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Kafka Administrator Jobs (NOW HIRING)

The Kafka Administrator will play a critical role in ensuring the stability, security, and efficiency of our Confluent Kafka infrastructure. This position is part of the Architecture & Enterprise ...

The Kafka Administrator will play a critical role in ensuring the stability, security, and efficiency of our Confluent Kafka infrastructure. This position is part of the Architecture & Enterprise ...

The Kafka Administrator will play a critical role in ensuring the stability, security, and efficiency of our Confluent Kafka infrastructure. This position is part of the Architecture & Enterprise ...

The Kafka Administrator will play a critical role in ensuring the stability, security, and efficiency of our Confluent Kafka infrastructure. This position is part of the Architecture & Enterprise ...

Kafka Engineer

Woodlawn, MD · On-site +1

$143K - $197K/yr

Summary IT Specialist (APPSW) Kafka Engineer positions are being filled through the Office of Personnel Management's delegated Direct Hire Authority, open to all U.S. citizens. Selections made under ...

Showing results 41-60

Kafka Administrator information

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$63

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How much do kafka administrator jobs pay per hour?

As of Aug 7, 2026, the average hourly pay for kafka administrator in the United States is $63.69, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $50.72 and $75.72 per hour, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What are some common challenges faced by Kafka administrators, and how are they addressed on the job?

Kafka Administrators often encounter challenges such as maintaining cluster stability during high throughput, managing topic configurations, and troubleshooting message delivery issues. Addressing these challenges typically involves proactive monitoring, optimizing resource allocation, and staying current with new Kafka features and updates. Working closely with development and operations teams is essential to resolve incidents efficiently and implement best practices across environments. Successful Kafka Administrators leverage both technical know-how and collaboration to ensure continuous data flow and system resilience.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as a Kafka administrator?

To thrive as a Kafka Administrator, you need a solid understanding of distributed systems, expertise in Apache Kafka setup and management, and experience with Linux-based environments and scripting languages. Familiarity with monitoring tools like Prometheus and Grafana, as well as certifications in relevant technologies or cloud services, are highly valuable. Strong problem-solving skills, attention to detail, and effective communication abilities set outstanding administrators apart. These skills are essential for ensuring the scalability, security, and reliability of enterprise message streaming platforms.

What is a Kafka administrator?

A Kafka Administrator is responsible for installing, configuring, managing, and monitoring Apache Kafka clusters. They ensure high availability, security, and optimal performance of the Kafka environment. Their duties include setting up topics, managing access control, troubleshooting issues, and fine-tuning performance. Kafka Administrators also collaborate with development and operations teams to support real-time data streaming needs.

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What cities are hiring for Kafka Administrator jobs? Cities with the most Kafka Administrator job openings:
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Infographic showing various Kafka Administrator job openings in the United States as of August 2026, with employment types broken down into 17% Full Time, and 83% Contract. Highlights an 83% In-person, and 17% Remote job distribution, with an average salary of $132,484 per year, or $63.7 per hour.

Senior Software Engineer, Managed Streaming Kafka (MSK)

Amazon

Seattle, WA • On-site

$139K - $183K/yr

Full-time

Re-posted 21 days ago


Amazon rating

7.4

Company rating: 7.4 out of 10

Based on 7,064 frontline employees who took The Breakroom Quiz

6th of 39 rated national retailers


Job description

Come build the future of data streaming with the Amazon Managed Streaming for Apache Kafka (MSK) team.
We're looking for builders who want to work on one of the fastest-growing services in AWS. Amazon MSK is a fully managed Apache Kafka service, and if you care about data streaming, open source, and operating at scale, this is the team.
You'll work across the full stack: the control plane APIs, the Kafka platform itself, and the tooling that makes Kafka easier to run for everyone. Upstream compatibility is a core tenet

Your changes to Kafka ship back to open source. That's the deal, and it's a good one. You get to build inside AWS and contribute to one of the most widely adopted open-source platforms in the world.
Day to day, you'll design features, improve performance, prototype solutions, and ship code that serves customers directly

