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Principal Software Engineer Jobs in Boston, MA (NOW HIRING)

Recorded Future

Principal Software Engineer

Boston, MA

$152K - $228K/yr

As a Principal Software Engineer, you will work across application code and infrastructure to collect, transform, and deliver structured threat data: tracking malware infrastructure, phishing ...

Cadence

Principal Software Engineer

Burlington, MA · On-site

$146K - $197K/yr

They are seeking a Principal Software Engineer to develop efficient software solutions, analyze algorithms, and collaborate on architectural projects. Responsibilities : • Develop Software ...

Medtronic

Principal Software Engineer

Boston, MA

$146K - $196K/yr

As a Principal Software Engineer, you will be responsible for leading engineering activities that support the development, optimization, and sustained performance of products produced across ...

Medtronic

Principal Software Engineer

Boston, MA

$146K - $196K/yr

As a Principal Software Engineer, you will be responsible for leading engineering activities that support the development, optimization, and sustained performance of products produced across ...

Raytheon

Principal Software Engineer

Woburn, MA

$147K - $198K/yr

As a Principal Software Engineer, you will lead the design, development, and delivery of mission-critical software solutions for programs such as the Army, Navy/Transportable Radar Surveillance Model ...

ICONSTAFF

Principal Software Engineer

Boston, MA · On-site +1

$145K - $175K/yr

Principal Software Engineer Help expand access to high-quality behavioral health care for students and families. Our engineering team builds technology that drives clinical excellence and operational ...

Recorded Future

Principal Software Engineer

Boston, MA · On-site

$152K - $228K/yr

As a Principal Software Engineer, you will work across application code and infrastructure to collect, transform, and deliver structured threat data: tracking malware infrastructure, phishing ...

Inmar

Principal Software Engineer

Boston, MA

$146K - $196K/yr

Position Summary The Principal Software Engineer is a senior technical leader responsible for setting the technical vision, standards, and strategy for an entire division or for providing deep ...

Verisk

Principal Software Engineer

Boston, MA · On-site

$146K - $196K/yr

They are seeking a Principal Software Engineer to join their team of full-stack developers, focusing on building scalable analytic solutions and providing technical leadership within an agile ...

ICONSTAFF

Principal Software Engineer

Cambridge, MA

$190K - $210K/yr

We are looking for a collaborative, customer-focused, and creative principal software engineer to develop a high-performance mobile application framework that powers on-device machine learning models ...

SA Technologies Inc.

Principal Software Engineer

Lowell, MA · On-site

$133K - $179K/yr

Principal Software Engineer Location: Lowell, MA Duration: 12 Months Rate: Open The product this design effort is required for is network infrastructure equipment for a major Telco provider. It ...

Blitzy

Principal Software Engineer

Cambridge, MA · On-site

$147K - $197K/yr

Prior experience operating at Principal Engineer / Staff+ scope at a highly technical company * Deep understanding of how enterprise software systems are built and evolved at scale, including ...

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Showing results 1-20

All JobsPrincipal Software Engineer JobsPrincipal Software Engineer Jobs in Boston, MA

Principal Software Engineer information

See Boston, MA salary details

$65.7K

$174.8K

$250.9K

How much do principal software engineer jobs pay per year?

As of Jul 27, 2026, the average yearly pay for principal software engineer in Boston, MA is $174,820.00, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $146,600.00 and $196,600.00 per year, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What are Principal Software Engineers?

Principal Software Engineers are highly experienced technical leaders responsible for designing, developing, and overseeing complex software systems. They set technical direction, mentor engineering teams, and often collaborate with stakeholders to align technology solutions with business goals. In addition to coding, they play a key role in establishing best practices, reviewing architectural decisions, and ensuring high-quality software delivery. Their expertise and leadership are critical in driving innovation and maintaining technical excellence within an organization.

How does a Principal Software Engineer typically balance hands-on coding with leadership responsibilities?

Principal Software Engineers often split their time between technical contributions—such as designing system architecture and reviewing complex code—and guiding teams through mentorship, technical direction, and cross-functional collaboration. While they may not code as much as junior engineers, they remain highly involved in critical implementations and code reviews. Balancing these responsibilities requires strong time management, clear communication, and the ability to prioritize tasks that have the highest impact on project and team success.

What engineers make $300,000 a year?

Principal Software Engineers and senior technical leaders in high-demand industries such as technology, finance, and cloud computing often earn $300,000 or more annually, especially with extensive experience, advanced skills in areas like distributed systems or machine learning, and relevant certifications. Compensation can include base salary, bonuses, and stock options, particularly at large tech companies or startups with significant funding.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as a Principal Software Engineer, and why are they important?

