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Kong Jobs (NOW HIRING)

API Gateway Engineer (Kong)

Herndon, VA ยท Remote

$170K - $210K/yr

BDR Solutions is building a candidate pipeline for the Kong / API Gateway Surge Engineer role for potential CLIN 0006 authorization. This role provides product-specific surge support when IRS ...

Staff Solutions Engineer - New York

Albany, NY ยท Remote

$200K - $260K/yr

Kong sits at the intersection of API management and AI connectivity, and you'll be the person who makes that story real for customers. What you'll be doing: * Support field sales in helping customers ...

Senior Revenue Program Manager

Albany, NY

$115K - $115K/yr

As Kong continues to scale, we are seeking an experienced Revenue Programs Manager. Reporting to the Director of Global Revenue Programs, you will take ownership of a broad portfolio of strategic ...

Staff Solutions Architect

Sacramento, CA ยท On-site

$120K - $173K/yr

We are seeking a Staff Solutions Architect to join the growing Professional Services team at Kong, maker of the world's most popular API gateway. As a Staff Solutions Architect, you will be ...

Senior Social Media Specialist

Austin, TX ยท Remote

$77K - $111K/yr

FYI: Kong's product and audience are technical, but you don't need a technical or B2B background for this role (as long as you're ready to learn). What You'll Do: * Write daily content across ...

Kong sits at the intersection of API management and AI connectivity, and you'll be the person who makes that story real for customers. What you'll be doing: * Support field sales in helping customers ...

Forward Deployed Engineer

Sacramento, CA ยท On-site

$120K - $172K/yr

As organizations modernize for AI-driven connectivity, Kong is uniquely positioned at the center of enterprise transformation. About the Role: We are seeking a Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) to join ...

Forward Deployed Engineer

Trenton, NJ ยท On-site

$133K - $190K/yr

As organizations modernize for AI-driven connectivity, Kong is uniquely positioned at the center of enterprise transformation. We are seeking a Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) to join Kong's growing ...

API Gateway Engineer (Kong)

Herndon, VA ยท On-site +1

$170K - $210K/yr

BDR Solutions is building a candidate pipeline for the Kong / API Gateway Surge Engineer role for potential CLIN 0006 authorization. This role provides product-specific surge support when IRS ...

Senior Revenue Program Manager

Albany, NY ยท Remote

$130K - $140K/yr

As Kong continues to scale, we are seeking an experienced Revenue Programs Manager. Reporting to the Director of Global Revenue Programs, you will take ownership of a broad portfolio of strategic ...

At Kong, we offer UNCAPPED COMMISSIONS with MASSIVE UPSIDE , competitive benefits, and equity in a company with huge growth potential. What You'll Be Doing: * Develop and execute sales strategies to ...

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Kong information

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How much do kong jobs pay per hour?

As of Jul 23, 2026, the average hourly pay for kong in the United States is $20.11, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $18.51 and $21.39 per hour, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What is the difference between Kong vs API Gateway Developer?

AspectKongAPI Gateway Developer
CredentialsCertifications in API management, cloud platforms, or Kong-specific trainingKnowledge of API management, scripting, and cloud certifications
Work EnvironmentCloud-based, API management platforms, DevOps teamsDevelopment teams, API design, and integration projects
Employer & Industry UsageTech companies, SaaS providers, API-centric organizationsSoftware development firms, API-focused roles in various industries

While Kong is a specific API management platform used to deploy, secure, and manage APIs, an API Gateway Developer is a role focused on designing, implementing, and maintaining API gateways, which may include Kong or other platforms. Both roles require API knowledge, but Kong specialists focus on the platform's features, whereas API Gateway Developers have broader responsibilities across different tools and environments.

What are some typical challenges faced by engineers working with Kong API Gateway, and how can they be addressed?

Engineers working with Kong API Gateway often encounter challenges related to scaling, plugin customization, and integration with diverse backend systems. Managing high traffic loads requires careful configuration and monitoring to ensure optimal performance and reliability. Customizing plugins may involve working with Lua or Go, which can present a learning curve. Collaborating closely with DevOps, security, and backend teams is crucial to ensure seamless implementation and to address security and compliance requirements. Regularly participating in knowledge-sharing sessions and leveraging community resources can also help overcome these challenges.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as a Kong API Gateway Engineer, and why are they important?

