Microsoft Research Software Engineer Salaries

40 verified profiles
Last updated on March 3, 2026
Average Annual Total Compensation is $277k

Employees at Microsoft as Research Software Engineer earn an average of $277k, mostly ranging from $237k to $391k based on 40 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 $315k Male
Average Salary : $ 315 k
👩‍💻 Female $331k Female
Average Salary : $ 331 k
For every $100 paid to men, women are paid $105
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Salary Profiles
Company
Title(Level)
Annual Salary
Experience
School
Degree
Location
Skills
Research Scientist (Principal SDE)
Male

Base: $206k

Stocks: $78k

(Today) (15.2%) $67k

Bonus: $59k

TC:$343k

(Today) (3.5%) $331k

9yrs
NA
Masters

Works in Redmond, WA

Research Scientist (Senior SDE)
Male

Base: $188k

Stocks: $34k

(Today) (18.4%) $28k

Bonus: $37k

TC:$259k

(Today) (2.4%) $253k

1yrs
NA
Phd

Works in Redmond, WA

Research Scientist (Senior SDE)
Female

Base: $245k

Stocks: $86k

(Today) (12.2%) $96k

Bonus: -

TC:$331k

(Today) (3.2%) $341k

1yrs
NA
Phd

Works in Redmond, WA

Research Scientist (Principal SDE)
Male

Base: $215k

Stocks: $64k

(Today) (0.9%) $63k

Bonus: $61k

TC:$340k

(Today) (0.2%) $339k

14yrs
NA
Masters

Works in Redmond, WA

Base: $141k

Stocks: $81k

Bonus: $19k

TC:$241k

4yrs
Masters in computer science

Works in Redmond, Washington, United States

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Base: $176k

Stocks: $39k

(Today) (17.3%) $32k

Bonus: $20k

TC:$235k

(Today) (2.9%) $228k

4yrs
NA
NA

Works in Seattle, WA

Base: $156k

Stocks: $44k

(Today) (15.8%) $37k

Bonus: -

TC:$200k

(Today) (3.5%) $193k

2yrs
NA
NA

Works in Mountain View, CA

Research Scientist (Principal SDE)

Base: $215k

Stocks: $39k

(Today) (21.4%) $31k

Bonus: $41k

TC:$295k

(Today) (2.8%) $287k

4yrs
NA
NA

Works in Redmond, WA

Research Scientist (Senior SDE)

Base: $190k

Stocks: $53k

(Today) (20.4%) $43k

Bonus: $39k

TC:$283k

(Today) (3.9%) $272k

5yrs
NA
NA

Works in Redmond, WA

Research Scientist (Principal SDE)

Base: $219k

Stocks: $62k

(Today) (19.5%) $50k

Bonus: $29k

TC:$310k

(Today) (3.9%) $298k

15yrs
NA
NA

Works in Redmond, WA

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Level
Experience
Avg
25th
50th
75th
90th
95th
2 to 4 yrs
$218k
$209k
$218k
$NaNk
$NaNk
$NaNk
1 to 5 yrs
$242k
$210k
$225k
$NaNk
$NaNk
$NaNk
6 to 14 yrs
$345k
$318k
$342k
$NaNk
$NaNk
$NaNk
Level
Experience
2 to 4 yrs
Base
$166k
Stocks / Yr
$41k
Bonus
$20k
Total Salary
$218k
Level
Experience
1 to 5 yrs
Base
$185k
Stocks / Yr
$39k
Bonus
$31k
Total Salary
$242k
Level
Experience
6 to 14 yrs
Base
$209k
Stocks / Yr
$96k
Bonus
$47k
Total Salary
$345k
Microsoft Research Software Engineer salary levels ranges from SDE II (Software Engineer) upto Principal SDE (Software Engineer), with Principal SDE (Software Engineer) level earning average salary of $345k along with $96k worth of stock options.

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

Employees at Microsoft as Research Software Engineer earn an average of $277k, mostly ranging from $237k per year to $391k per year based on 40 profiles. The top 10% of employees earn more than $359k per year.

What is the average salary of Microsoft Research Software Engineer?

Average salary of an employee at Microsoft as Research Software Engineer is $277k.

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

Highest reported salary offered at Microsoft as Research Software Engineer is $391k. The top 10% of employees earn more than $359k per year. The top 1% earn more than a whopping $391k per year.

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

18% of employees have skills in engineering . 18% also know mathematics . 15% also know information systems .

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

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

  • software engineer - $280k per year

What are the new grad salaries at Microsoft as Research Software Engineer?
  • software engineer - $295k per year

Explore all new grad salaries

Which are the top locations?
What is the median salary offered at Microsoft as Research Software Engineer?

The median salary approximately calculated from salary profiles measured so far is $271k per year.

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

35% of employees lie between 26-31 yrs . 10% of the employees fall in the age group of 31-36 yrs .

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

30% hold a PostGraduate degree. 15% hold a Graduate degree.

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

5% of employees studied at Cairo University . 5% studied at Nanjing University .

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

Employees at Microsoft as Research Software Engineer earn an average of $277k, mostly ranging from $237k per year to $391k per year based on 40 profiles. The top 10% of employees earn more than $359k per year.

What is the average salary of Microsoft Research Software Engineer?

Average salary of an employee at Microsoft as Research Software Engineer is $277k.

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

Highest reported salary offered at Microsoft as Research Software Engineer is $391k. The top 10% of employees earn more than $359k per year. The top 1% earn more than a whopping $391k per year.

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

18% of employees have skills in engineering . 18% also know mathematics . 15% also know information systems .

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

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

  • software engineer - $280k per year

What are the new grad salaries at Microsoft as Research Software Engineer?
  • software engineer - $295k per year

Explore all new grad salaries

Which are the top locations?
What is the median salary offered at Microsoft as Research Software Engineer?

The median salary approximately calculated from salary profiles measured so far is $271k per year.

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

35% of employees lie between 26-31 yrs . 10% of the employees fall in the age group of 31-36 yrs .

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

30% hold a PostGraduate degree. 15% hold a Graduate degree.

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

5% of employees studied at Cairo University . 5% studied at Nanjing University .

Salary Brackets
Percentage
100-200 k 100-200 k
Percentage : 8
200-300 k 200-300 k
Percentage : 18
300-400 k 300-400 k
Percentage : 15
Age Brackets
Percentage
26-31 yrs 26-31 yrs
Percentage : 35
31-36 yrs 31-36 yrs
Percentage : 10
Skills
Trending
engineering
18 %
mathematics
18 %
information systems
15 %
c++
13 %
c#
8 %
machine learning
8 %
c
5 %
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