To thrive as a Principal Software Engineer, you need deep expertise in software architecture, programming languages, and system design, often supported by a bachelor's or master's degree in computer science or a related field. Advanced proficiency with development frameworks, cloud platforms (e.g., AWS, Azure), and familiarity with DevOps tools and agile methodologies are typically required. Exceptional leadership, mentorship, and communication skills help facilitate cross-functional collaboration and guide technical teams. These skills are crucial for driving technical vision, ensuring scalable solutions, and fostering innovation within complex projects.

What is the difference between Principal Software Engineer vs Senior Software Engineer?

AspectPrincipal Software EngineerSenior Software Engineer
Required CredentialsBachelor's or Master's in CS or related field; extensive experienceBachelor's or Master's in CS; several years of experience
Work EnvironmentLeadership roles, strategic planning, cross-team collaborationDesign, develop, and troubleshoot software; mentorship
Employer & Industry UsageTech companies, large enterprises, startupsMost industries, including tech, finance, healthcare

The main difference between a Principal Software Engineer and a Senior Software Engineer lies in their level of responsibility and scope. Principal Software Engineers typically lead technical strategy, influence architecture decisions, and mentor multiple teams, whereas Senior Software Engineers focus on coding, design, and individual project contributions. Both roles require strong technical skills, but the Principal role emphasizes leadership and strategic impact.

What engineer makes $500,000 a year?

Principal Software Engineers at large technology companies or in specialized fields such as machine learning, cloud computing, or cybersecurity can earn $500,000 or more annually, often including bonuses and stock options. Achieving this level typically requires extensive experience, advanced skills, and leadership responsibilities within high-demand environments.

What Is Principal Software Engineer?

A principal software engineer is in charge of software development. In this career, you guide the software design process and inspect software programs to make suggestions for improvements. Principal software engineers also process complex data and may need to enforce software design, development, and maintenance requirements. Your job requires a high level of technical knowledge and skills and a thorough understanding of the software development process. Your employer may require you to have a bachelor’s or master’s degree in software development. Similar job titles include software architect and principal software developer.

How much do principal software engineers get paid?

Principal software engineers typically earn between $120,000 and $180,000 annually, with total compensation often including bonuses and stock options. Salaries vary based on experience, location, industry, and company size, with some earning over $200,000 in high-demand markets.

Can you make $500,000 as a software engineer?

Principal Software Engineers at senior levels in large companies or with specialized skills such as machine learning or cloud architecture can earn $500,000 or more annually, often including bonuses and stock options. However, such high compensation is typically reserved for experienced professionals in high-cost-of-living areas or executive-level roles, and not common for entry- or mid-level positions.
More about Principal Software Engineer jobs
What are popular job titles related to Principal Software Engineer jobs in Boston, MA? For Principal Software Engineer jobs in Boston, MA, the most frequently searched job titles are:
What job categories do people searching Principal Software Engineer jobs in Boston, MA look for? The top searched job categories for Principal Software Engineer jobs in Boston, MA are:
What cities near Boston, MA are hiring for Principal Software Engineer jobs? Cities near Boston, MA with the most Principal Software Engineer job openings:
Principal Software Engineer jobs near you
Infographic showing various Principal Software Engineer job openings in Boston, MA as of July 2026, with employment types broken down into 92% Full Time, 4% Part Time, and 4% Contract. Highlights an 88% Physical, 5% Hybrid, and 7% Remote job distribution, with an average salary of $174,820 per year, or $84 per hour.
Senior Principal Software Engineer

Senior Principal Software Engineer

Rocket Software, Inc.