You'll collaborate with engineers across the team and work with senior leaders to shape the roadmap, including identifying what needs to change in the upstream platform to unlock what customers need next.
We're looking for people who've built large-scale distributed systems, who enjoy hard problems, and who can reason about tradeoffs at the intersection of performance, reliability, and cost. Experience with Kafka, Kinesis, Flink, or Spark is a plus. What matters more is that you're curious, you ship, and you think in systems.
Recent MSK innovations:
- MSK Replicator for External Clusters (April 2026): Replication from external Apache Kafka clusters to MSK Express Brokers and back, enabling migration and multi-cloud distribution.
- Topic Management APIs (February 2026): New CreateTopic, UpdateTopic, and DeleteTopic APIs with console integration, eliminating the need to maintain Kafka admin clients.
- Apache Kafka 4.1 Support (October 2025): Queues as a preview feature, a new Streams Rebalance Protocol in early access, and Eligible Leader Replicas (ELR).
- 5x More Partitions on Express Brokers (July 2025): Partition-bound workloads can now be hosted on fewer brokers, simplifying cluster sizing.
- Seamless Certificate Renewals (May 2025): Brokers receive updated encryption certificates without restarts.
- Express Brokers (re:Invent 2024): Up to 3x more throughput per broker, 20x faster scaling, 90% faster recovery, and hands-free unlimited storage.
- KRaft Mode (May 2024): Clusters run without ZooKeeper, supporting up to 60 brokers.
- Tiered Storage (2023): Decouples compute from storage to optimize cost and scalability.
Learn more about Amazon MSK:
- AWS re:Invent 2024: Express Brokers for Amazon MSK
- AWS re:Invent 2023: How Rivian builds real-time analytics from electric vehicles
- AWS re:Invent 2021: How Coinbase uses Amazon MSK as an event store for applications
- AWS re:Invent 2020: How Goldman Sachs uses an Amazon MSK backbone for Transaction Banking Platform
- AWS re:Invent 2020: How New Relic is migrating its Apache Kafka cluster to Amazon MSK
- AWS re:Invent 2018: Amazon Managed Streaming for Apache Kafka (Amazon MSK) Launch
- MSK Tiered Storage: Optimize cost and improve Kafka scalability
Utility Computing (UC)
AWS Utility Computing (UC) provides product innovations from foundational services such as Amazon S3 and Amazon EC2 to consistently released new product innovations that continue to set AWS apart in the industry

As a member of the UC organization, you'll support the development and management of Compute, Database, Storage, Internet of Things (IoT), Platform, and Productivity Apps services in AWS, including support for customers who require specialized security solutions for their cloud services.
About the team
ABOUT AWS:
Diverse Experiences
Amazon values diverse experiences. Even if you do not meet all of the preferred qualifications and skills listed in the job description, we encourage candidates to apply. If your career is just starting, hasn't followed a traditional path, or includes alternative experiences, don't let it stop you from applying


Why AWS
Amazon Web Services (AWS) is the world's most comprehensive and broadly adopted cloud platform. We pioneered cloud computing and never stopped innovating - that's why customers from the most successful startups to Global 500 companies trust our robust suite of products and services to power their businesses.
Work/Life Balance
We value work-life harmony. Achieving success at work should never come at the expense of sacrifices at home, which is why flexible work hours and arrangements are part of our culture

When we feel supported in the workplace and at home, there's nothing we can't achieve in the cloud.
Inclusive Team Culture
Here at AWS, it's in our nature to learn and be curious. Our employee-led affinity groups foster a culture of inclusion that empower us to be proud of our differences.

Ongoing events and learning experiences, including our Conversations on Race and Ethnicity and AmazeCon conferences, inspire us to never stop embracing our uniqueness.
Mentorship and Career Growth
We're continuously raising our performance bar as we strive to become Earth's Best Employer. That's why you'll find endless knowledge-sharing, mentorship and other career-advancing resources here to help you develop into a better-rounded professional.


What Amazon employees say

Pay

Benefits

Hours and flexibility

Workplace

Get the full story on Breakroom


Amazon logo

About Amazon

Sourced by ZipRecruiter

Amazon.com, Inc., commonly known as Amazon, is an American multinational technology company. It was founded by Jeff Bezos in 1994 and initially started as an online marketplace for books. Since then, Amazon has expanded its operations and become one of the largest e-commerce companies in the world. Amazon's primary business is its online retail platform, where customers can purchase a vast array of products, including electronics, clothing, books, home goods, and much more. The company offers a convenient and user-friendly shopping experience, with features such as fast shipping, customer reviews, and personalized recommendations. In addition to its e-commerce platform, Amazon has diversified its business into various other areas. One of its notable ventures is Amazon Web Services (AWS), a comprehensive cloud computing platform that provides services such as storage, compute power, and database management to individuals and businesses. AWS has become a leader in the cloud computing industry, powering many websites and applications worldwide. Amazon has also developed its own consumer electronics, including the popular Amazon Kindle e-reader, Fire tablets, Fire TV streaming devices, and the Alexa-powered Echo smart speakers. The Alexa voice assistant, integrated into these devices, allows users to interact with their devices using voice commands, perform tasks, and access information. Furthermore, Amazon has expanded into media and entertainment. It operates Prime Video, a streaming service that offers a wide range of movies, TV shows, and original content. Amazon Music provides a platform for streaming and purchasing digital music, while Audible offers audiobooks and other audio content. The company's commitment to customer satisfaction and convenience is demonstrated by its membership program, Amazon Prime. Prime members receive various benefits, including free two-day shipping, access to streaming services, exclusive deals, and more.

Industry

It services, book publishers, retail, real estate and computer and electronic product manufacturing

Company size

10,000+ Employees

Headquarters location

Seattle, WA, US