To thrive as a Kong API Gateway Engineer, you need expertise in API management, networking concepts, and proficiency in programming languages like Lua or Go, often supported by a degree in computer science or related field. Familiarity with Kong Gateway, RESTful APIs, Docker, Kubernetes, and relevant certifications such as Kong Associate Developer are typically required. Strong problem-solving skills, attention to detail, and effective communication are crucial for collaborating with cross-functional teams and troubleshooting complex integrations. These skills are essential for ensuring secure, scalable, and high-performing API infrastructure within modern applications.

What are Kong engineers?

Kong engineers are professionals who specialize in the deployment, management, and optimization of the Kong API gateway and related technologies. They are responsible for setting up Kong to manage, secure, and monitor APIs for organizations of all sizes. Their tasks often include configuring plugins, troubleshooting issues, integrating Kong with other services, and ensuring high performance and security of API traffic. These engineers typically possess skills in cloud infrastructure, networking, and API management, and may work with both open-source Kong and Kong Enterprise solutions.
More about Kong jobs
What cities are hiring for Kong jobs? Cities with the most Kong job openings:
What states have the most Kong jobs? States with the most job openings for Kong jobs include:
Infographic showing various Kong job openings in the United States as of July 2026, with employment types broken down into 1% Internship, 91% Full Time, 6% Part Time, and 2% Contract. Highlights an 84% Physical, 7% Hybrid, and 9% Remote job distribution, with an average salary of $41,833 per year, or $20.1 per hour.
Senior Staff Software Engineer - Agent Marketplace

Senior Staff Software Engineer - Agent Marketplace

Kong

San Francisco, CA โ€ข Remote

$220K - $270K/yr

Full-time

Posted 15 days ago


Job description

Are you ready to unlock intelligence?

If you donโ€™t think you meet all of the criteria below but are still interested in the job, please apply. Nobody checks every box - weโ€™re looking for candidates that are particularly strong in a few areas, and have some interest and capabilities in others.

About the Role:

Architect the future of machine-to-machine commerce as a founding member of a zero-to-one engineering squad. You will design, build, and scale the coordination fabric for agent-to-API and agent-to-agent transactionsโ€”spanning discovery, identity, billing, and settlementโ€”built directly on top of Kongโ€™s world-class runtime stack. Operating as an autonomous startup unit inside Kong, this team is responsible for lowering organizational drag, unlocking engineering velocity, and establishing Kongโ€™s absolute leadership in the Agentic Era.

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What Youโ€™ll Do:

  • Architect and own the end-to-end full-stack surfaces of the marketplace loop, delivering high-performance tools, the underlying REST API substrate, and developer-facing onboarding systems.

  • Design the foundational agent-native user experience, creating robust Model Context Protocol (MCP) server capabilities, sandboxed test environments, and elegant CLI/SDK generation workflows.

  • Scale and protect the transaction infrastructure by building high-reliability pipelines for programmatic identity verification, usage attribution, granular metering, and complex multi-party settlement.

  • Drive cross-functional execution across Kong's engineering ecosystem, partnering with gateway runtime, security plugins, and global core teams to smoothly integrate marketplace features.

  • Lead architectural design reviews and champion a zero-technical-debt culture while proactively preventing scaling bottlenecks across distributed backend components.

  • Mentor engineers across the organization, multiplying the team's output by translating ambiguous product bets into highly defined, modular, and shippable technical milestones.

  • Own the technical lifecycle completely by writing crystal-clear engineering documentation and product specifications for every system you architect.

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What Youโ€™ll Bring:

  • 7+ years of experience engineering enterprise-grade production software with a proven capability to design, build, and support complex distributed systems from scratch.

  • Master-level expertise with a modern backend stack (such as Golang or similar systems languages) alongside deep architectural command of API infrastructure, Kubernetes, and cloud-native patterns.

  • Extensive hands-on experience developing autonomous agent applications, tool-calling systems, prompt loops, or systems designed explicitly for machine consumption.

  • Deep operational familiarity with multi-tenant architectures, usage-based metering pipelines, billing integration patterns, or secure data exchange layers.

  • Strong written communication and technical articulation skills, with an unwavering comfort operating within remote, globally distributed engineering environments (West Coast/Bay Area alignment preferred).

#LI-BR2

About Kong:

Kong Inc., a leading developer of API and AI connectivity technologies, is building the infrastructure that powers the agentic era. Trusted by the Fortune 500 and startups alike, Kong's unified API and AI platform, Kong Konnect, enables organizations to secure, manage, accelerate, govern, and monetize the flow of intelligence across APIs and AI models. For more information, visit www.konghq.com.

Compensation Range: $220K - $270K