Principal Engineer, Software Salaries

2164 verified profiles
Last updated on January 31, 2026
Average Annual Total Compensation is $326k

Employees as Principal Engineer, Software earn an average of $326k, mostly ranging from $219k to $974k based on 2164 profiles.

👨‍💻 Male $321k Male
Average Salary : $ 321 k
👩‍💻 Female $315k Female
Average Salary : $ 315 k
🧑 Non-binary $362k Non-binary
Average Salary : $ 362 k
For every $100 paid to men, women are paid $98
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Salary Profiles
Company
Title(Level)
Annual Salary
Experience
School
Degree
Location
Skills

Base: $249k

Stocks: $283k

(Today) (2.3%) $289k

Bonus: -

TC:$532k

(Today) (1.2%) $538k

15.4yrs
Bachelors in computer and systems engineering

Works in Seattle, Washington, United States

Backend engineer (Principal SDE)
Male

Base: $208k

Stocks: $76k

(Today) (15.2%) $65k

Bonus: $49k

TC:$333k

(Today) (3.5%) $322k

9yrs
NA
Bachelors

Works in Redmond, WA

DevOps Engineer (L4)
Male

Base: $200k

Stocks: $20k

Bonus: $39k

TC:$259k

10yrs
NA
Bachelors

Works in Denver, CO

Backend engineer (Principal SDE)
Male

Base: $235k

Stocks: $118k

(Today) (17.3%) $97k

Bonus: $55k

TC:$408k

(Today) (5.0%) $387k

10yrs
NA
Masters

Works in Mountain View, CA

DevOps Engineer (Principal Software Engineer)
Male

Base: $231k

Stocks: $173k

(Today) (27.2%) $126k

Bonus: $35k

TC:$439k

(Today) (10.7%) $392k

12yrs
NA
Bachelors

Works in San Jose, CA

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Security Engineer (Principal SDE)
Male

Base: $210k

Stocks: $62k

(Today) (18.0%) $51k

Bonus: $31k

TC:$303k

(Today) (3.7%) $291k

10yrs
NA
Masters

Works in Mountain View, CA

Base: $314k

Stocks: $310k

(Today) (49.0%) $158k

Bonus: $12k

TC:$636k

(Today) (23.9%) $484k

9yrs
NA
Masters

Works in San Mateo, CA

Full Stack Engineer (Principal SDE)
Male

Base: $245k

Stocks: $88k

(Today) (17.9%) $72k

Bonus: $82k

TC:$416k

(Today) (3.8%) $400k

22yrs
NA
Bachelors

Works in Los Angeles, CA

Software Engineer (Principal Engineer)
Male

Base: $243k

Stocks: $194k

(Today) (4.1%) $186k

Bonus: $58k

TC:$495k

(Today) (1.6%) $487k

20yrs
NA
Masters

Works in San Diego, CA

Base: $284k

Stocks: $245k

(Today) (47.3%) $129k

Bonus: -

TC:$529k

(Today) (21.9%) $413k

12yrs
NA
Phd

Works in San Mateo, CA

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

Employees as Principal Engineer, Software earn an average of $326k, mostly ranging from $219k per year to $974k per year based on 2164 profiles. The top 10% of employees earn more than $564k per year.

What is the average salary of Principal Engineer, Software?

Average salary of an employee as Principal Engineer, Software is $326k.

What is the highest salary offered as Principal Engineer, Software?

Highest reported salary offered as Principal Engineer, Software is $1746k. The top 10% of employees earn more than $564k per year. The top 1% earn more than a whopping $974k per year.

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

2% of employees have skills in engineering . 1% also know information systems . 1% also know mathematics .

What are the highest paying jobs as Principal Engineer, Software?

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

  • hardware engineer - $370k per year

  • software engineer ii - $359k per year

  • software engineer - $336k per year

  • information technologist - $312k per year

  • software engineering manager - $304k per year

What are the new grad salaries as Principal Engineer, Software?
  • software engineer - $122k per year

What is the median salary offered as Principal Engineer, Software?

The median salary approximately calculated from salary profiles measured so far is $285k per year.

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

15% of employees lie between 31-36 yrs . 10% of the employees fall in the age group of 36-41 yrs .

What qualifications do employees have as Principal Engineer, Software?

17% hold a Graduate degree. 17% hold a PostGraduate degree.

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

1% of employees studied at Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University . 1% studied at University of Madras .

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

Employees as Principal Engineer, Software earn an average of $326k, mostly ranging from $219k per year to $974k per year based on 2164 profiles. The top 10% of employees earn more than $564k per year.

What is the average salary of Principal Engineer, Software?

Average salary of an employee as Principal Engineer, Software is $326k.

What is the highest salary offered as Principal Engineer, Software?

Highest reported salary offered as Principal Engineer, Software is $1746k. The top 10% of employees earn more than $564k per year. The top 1% earn more than a whopping $974k per year.

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

2% of employees have skills in engineering . 1% also know information systems . 1% also know mathematics .

What are the highest paying jobs as Principal Engineer, Software?

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

  • hardware engineer - $370k per year

  • software engineer ii - $359k per year

  • software engineer - $336k per year

  • information technologist - $312k per year

  • software engineering manager - $304k per year

What are the new grad salaries as Principal Engineer, Software?
  • software engineer - $122k per year

What is the median salary offered as Principal Engineer, Software?

The median salary approximately calculated from salary profiles measured so far is $285k per year.

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

15% of employees lie between 31-36 yrs . 10% of the employees fall in the age group of 36-41 yrs .

What qualifications do employees have as Principal Engineer, Software?

17% hold a Graduate degree. 17% hold a PostGraduate degree.

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

1% of employees studied at Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University . 1% studied at University of Madras .

Salary Brackets
Percentage
< 100 k < 100 k
Percentage : 0
100-200 k 100-200 k
Percentage : 21
200-300 k 200-300 k
Percentage : 17
300-400 k 300-400 k
Percentage : 15
400-500 k 400-500 k
Percentage : 6
> 500 k > 500 k
Percentage : 11
Age Brackets
Percentage
21-26 yrs 21-26 yrs
Percentage : 0
26-31 yrs 26-31 yrs
Percentage : 5
31-36 yrs 31-36 yrs
Percentage : 15
36-41 yrs 36-41 yrs
Percentage : 10
> 41 yrs > 41 yrs
Percentage : 3
Skills
Trending
engineering
2 %
information systems
1 %
mathematics
1 %
information technology
1 %
javascript
1 %
java
1 %
c++
1 %
Schools
Top
Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University
1 %
University of Madras
1 %
Visveswaraiah Technological University
1 %
Anna University
1 %
Bharathidasan University
1 %
University of Pune
1 %
Bharathiar University
0 %
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