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Senior Software Engineer Jobs in Washington (NOW HIRING)

Senior Software Engineer

Annapolis Junction, MD · On-site

$134K - $177K/yr

The role of Sr. Software Engineer includes developing, maintaining, and enhancing software systems in accordance with project requirements. Works effectively both independently and collaboratively ...

Senior Software Engineer

Mclean, VA · On-site

$102.20 - $189.80/hr

Senior Software Engineer** to support our DoD/DoW customers. Software Engineers supporting these efforts work alongside data scientists and data engineers to develop advanced capabilities, prototype ...

Senior Software Engineer

Washington, DC · On-site

$100K - $160K/yr

As a Senior Software Engineer, you will design, develop, and maintain robust software solutions that meet the highest standards of quality, performance, and security. You will solve complex technical ...

The Senior Software Engineer will design, develop, test, integrate, and maintain scalable, highly available software solutions supporting mission-critical environments. This position requires ...

Senior Software Engineer

Mclean, VA · Hybrid

$123K - $163K/yr

Senior Software Engineer Location: McLean, VA or Richmond, VA Work Environment: Hybrid Role Sumary: As a Senior Software Engineer at Exiger, you will be responsible for designing and developing ...

Senior Software Engineer

Reston, VA · On-site

$127K - $168K/yr

The Senior Software Engineer will implement solutions for complex software products and features, ensuring high quality through design, implementation, and testing. Responsibilities : • participate ...

Senior Software Engineer

Mclean, VA · Hybrid

$123K - $163K/yr

Senior Software Engineer Location: McLean, VA or Richmond, VA Work Environment: Hybrid Role Summary: As a Senior Software Engineer at Exiger, you will be responsible for designing and developing ...

The Senior Software Engineer will design, develop, test, integrate, and maintain scalable, highly available software solutions supporting mission-critical environments. This position requires ...

Senior Software Engineer

Springfield, VA · On-site

$140K - $160K/yr

As a Senior Software Engineer, you will play a key role in supporting the Geospatial Intelligence Agency (NGA) by designing, developing, and maintaining geospatial intelligence applications. Your ...

Senior Software Engineer

Mclean, VA · On-site

$123K - $163K/yr

As a Senior Software Engineer , you will also contribute to a variety of areas including: * Leading projects and acting as a mentor to less experienced developers * Collaborating with the TRSS ...

Senior Software Engineer

Mclean, VA · On-site +1

$123K - $163K/yr

As a Senior Software Engineer , you will also contribute to a variety of areas including: * Leading projects and acting as a mentor to less experienced developers * Collaborating with the TRSS ...

Senior Software Engineer

Washington, DC · Remote

$130K - $165K/yr

About the Opportunity A rapidly growing healthcare technology company is seeking a Senior Software Engineer to help build and scale a mission-critical software platform used by millions of patients ...

Sr. Software Engineer

Reston, VA · On-site

$127K - $168K/yr

Senior Software Engineer (Go & Kubernetes Expertise) Location: Remote COMPANY DESCRIPTION Rancher Government Solutions (RGS) is specifically designed to address the unique security and operational ...

Senior Software Engineer

Arlington, VA

$140K - $185K/yr

Title and Summary Senior Software Engineer Who is Mastercard? Mastercard is a global technology company in the payments industry. Our mission is to connect and power an inclusive digital economy that ...

Showing results 21-40

Senior Software Engineer information

See Washington salary details

$85.5K

$162.3K

$217.5K

How much do senior software engineer jobs pay per year?

As of Aug 9, 2026, the average yearly pay for senior software engineer in Washington is $162,292.00, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $138,700.00 and $182,900.00 per year, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What is a senior software engineer?

A senior software engineer designs, codes, tests, and maintains computer software. While these are your primary responsibilities as a senior software engineer, you may also have supervisory duties. These include overseeing a team of junior software engineers or developers. The senior software engineer title is sometimes used interchangeably with senior developer, and positions for both may share similar job duties and responsibilities. In general, software engineers are distinguished from developers in that software engineers apply engineering principles to software development.

What are some common challenges senior software engineers face when mentoring junior team members?

Senior Software Engineers often mentor junior colleagues, which can be incredibly rewarding but also presents challenges. Balancing mentorship with project deadlines can be demanding, as it requires strong time management and communication skills. Additionally, adapting explanations to different learning styles and levels of experience can be tricky. However, effective mentorship helps build a stronger team and can lead to enhanced leadership opportunities for the senior engineer.

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

AspectSenior Software EngineerSoftware Developer
CredentialsBachelor's or higher in CS or related field; experience often 5+ yearsBachelor's in CS or related field; entry to mid-level experience
Work EnvironmentDesigning complex systems, leading projects, mentoringWriting code, developing features, debugging
Industry UsageUsed across tech companies, startups, enterpriseCommon in software firms, startups, freelance work
Search & ComparisonOften compared for experience level, responsibilitiesCompared for entry-level to mid-level roles

The main difference between a Senior Software Engineer and a Software Developer lies in experience, responsibilities, and scope. Senior Software Engineers typically have more experience, lead projects, and mentor others, while Software Developers focus on coding and feature development. Both roles are essential in tech companies, but the Senior Software Engineer position involves higher-level planning and leadership.

