Software Engineer Salary in United States
Software engineers design, build, and maintain the applications and systems that power modern businesses. The United States median is $136,000 per year. Pick a city below for a local breakdown.
Showing amounts in USD (USD default). FX as of Mon, 13 Jul 2026 00:02:31 +0000. Convert currencies
National median
$136,000
per year
Monthly (national)
$11,300
per month, before tax
Highest-paying city
$195,000
Washington DC, DC
Hourly (national)
$65.38
varies by city
Software Engineer salary by city in United States
| City | Per year | Per month | vs. national |
|---|---|---|---|
| Washington DC, DC | $195,000 | $16,300 | +43% |
| San Diego, CA | $160,000 | $13,300 | +18% |
| Chicago, IL | $150,000 | $12,500 | +10% |
| Los Angeles, CA | $145,000 | $12,100 | +7% |
| Philadelphia, PA | $144,000 | $12,000 | +6% |
| Dallas, TX | $139,000 | $11,600 | +2% |
| Phoenix, AZ | $138,000 | $11,500 | +1% |
| The Bronx, NY | $136,000 | $11,300 | 0% |
| Jacksonville, FL | $136,000 | $11,300 | 0% |
| Fort Worth, TX | $136,000 | $11,300 | 0% |
| Houston, TX | $130,000 | $10,800 | -4% |
| San Antonio, TX | $128,000 | $10,700 | -6% |
Software Engineer salary in other countries
United Kingdom
Canada
Australia
Germany
France
Netherlands
Switzerland
Singapore
India
Japan
South Korea
Poland
Brazil
United Arab Emirates
Mexico
Ireland
Spain
Italy
Sweden
Norway
Denmark
Belgium
Austria
Portugal
Finland
China
Hong Kong
New Zealand
Indonesia
Philippines
Vietnam
Thailand
Malaysia
Israel
Saudi Arabia
Turkey
Argentina
Colombia
South AfricaRelated Technology salaries in United States
Frontend DeveloperBackend DeveloperData ScientistMachine Learning EngineerDevOps EngineerProduct ManagerUX DesignerData AnalystCybersecurity AnalystIT Support SpecialistFull-Stack DeveloperWeb DeveloperData EngineerQA EngineerSite Reliability EngineerCloud ArchitectNetwork EngineerSystems AdministratorDatabase AdministratorAI Engineer
Frequently asked questions
- How much does a software engineer make in United States?
- The national median software engineer salary in United States is about $136,000 per year ($11,300 per month). Across 12 cities, pay ranges from about $128,000 to $195,000.
- Which United States city pays software engineers the most?
- Washington DC, DC pays the most at about $195,000 per year.
- Which United States city pays software engineers the least?
- Among cities we cover, San Antonio, TX is on the lower end at about $128,000 per year for a software engineer.
- What is the typical salary range for a software engineer in United States?
- Across United States cities we cover, software engineer pay commonly spans from about $80,600 at the entry end in lower-paying markets up to about $301,000 for senior pay in higher-paying cities. Open a city page for the full local percentile band.
- How many United States cities have software engineer salary data?
- Pay by Role publishes software engineer pay for 12 cities in United States, all shown in USD.
- Is software engineer in demand in United States?
- Employment for this role is projected to change by about +17% over the next decade. Related technology roles on Pay by Role include Frontend Developer, Backend Developer, Data Scientist.