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Performance Engineer Jobs in Washington, DC (NOW HIRING)

TekCommands Inc

Performance Engineer

Vienna, VA · On-site

Seeking a Performance Engineer with strong expertise in performance testing, monitoring, and application scalability for cloud-native and distributed systems. The ideal candidate will have hands-on ...

Cogent People Inc

Performance Engineer

Columbia, MD · On-site +1

The Performance Engineer will work closely with cross-functional teams to identify performance risks, evaluate system behavior, and support delivery efforts in compliance with CMS standards and ...

Cogent People Inc

Performance Engineer

Columbia, MD · On-site

The Performance Engineer will work closely with cross-functional teams to identify performance risks, evaluate system behavior, and support delivery efforts in compliance with CMS standards and ...

USM

Performance Engineer

Washington, DC · On-site

Performance Engineer Location: Washington, DC Contract Length: 10 months + Must have Top Skills: JMeter, Appian experience, Bean Shell Scripting, Jira, SQL- Java or Groovy would be a nice to have.

ETalentNetwork

Senior Performance Engineer

Bowie, MD · On-site

$101K - $139K/yr

ETalentNetwork is a company that specializes in performance engineering, and they are seeking a Senior Performance Engineer. The main purpose of this role is to enhance performance testing and ...

Secunetics, Inc

Network Performance Engineer

Reston, VA · On-site

We are looking for a Network Performance Engineer to interface with our team and our clients to help assess the performance of IT infrastructures, establish baselines, and identify opportunities for ...

Secunetics

Network Performance Engineer

Washington, DC · On-site

We are looking for a Network Performance Engineer to interface with our team and our clients to help assess the performance of IT infrastructures, establish baselines, and identify opportunities for ...

Cymertek

HPC Cloud Performance Engineer

Tysons, VA · On-site

$56 - $74.75/hr

HPC Cloud Performance Engineer LOCATION Tysons, VA 22182 CLEARANCE TS/SCI Full Poly (Please note this position requires full U.S. Citizenship) KEY SUMMARY We are seeking a skilled and motivated HPC ...

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How much do performance engineer jobs pay per hour?

As of Aug 28, 2026, the average hourly pay for performance engineer in Washington, DC is $67.82, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $55.62 and $76.78 per hour, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What is a performance engineer?

A Performance Engineer is a professional who ensures that software applications and systems run efficiently and meet performance requirements. They analyze, test, and optimize system performance by identifying bottlenecks, conducting load and stress testing, and recommending improvements. Performance Engineers work closely with development and operations teams to ensure that applications can handle expected user loads and deliver a smooth user experience. Their work is crucial in preventing slowdowns, crashes, and other performance-related issues in production environments.

What is performance engineering?

Performance engineering is the development of software solutions for specific business problems. As a performance engineer, your responsibilities are to identify issues, whether for a particular company or an industry, and develop software that directly addresses them. To become a performance engineer, you need a bachelor’s degree in computer science or computer engineering, two to five years of information technology (IT) work experience, and excellent problem solving skills. Organizations like HyPerformix offer professional certifications, like their Enterprise Performance Engineering program, which can significantly boost your qualifications. Your additional job duties include performing routine maintenance and service, experimenting with possible solutions in the test environment, and monitoring system performance.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as a performance engineer, and why are they important?

To thrive as a Performance Engineer, you need strong analytical abilities, a solid understanding of software architecture, and experience with load testing and profiling, often supported by a degree in computer science or a related field. Familiarity with tools such as JMeter, LoadRunner, New Relic, and monitoring systems, as well as scripting languages, is typically required. Excellent problem-solving, attention to detail, and effective communication skills help distinguish top performers in this role. These skills and qualities are crucial for identifying system bottlenecks, optimizing performance, and ensuring a seamless user experience.

What are some common challenges performance engineers face when optimizing complex systems?