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

To thrive as a Senior Software Engineer, you need advanced programming skills, deep understanding of software architecture, and several years of experience in software development, often supported by a relevant degree. Familiarity with tools like Git, CI/CD pipelines, cloud platforms, and expertise in technologies such as Java, Python, or JavaScript are typically required. Leadership, problem-solving, and effective communication are crucial soft skills for mentoring teams and collaborating across departments. These skills ensure the delivery of robust, scalable solutions and drive successful project outcomes in complex technical environments.
What are the most commonly searched types of Software Engineer jobs in Washington? The most popular types of Software Engineer jobs in Washington are:
What cities in Washington are hiring for Senior Software Engineer jobs? Cities in Washington with the most Senior Software Engineer job openings:
Infographic showing various Senior Software Engineer job openings in Washington as of August 2026, with employment types broken down into 85% Full Time, 10% Part Time, and 5% Contract. Highlights an 87% Physical, 3% Hybrid, and 10% Remote job distribution, with an average salary of $162,292 per year, or $78 per hour.

Senior Software Engineer

Software Guidance & Assistance

Rockville, MD • On-site

$124K - $164K/yr

Other

Re-posted 7 days ago


Job description

Software Guidance & Assistance, Inc., (SGA), is searching for a Senior Software Engineer for a CONTRACT assignment with one of our premier Regulatory clients in Rockville, MD or Tysons, VA.
This role is hybrid (3days/week) in Rockville, MD or Tysons, VA.
Candidate must be local in the DMV area.

Working independently, the Senior Software Engineer owns development of software products and works on improving the overall quality of the product throughout the software development life cycle and mentors other Software Engineers. Seasoned individual contributor with deep expertise in Java to design, develop, and maintain complex, enterprise-grade applications on AWS through clean, modular, and performant code; proficiency in Python preferred.
Responsibilities:
  • Designs and develops industry-leading solutions that meet defined quality standards, reliability specifications, and help achieve key strategic objectives
  • Takes broad perspective to problems and exercises independent judgement in techniques and evaluation criteria to obtain results
  • Identifies ways to overcome challenging situations that jeopardize the achievement of business goals
  • Develops actionable insights from analyzing software development trends, software engineering best practices, and innovative test environment management tools and communicates integration recommendations to management
  • Partners within and across teams to remove barriers and identify shared goals and priorities
  • Coaches and trains less experienced colleagues in techniques, processes, and responsibilities
Essential Technical Skills:
  • Backend Development: Strong experience in backend development across server-side technologies and architectures. Ability to design and implement scalable, high-performance systems from API layer to data persistence, with deep understanding of modern frameworks (Spring Boot), RESTful and GraphQL APIs, microservices architectures, event-driven architectures, and database design patterns.
  • Data Storage Technologies: Strong experience with modern data storage solutions including relational databases (Example: PostgreSQL, MySQL), NoSQL systems (Example: MongoDB, Cassandra), and graph databases (Example: Neo4j, Amazon Neptune), with expertise in data modeling approaches and design patterns for diverse data persistence requirements. Demonstrated ability to design and implement scalable metadata schemas supporting rich attribute sets for unstructured content at enterprise scale (hundreds of millions of documents), including strategies for efficient metadata retrieval.
  • System Design & Architecture: Strong system design experience with ability to architect scalable, enterprise-grade document and metadata ingestion, processing, and persistence at scale. Expertise in designing data models that balance normalization, denormalization, and hybrid approaches to support high-throughput metadata write operations, complex query patterns, and long-term scalability for massive unstructured data repositories.
  • DevOps & Infrastructure: Assist with implementing and maintaining CI/CD pipelines while architecting and developing cloud-native solutions leveraging AWS services, including Lambda, Step functions, SQS, SNS, S3, ECS, Fargate, Aurora, fostering a strong DevOps culture within the team.
Required Skills:
  • Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Systems or related discipline with at least 7 years of related experience, or equivalent training and/or work experience.
  • Strong system design experience
  • Strong experience in object-oriented development
  • Strong experience with cloud technologies
  • Strong experience in data storage technologies
  • Strong experience in performance tuning and optimization
  • Strong experience in DevOps and CI\CD technologies
  • Strong experience in test automation and unit testing
  • Strong experience in software security

SGA is a technology and resource solutions provider driven to stand out. We are a women-owned business. Our mission: to solve big IT problems with a more personal, boutique approach. Each year, we match consultants like you to more than 1,000 engagements. When we say let's work better together, we mean it. You'll join a diverse team built on these core values: customer service, employee development, and quality and integrity in everything we do. Be yourself, love what you do and find your passion at work. Please find us at .
SGA is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of Race, Color, Sex, Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, Religion, National Origin, Disability, Veteran Status, Age, Marital Status, Pregnancy, Genetic Information, or Other Legally Protected Status. We are committed to providing access, equal opportunity, and reasonable accommodation for individuals with disabilities in employment, and our services, programs, and activities. Please visit our company to request an accommodation or assistance regarding our policy.