Microsoft Principal Software Engineer Salaries

390 verified profiles
Last updated on February 28, 2026
Average Annual Total Compensation is $329k

Employees at Microsoft as Principal Software Engineer earn an average of $329k, mostly ranging from $303k to $593k based on 390 profiles.

Employee Count
massive
Equity Vest
3.5 yrs ; 29% , 29% , 29% , 13%
Signing Bonus
$25k - $50k
  30,761 people laid off in the last year.
👨‍💻 Male $324k Male
Average Salary : $ 324 k
👩‍💻 Female $336k Female
Average Salary : $ 336 k
For every $100 paid to men, women are paid $104
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Salary Profiles
Company
Title(Level)
Annual Salary
Experience
School
Degree
Location
Skills
Principal Software Engineer (Principal SDE)
Male

Base: $241k

Stocks: $54k

(Today) (18.8%) $44k

Bonus: $49k

TC:$343k

(Today) (3.0%) $333k

13yrs
NA
Masters

Works in New York, NY

Backend engineer (Principal SDE)
Male

Base: $190k

Stocks: $39k

(Today) (19.1%) $31k

Bonus: $29k

TC:$258k

(Today) (2.9%) $251k

18yrs
NA
Masters

Works in Atlanta, GA

Research Scientist (Principal SDE)
Male

Base: $206k

Stocks: $78k

(Today) (17.5%) $65k

Bonus: $59k

TC:$343k

(Today) (4.0%) $329k

9yrs
NA
Masters

Works in Redmond, WA

Machine Learning Engineer (Principal SDE)
Male

Base: $255k

Stocks: $75k

(Today) (18.0%) $61k

Bonus: $49k

TC:$378k

(Today) (3.5%) $365k

9yrs
NA
Masters

Works in San Francisco, CA

Production Engineer (Principal SDE)
Male

Base: $206k

Stocks: $39k

(Today) (19.9%) $31k

Bonus: $39k

TC:$284k

(Today) (2.7%) $276k

10yrs
NA
Masters

Works in Redmond, WA

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Data Engineer (Principal SDE)
Male

Base: $217k

Stocks: $62k

(Today) (19.2%) $50k

Bonus: $43k

TC:$322k

(Today) (3.7%) $310k

21yrs
NA
Masters

Works in Redmond, WA

Backend engineer (Principal SDE)
Male

Base: $206k

Stocks: $85k

(Today) (23.0%) $66k

Bonus: $41k

TC:$332k

(Today) (5.9%) $312k

7yrs
NA
Bachelors

Works in Dallas, TX

Base: $198k

Stocks: $78k

(Today) (23.6%) $59k

Bonus: $122k

TC:$398k

(Today) (4.6%) $379k

20yrs
NA
Masters

Works in Portland, OR

Backend engineer (Principal SDE)
Male

Base: $221k

Stocks: $89k

(Today) (24.7%) $67k

Bonus: $60k

TC:$371k

(Today) (5.9%) $349k

14yrs
NA
Masters

Works in San Francisco, CA

Backend engineer (Principal SDE)
Male

Base: $215k

Stocks: $89k

(Today) (24.7%) $67k

Bonus: $56k

TC:$361k

(Today) (6.1%) $339k

20yrs
NA
Masters

Works in Redmond, WA

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Showing only 50 profiles out of 390. Upgrade to view elite profiles
Level
Experience
Avg
25th
50th
75th
90th
95th
9 to 18 yrs
$333k
$291k
$316k
$NaNk
$NaNk
$NaNk
16 to 23 yrs
$416k
$327k
$369k
$NaNk
$NaNk
$NaNk
21 to 25 yrs
$549k
$518k
$549k
$NaNk
$NaNk
$NaNk
Level
Experience
9 to 18 yrs
Base
$207k
Stocks / Yr
$78k
Bonus
$53k
Total Salary
$333k
Level
Experience
16 to 23 yrs
Base
$225k
Stocks / Yr
$126k
Bonus
$66k
Total Salary
$416k
Level
Experience
21 to 25 yrs
Base
$245k
Stocks / Yr
$225k
Bonus
$80k
Total Salary
$549k
Microsoft Principal Software Engineer salary levels ranges from 65 (Principal SDE) upto 67 (Software Engineer), with 67 (Software Engineer) level earning average salary of $549k along with $225k worth of stock options.

