Senior Engineer Principal Software Engineer Salary
$82K - $94K
7% of jobs
$94K - $106K
5% of jobs
$106K - $118K
5% of jobs
$127K is the 25th percentile. Wages below this are outliers.
$118K - $130K
11% of jobs
$130K - $142K
6% of jobs
The median wage is $152.6K / yr.
$142K - $154K
18% of jobs
$154K - $166K
20% of jobs
$169.3K is the 75th percentile. Wages above this are outliers.
$166K - $178K
12% of jobs
$178K - $190K
6% of jobs
$190K - $202K
6% of jobs
$202K - $214K
4% of jobs
$82K
$154.5K
$214.5K
$155,430
/year
$74.73
/hour
Senior Engineer Principal Software Engineer Salary Comparison by Location
Nationwide
United States
$155,430
Columbus
Ohio
$150,130
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How much does a Senior Engineer Principal Software Engineer make?
As of Aug 14, 2026, the average annual pay for a Senior Engineer Principal Software Engineer in the United States is $155,430 a year.
Just in case you need a simple salary calculator, that works out to be approximately $74.73 an hour. This is the equivalent of $2,989/week or $12,952/month.
While ZipRecruiter is seeing annual salaries as high as $214,500 and as low as $82,000, the majority of Senior Engineer Principal Software Engineer salaries currently range between $125,500 (25th percentile) to $173,000 (75th percentile) with top earners (90th percentile) making $201,000 annually across the United States. The average pay range for a Senior Engineer Principal Software Engineer varies greatly (by as much as 47500), which suggests there may be many opportunities for advancement and increased pay based on skill level, location and years of experience.
A Senior Engineer Principal Software Engineer in your area makes on average $150,130 per year, or $5,300 (3.410%) less than the national average annual salary of $155,430. Ohio ranks number 30 out of 50 states nationwide for Senior Engineer Principal Software Engineer salaries.
To estimate the most accurate annual salary range for Senior Engineer Principal Software Engineer jobs, ZipRecruiter continuously scans its database of millions of active jobs published locally throughout America.
Find your next high paying job as a Senior Engineer Principal Software Engineer on ZipRecruiter today.
What are Top 10 Highest Paying Cities for Senior Engineer Principal Software Engineer Jobs
We've identified 10 cities where the typical salary for a Senior Engineer Principal Software Engineer job is above the national average. Topping the list is Hawaii County, HI, , with Kailua-Kona, HI, and Batavia, IL, close behind in the second and third positions. Batavia, IL, beats the national average by $42,338 (27.2%), and Hawaii County, HI, furthers that trend with another $67,440 (43.4%) above the $155,430 average.
With these 10 cities having average salaries higher than the national average, the opportunities for economic advancement by changing locations as a Senior Engineer Principal Software Engineer appears to be exceedingly fruitful.
However, another factor to consider is the average salary for these top 10 cities varies modestly at 19% between Hawaii County, HI, and Sunnyvale, CA, , suggesting it may be difficult to see much positive wage advancement. The possibility of a lower cost of living may help determine the balance between location and salary for a Senior Engineer Principal Software Engineer role.
City | Annual Salary | Hourly Wage |
|---|---|---|
Hawaii County, HI | $222,870 | $107.15 |
Kailua-Kona, HI | $207,536 | $99.78 |
Batavia, IL | $197,768 | $95.08 |
Cortaro, AZ | $190,807 | $91.73 |
Berkeley, CA | $190,314 | $91.50 |
Sitka, AK | $187,243 | $90.02 |
Lehi, UT | $183,689 | $88.31 |
Santa Clara, CA | $183,559 | $88.25 |
San Francisco, CA | $183,123 | $88.04 |
Sunnyvale, CA | $182,978 | $87.97 |
What are Top 5 Best Paying Related Senior Engineer Principal Software Engineer Jobs in the U.S.
Analyzing some similar jobs related to the Senior Engineer Principal Software Engineer job category, we found that Principal Software Engineer jobs have average salaries greater than Senior Engineer Principal Software Engineer jobs.
Significantly, Principal Software Engineer jobs pay $5,506 (3.5%) more than the average Senior Engineer Principal Software Engineer salary of $155,430. If you're qualified, finding work as a Principal Software Engineer may help you make more money than that of the average Senior Engineer Principal Software Engineer position.
Job Title | Annual Salary | Hourly Wage |
|---|---|---|
Principal Software Engineer | $160,936 | $77.37 |
Senior Principal Design Engineer | $155,430 | $74.73 |
Principal Solution Engineer | $147,220 | $70.78 |
Principal Application Engineer | $110,698 | $53.22 |
Software Engineer Recruiter | $104,863 | $50.41 |
About Our Data
ZipRecruiter salary estimates, histograms, trends and comparisons are derived from both employer job postings and third party data sources.
