performance based and is a percentage of the software engineer base salary, determined by individual or company performance. Depending on the software engineer level, the target bonus percentage typically ranges from 10% to 40% for software engineers at most companies.

Software Engineer Equity

Upon joining a new company, you may receive a software engineer equity package in the form of Restricted Stock Units (RSUs) or Stock Options. These software engineer equity grants will typically vest over a three or four-year period in staggered or equal annual increments, meaning you'll receive a set percentage of the software engineer stock grant each year over the company’s stock vesting period.

Software Engineer Sign-on Bonus

You will typically receive a software engineer sign-on bonus in the first year at most companies. This one-time software engineer signing bonus serves as an incentive to join the new company or to compensate for any incentives or perks you may lose when leaving your current company.

Software Engineer Stock Refreshers

These are annual software engineer equity grants that you may receive based on your annual performance review at the new company. These usually fluctuate and there is typically not a set amount for the different software engineer levels.

For more in-depth details from us on software engineer compensation structures, you can check out our Software Engineer Salary Negotiation article.

Each company has its own specific base salary and total compensation range for every software engineer level so pay can vary significantly from one company to another. We’ve found that tech-based companies (like Meta, Google, etc.) tend to offer a higher software engineer salary compared to legacy companies (such as IBM, Bloomberg, or other traditional companies). While most companies typically try to pay new software engineers joining within the lower to mid-range of their software engineer salary bands, we’ve successfully negotiated software engineer salaries closer to the top end of each pay range.

Below, we’ve listed the average compensation for a software engineer salary across the software engineer levels. That way you know what to expect for a SWE salary. Note that these figures are averages based on research and negotiation experience, and not the top end of the software engineer salary bands. To identify the SWE salary range for your software engineer level and company, and to secure a competitive offer, we recommend working with a Salary Negotiation Coach or taking our Job Offer Negotiation Course.

Junior Software Engineer Salary

Here is the average compensation we’ve seen for a junior software engineer salary.

Software Engineer Salary

Here is the average compensation we’ve seen for a software engineer salary.

Senior Software Engineer Salary

Here is the average compensation we’ve seen for a senior software engineer salary.

Staff Software Engineer Salary

Here is the average compensation we’ve seen for a staff software engineer salary.

Senior Staff Software Engineer Salary

Here is the average compensation we’ve seen for a senior staff software engineer salary.

Principal Software Engineer Salary

Here is the average compensation we’ve seen for a principal software engineer salary.

Senior Principal Software Engineer Salary

Here is the average compensation we’ve seen for a senior principal software engineer salary.

Distinguished Software Engineer Salary

Here is the average compensation we’ve seen for a distinguished software engineer salary.

Most software engineering roles come with competitive compensation, but SWE salaries can vary significantly depending on the geographical location. For example, a software engineer salary in San Francisco won't be the same as a software engineer salary in Seattle, and a software engineer salary in London, UK will be different compensation than those in the USA. Most companies closely monitor the cost-of-living differences when setting the software engineer base salary and total compensation ranges.

Below, we’ve listed the average software engineer salaries in some key software engineer hiring locations at the senior software engineer salary level. These figures are based on our research and negotiation experience and represent compensation averages, not the top end of the software engineering salary bands. To identify the SWE salary range for your software engineer level and company, and to secure a competitive offer, we recommend working with a Salary Negotiation Coach or taking our Job Offer Negotiation Course.

Software Engineer Salary Austin, TX

Here is the average compensation we’ve seen for Software Engineer Salary Austin, TX.

Software Engineer Salary Los Angeles, CA

Here is the average compensation we’ve seen for Software Engineer Salary Los Angeles, CA.

Software Engineer Salary New York, NY

Here is the average compensation we’ve seen for Software Engineer Salary New York, NY.

Software Engineer Salary San Francisco, California

Here is the average compensation we’ve seen for Software Engineer Salary San Francisco, California.

Software Engineer Salary Seattle, WA

Here is the average compensation we’ve seen for Software Engineer Salary Seattle, WA.

Software Engineer Salary London, UK

Here is the average compensation we’ve seen for Software Engineer Salary London, UK.

Increasing a software engineer salary requires a deep understanding of the company’s compensation philosophy and SWE salary negotiation strategies that actually work. Our expert Salary Negotiation Coaching will help you navigate the negotiation process and secure the top end of the pay band.

Or leverage our Salary Negotiation Courses and Salary Negotiation Scripts.