Frequently asked questions
How much do Microsoft Principal Software Engineer employees make?

Employees at Microsoft as Principal Software Engineer earn an average of $329k, mostly ranging from $303k per year to $593k per year based on 390 profiles. The top 10% of employees earn more than $392k per year.

What is the average salary of Microsoft Principal Software Engineer?

Average salary of an employee at Microsoft as Principal Software Engineer is $329k.

What is the highest salary offered at Microsoft as Principal Software Engineer?

Highest reported salary offered at Microsoft as Principal Software Engineer is $686k. The top 10% of employees earn more than $392k per year. The top 1% earn more than a whopping $593k per year.

What are the most common skills required at Microsoft as Principal Software Engineer?

2% of employees have skills in engineering . 2% also know information systems . 2% also know mathematics .

What are the highest paying jobs at Microsoft as Principal Software Engineer?

The top 5 highest paying jobs at Microsoft as Principal Software Engineer with reported salaries are:

  • principal software engineer - $349k per year

  • software engineering manager - $337k per year

  • software engineer - $328k per year

What is the median salary offered at Microsoft as Principal Software Engineer?

The median salary approximately calculated from salary profiles measured so far is $319k per year.

How is the age distributed among employees at Microsoft as Principal Software Engineer?

2% of employees lie between 31-36 yrs . 1% of the employees fall in the age group of 21-26 yrs .

What qualifications do employees have at Microsoft as Principal Software Engineer?

3% hold a Graduate degree. 2% hold a PostGraduate degree.

Which schools do employees working at Microsoft as Principal Software Engineer went to?

0% of employees studied at California Institute of Technology . 0% studied at Eotvos Lorand University of Applied Sciences .

Frequently asked questions
How much do Microsoft Principal Software Engineer employees make?

Employees at Microsoft as Principal Software Engineer earn an average of $329k, mostly ranging from $303k per year to $593k per year based on 390 profiles. The top 10% of employees earn more than $392k per year.

What is the average salary of Microsoft Principal Software Engineer?

Average salary of an employee at Microsoft as Principal Software Engineer is $329k.

What is the highest salary offered at Microsoft as Principal Software Engineer?

Highest reported salary offered at Microsoft as Principal Software Engineer is $686k. The top 10% of employees earn more than $392k per year. The top 1% earn more than a whopping $593k per year.

What are the most common skills required at Microsoft as Principal Software Engineer?

2% of employees have skills in engineering . 2% also know information systems . 2% also know mathematics .

What are the highest paying jobs at Microsoft as Principal Software Engineer?

The top 5 highest paying jobs at Microsoft as Principal Software Engineer with reported salaries are:

  • principal software engineer - $349k per year

  • software engineering manager - $337k per year

  • software engineer - $328k per year

What is the median salary offered at Microsoft as Principal Software Engineer?

The median salary approximately calculated from salary profiles measured so far is $319k per year.

How is the age distributed among employees at Microsoft as Principal Software Engineer?

2% of employees lie between 31-36 yrs . 1% of the employees fall in the age group of 21-26 yrs .

What qualifications do employees have at Microsoft as Principal Software Engineer?

3% hold a Graduate degree. 2% hold a PostGraduate degree.

Which schools do employees working at Microsoft as Principal Software Engineer went to?

0% of employees studied at California Institute of Technology . 0% studied at Eotvos Lorand University of Applied Sciences .

Salary Brackets
Percentage
100-200 k 100-200 k
Percentage : 1
200-300 k 200-300 k
Percentage : 31
300-400 k 300-400 k
Percentage : 55
400-500 k 400-500 k
Percentage : 7
> 500 k > 500 k
Percentage : 3
Age Brackets
Percentage
21-26 yrs 21-26 yrs
Percentage : 1
26-31 yrs 26-31 yrs
Percentage : 1
31-36 yrs 31-36 yrs
Percentage : 2
36-41 yrs 36-41 yrs
Percentage : 1
> 41 yrs > 41 yrs
Percentage : 1
Skills
Trending
engineering
2 %
information systems
2 %
mathematics
2 %
c++
1 %
c#
1 %
debugging
1 %
distributed systems
1 %
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