Performance Engineers often encounter challenges such as identifying bottlenecks in multi-tiered or distributed systems, balancing trade-offs between speed and resource consumption, and ensuring that performance improvements do not compromise system reliability. They frequently work with cross-functional teams, requiring strong communication skills to translate technical findings into actionable recommendations. Staying up-to-date with evolving tools and best practices is also essential, as technology stacks and performance benchmarks continually change.

What is the difference between Performance Engineer vs Software Test Engineer?

AspectPerformance EngineerSoftware Test Engineer
Primary FocusOptimizing system performance, load testing, scalabilityFunctional testing, bug identification, feature validation
Required SkillsPerformance testing tools, scripting, system analysisTest case design, automation, defect tracking
Work EnvironmentDevelopment teams, QA, DevOpsQA teams, development teams
CertificationsPerformance testing certifications (e.g., JMeter, LoadRunner)ISTQB, software testing certifications

Performance Engineers focus on system performance, scalability, and load testing, ensuring applications run efficiently under stress. Software Test Engineers primarily verify functionality and identify bugs. While both roles require testing skills, Performance Engineers specialize in performance metrics and optimization, making their roles complementary but distinct.

How much do performance engineers make in the US?

Performance engineers in the US typically earn between $80,000 and $130,000 annually, depending on experience, location, and industry. Senior roles or those with specialized skills in tools like JMeter or LoadRunner can command higher salaries, often exceeding $150,000.
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For Performance Engineer jobs in Washington, DC, the most frequently searched job titles are:

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Performance Engineer jobs near you
Infographic showing various Performance Engineer job openings in Washington, DC as of August 2026, with employment types broken down into 79% Full Time, 19% Part Time, and 2% Contract. Highlights an 77% Physical, 2% Hybrid, and 21% Remote job distribution, with an average salary of $141,064 per year, or $67.8 per hour.

Performance Engineer

Ruri Software Technologies LLC

Vienna, VA • On-site

Full-time

Posted 26 days ago

Job description

Job Title: Performance Engineer
Location: Onsite in Vienna, VA
Duration: 6 mos.
Job Description:
Seeking a Performance Engineer with strong expertise in performance testing, monitoring, and application scalability for cloud-native and distributed systems. The ideal candidate will have hands-on experience designing and executing load, stress, and endurance tests using NeoLoad, JMeter, and LoadRunner, while leveraging Dynatrace, AppDynamics, and Splunk to identify performance bottlenecks and conduct root cause analysis. This role requires experience with cloud deployments, microservices, Docker/Kubernetes environments, high availability, resilience testing, and observability practices. The successful candidate will collaborate with technical teams to optimize application performance, scalability, and reliability while driving performance engineering best practices across the organization.
Responsibilities:
• Professional experience as Performance Engineer with good hands-on experience in implementing performance & high availability strategies to optimize the efficiency of applications.
• Strong hands-on skills with test script development using Neoload, JMeter & LoadRunner. Experience in executing performance tests (load/stress/endurance) using Neoload/JMeter/LoadRunner and performance monitoring using APM tools to identify performance issues
• Hands-on experience in APM tools like Dynatrace & AppDynamics to conduct root cause analysis for performance and scalability bottlenecks
• Able to analyze Splunk logs, Dynatrace distributed traces, Appdynamics Snapshots, method hotspots and response-time hotspots to identify slow components and provide recommendations
• Experience in performance testing for Cloud deployments, Docker/Kubernetes containerized applications and microservices
• Strong knowledge on Java/Python, SQL query creation and manipulation skills
• Experience in Auto-Scaling, Chaos and failover testing to measure and test for Pod/Node failures, Network exhaustion, CPU/memory saturation, Container startup failures and Dependency failures etc.
• Strong ability to track and contribute to technical discussions around application integration and high-availability, resilience and observability
• Individual Contributor with good communication skills
What are the top 3 skills required for this role?
1. Neoload, JMeter
2. Performance Testing
3. Performance Monitoring using AppDynamics, Dynatrace
Years of Experience: 8-10 Years of Experience
Regards
Surya
Surya@rurisoft.com

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