Waltham, MA • On-site

$124K - $168K/yr

Full-time

Medical, Life, Retirement, PTO

Posted 13 days ago

Job description

It's fun to work in a company where people truly BELIEVE in what they're doing!
Job Description Summary:
The Infrastructure Modernization business unit is seeking a Senior Principal Software Engineer to serve as a visionary and hands-on technical leader for our Workload Automation solutions.
The Infrastructure Modernization business unit is seeking a Senior Principal Software Engineer to serve as a visionary and hands-on technical leader for our Workload Automation solutions. These solutions are foundational to our customers' ability to automate business critical processes/workflows, ensure predictable batch workload execution, and modernize software engineering, development, and deployment processes. This responsibility requires deep expertise in automation technologies and practices, runbook operational responsibilities, and modern DevOps pipeline strategies. In this role, this person will be a recognized thought leader, driving the evolution of our Automation product lines to meet enterprise mainframe and hybrid cloud environment. You will collaborate with customers, engineering teams, sales, and product management teams to ensure our offerings deliver robust protection, highly reliable, performant, operationally simple, and highly secure.
Key modernization initiatives will include:
  • Embedding generative and predictive AI to enhance predictable operational outcomes, build workflow processes, and effectively integrate automation into enterprises. In short, modernize our approach to pan-enterprise automation.
  • Architecting scalable, resilient automation platforms that support dynamic workloads
  • Developing modern, secure APIs to improve integration with enterprise batch, DevOps, business process workflow ecosystems and observability platforms.
  • Streamlining deployment and configuration compatible with modern deployment containerization and provisioning technologies.
  • Deliver solutions that automate workflows seamlessly across the entire hybrid enterprise computing stack

Key Role Responsibilities
  • Create and maintain the automation solution architecture that demonstrates key capabilities and value that customers require today and may well require tomorrow
  • Direct requirements and backlog maintenance to ensure alignment with key vision and product direction.
  • Evaluates and recommend key function and value streams necessary to address future vision-based use cases that will allow us to achieve:
  • Competitive differentiation
  • Market leading (e.g. Gartner Magic Quadrant)
  • Full function vs. niche alignment based on strategy dictates
  • Build vs. Buy recommendations
  • Lead and advise on technical debt assessment and resolution
  • Explore and advocate for automation integration opportunities across Rocket and our Partner ecosystems.

Minimum Qualifications
  • 10+ years of professional software engineering/technical product experience, including at least 5 years in a principal or senior technical leadership role.
  • Deep knowledge of automation technologies, workload orchestration, and DevOps practices.
  • Proven experience architecting scalable, resilient platforms for hybrid cloud and mainframe environments.
  • Strong proficiency in z Assembler (HLASM), system diagnostics, and the z/OS architecture as well as modern programming languages (e.g., Java, Python, Go, or similar) and API design.
  • Hands-on experience with CI/CD pipelines as deployed to support modern mainframe software product development
  • Familiarity with observability platforms, security best practices, and performance optimization.
  • Demonstrated ability to define technical vision and roadmap for enterprise-scale solutions.
  • Experience acting as a player-coach, mentoring global engineering teams while contributing technically.
  • Strong collaboration skills with cross-functional teams (Product Management, Sales, Customer Engineering).
  • Expertise in enterprise workload automation, batch processing, and integration with business process workflows.
  • Understanding of AI/ML integration for predictive and generative automation use cases.
  • Excellent communication and presentation skills for engaging with customers and executive stakeholders.
  • Ability to work in a global, distributed development environment.
  • Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or related field

#LI-Remote
Annual salary range for this position is between $124,500.00 - $168,075.00 gross before taxes.
What Rocket Software can offer you in USA:
  • Unlimited Vacation Time as well as paid holidays and sick time
  • Health and Wellness coverage options for Rocketeers and dependents
  • Life and disability coverage
  • Fidelity 401(k) and Roth Retirement Savings with matching contributions
  • Monthly student debt benefit program
  • Tuition Reimbursement and Certificate Reimbursement Program opportunities
  • Leadership and skills training opportunities

EOE M/F/Vet/Disability. Rocket Software Inc. is committed to creating a diverse environment and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, or veteran status. Rocket Software Inc. is also committed to compliance with all fair employment practices regarding citizenship and immigration status.
Rocket is committed to working with and providing reasonable accommodation to individuals with physical and mental disabilities. If you need special assistance or an accommodation while seeking employment, please call: 781-577-4321 or send an email to people@rocketsoftware.com. We will make a determination on your request for reasonable accommodation on a case-by-case basis.
As part of our commitment to a safe and trustworthy workplace, we include background and reference checks in our hiring process.
It is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability.
If you like wild growth and working with happy, enthusiastic over-achievers, you'll enjoy your career with us!
Rocket Software logo

About Rocket Software

Sourced by ZipRecruiter

Thousands of companies around the world depend on Rocket to solve their most challenging business problems by helping them run their critical infrastructure, business processes, and data, as well as extending the value of these assets to take advantage of cloud and mobile computing, advanced analytics, and other future innovations. From the clothes we wear to the cars we drive, Rocket solutions power the back-end systems that thousands of brands interact with every day. At Rocket, software has always been about people--not just ones and zeroes. We're people solving problems for other people, and we strive to treat our customers, partners, and fellow Rocketeers with humanity.

Industry

It services

Company size

1,001 - 5,000 Employees

Headquarters location

Waltham, MA, US

Year founded

1990

Social media

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