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Senior Distributed Systems Engineer Jobs in California

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Senior Distributed Systems Engineer information

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$55.3K

$123.1K

$173.7K

How much do senior distributed systems engineer jobs pay per year?

As of Sep 11, 2026, the average yearly pay for senior distributed systems engineer in California is $123,099.00, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $103,100.00 and $141,100.00 per year, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What is a senior distributed systems engineer?

Senior Distributed Systems Engineers are experienced professionals who design, build, and maintain large-scale computing systems that run across multiple machines or locations. They focus on ensuring reliability, scalability, and performance of distributed applications, often dealing with challenges like data consistency, fault tolerance, and network latency. These engineers typically have deep expertise in distributed computing principles, programming languages, and cloud infrastructure. They also mentor junior team members and help architect robust solutions for complex technical problems.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as a senior distributed systems engineer?

A Senior Distributed Systems Engineer requires deep expertise in computer science fundamentals, scalable system architecture, and proficiency in programming languages such as Java, Go, or Python, often supported by a relevant degree and significant experience in distributed systems. Familiarity with tools like Kubernetes, Docker, Kafka, and cloud platforms (AWS, GCP, or Azure) is typically expected, along with knowledge of monitoring and CI/CD pipelines. Strong problem-solving, communication, and leadership skills help in tackling complex engineering challenges and collaborating across teams. These skills are crucial for designing robust, scalable, and reliable systems that support organizational growth and high availability.

What are some common challenges senior distributed systems engineers face when designing scalable systems?

Senior Distributed Systems Engineers often encounter challenges such as managing data consistency, ensuring fault tolerance, and minimizing latency across multiple nodes. Balancing trade-offs between availability and partition tolerance (as outlined by the CAP theorem) is a frequent consideration. Additionally, coordinating between development and operations teams to maintain system reliability and efficiently resolve issues that arise in production environments is crucial. Strong communication skills and a deep understanding of distributed architectures help address these complexities effectively.

What is the difference between Senior Distributed Systems Engineer vs Cloud Solutions Architect?

AspectSenior Distributed Systems EngineerCloud Solutions Architect
CredentialsBachelor's/Master's in CS or related, experience with distributed systemsBachelor's/Master's in CS, IT, or related, cloud certifications (AWS, Azure)
Work EnvironmentDesigning, developing, and maintaining distributed systems in tech companiesDesigning cloud infrastructure solutions for clients or internal teams
Industry UsageTech, finance, e-commerce, and enterprise sectorsIT consulting, cloud service providers, enterprise IT departments

The Senior Distributed Systems Engineer focuses on building and optimizing distributed computing systems, while the Cloud Solutions Architect designs cloud infrastructure solutions. Both roles require technical expertise and often overlap in cloud environments, but their primary responsibilities differ in scope and focus.

What are popular job titles related to Senior Distributed Systems Engineer jobs in California?

For Senior Distributed Systems Engineer jobs in California, the most frequently searched job titles are:

What job categories do people searching Senior Distributed Systems Engineer jobs in California look for?

The top searched job categories for Senior Distributed Systems Engineer jobs in California are:

What cities in California are hiring for Senior Distributed Systems Engineer jobs?

Cities in California with the most Senior Distributed Systems Engineer job openings:

Infographic showing various Senior Distributed Systems Engineer job openings in California as of September 2026, with employment types broken down into 1% Internship, 1% As Needed, 82% Full Time, 12% Part Time, 3% Contract, and 1% Nights. Highlights an 87% Physical, 2% Hybrid, and 11% Remote job distribution, with an average salary of $123,099 per year, or $59.2 per hour.

Distributed Systems Engineer 6 - Ads Member Experience

Los Gatos, CA • On-site

Netflix
Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation • 5 - 10K employees

Full-time

Re-posted 13 days ago


Netflix rating

5.8

Company rating: 5.8 out of 10

Based on 15 frontline employees who took The Breakroom Quiz


Job description

Job Summary:
Netflix is a leading entertainment company focused on pushing the boundaries of storytelling and technology. They are seeking a Senior Distributed Systems Engineer to join the Ads Member Experience team, responsible for developing innovative ad formats and optimizing advertising systems to enhance user experience and drive business impact.
Responsibilities:
• Identify and build the ad formats that will define the future of advertising on the Netflix streaming platform, including live events.
• Drive the definition of ad formats and how they are standardized across delivery platforms (TV, mobile, web).
• Lead the experimentation needed to optimize the advertising experience for users and advertisers.
• Build highly performant advertising systems and deliver high impact to the business by monetizing content.
• Collaborate with cross-functional stakeholders from product, engineering, design, etc. to deliver complex features with critical business impact.
Qualifications:
Required:
• 8+ years of software development experience, with 5+ years of experience in the Ads domain
• Professional experience with ad formats and ad delivery systems, including experimentation with ad creatives and/or native ads.
• Experience with architecting and building large-scale infrastructure for real-time, low-latency, online advertising environments.
• Thorough understanding of the advertising marketplace and landscape, with a focus on publisher side challenges like optimizing fill rates, adjusting ad load, and maximizing advertiser value.
• Proven track record of building systems that power sophisticated user experimentation, A/B testing and lift studies.
• Strong analytical and strategic thinking with demonstrated product sense and leadership in the working environment.
• Expertise in developing systems that measure and optimize end-user advertising experiences, delivering the right advertisement at the right time for the right user.
• Track record of collaborating with cross-functional stakeholders from product, engineering, design, etc. and of delivering complex features with critical business impact
Preferred:
• Familiarity with SDUI (Server-Driven User Interface) architectures.
• Experience building unique ad formats and ad products at scale across multiple advertising channels (CTV, DOOH, Mobile, and Web).
• Programmatic advertisement experience.
• Contributed to an ads industry technology standard (e.g. VAST, OpenRTB) or worked on an industry consortium effort, working group etc.
• Familiarity with legal compliance and changing landscape of ads regulations around the world.
Company:
Netflix is an online streaming platform that enables users to watch TV shows and movies. Founded in 1997, the company is headquartered in Los Gatos, USA, with a team of 10001+ employees. The company is currently Late Stage.

What Netflix employees say

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Benefits

Hours and flexibility

Workplace

Get the full story on Breakroom


Netflix logo

About Netflix

Sourced by ZipRecruiter

Netflix is the world's leading streaming entertainment service with 222 million paid memberships in over 190 countries enjoying TV series, documentaries, feature films and mobile games across a wide variety of genres and languages. Members can watch as much as they want, anytime, anywhere, on any Internet-connected screen. Members can play, pause and resume watching, all without commercials or commitments.

Industry

Arts, entertainment, and recreation

Company size

5,001 - 10,000 Employees

Headquarters location

Los Gatos, CA, US

Year founded

1997