Principal Software Development Engineer Salaries

644 verified profiles
Last updated on February 28, 2026
Average Annual Total Compensation is $435k

Employees as Principal Software Development Engineer earn an average of $435k, mostly ranging from $320k to $1190k based on 644 profiles.

👨‍💻 Male $398k Male
Average Salary : $ 398 k
👩‍💻 Female $398k Female
Average Salary : $ 398 k
🧑 Non-binary $520k Non-binary
Average Salary : $ 520 k
For every $100 paid to men, women are paid $100
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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: $274k

Stocks: $647k

(Today) (5.8%) $609k

Bonus: -

TC:$921k

(Today) (4.1%) $884k

20yrs
NA
Phd

Works in San Francisco, CA

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

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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

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: $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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Frequently asked questions
How much do Principal Software Development Engineer employees make?

Employees as Principal Software Development Engineer earn an average of $435k, mostly ranging from $320k per year to $1190k per year based on 644 profiles. The top 10% of employees earn more than $686k per year.

What is the average salary of Principal Software Development Engineer?

Average salary of an employee as Principal Software Development Engineer is $435k.

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

Highest reported salary offered as Principal Software Development Engineer is $2086k. The top 10% of employees earn more than $686k per year. The top 1% earn more than a whopping $1190k per year.

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

0% of employees have skills in c# . 0% also know javascript . 0% also know android studio .

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

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

  • software engineer - $436k per year

  • software engineering manager - $331k per year

  • product manager - $288k per year

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

The median salary approximately calculated from salary profiles measured so far is $353k per year.

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

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

What qualifications do employees have as Principal Software Development Engineer?

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

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

0% of employees studied at Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University Hyderabad . 0% studied at Anna University .

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

Employees as Principal Software Development Engineer earn an average of $435k, mostly ranging from $320k per year to $1190k per year based on 644 profiles. The top 10% of employees earn more than $686k per year.

What is the average salary of Principal Software Development Engineer?

Average salary of an employee as Principal Software Development Engineer is $435k.

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

Highest reported salary offered as Principal Software Development Engineer is $2086k. The top 10% of employees earn more than $686k per year. The top 1% earn more than a whopping $1190k per year.

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

0% of employees have skills in c# . 0% also know javascript . 0% also know android studio .

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

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

  • software engineer - $436k per year

  • software engineering manager - $331k per year

  • product manager - $288k per year

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

The median salary approximately calculated from salary profiles measured so far is $353k per year.

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

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

What qualifications do employees have as Principal Software Development Engineer?

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

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

0% of employees studied at Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University Hyderabad . 0% studied at Anna University .

Salary Brackets
Percentage
100-200 k 100-200 k
Percentage : 3
200-300 k 200-300 k
Percentage : 21
300-400 k 300-400 k
Percentage : 34
400-500 k 400-500 k
Percentage : 11
> 500 k > 500 k
Percentage : 27
Age Brackets
Percentage
21-26 yrs 21-26 yrs
Percentage : 0
26-31 yrs 26-31 yrs
Percentage : 1
31-36 yrs 31-36 yrs
Percentage : 2
36-41 yrs 36-41 yrs
Percentage : 1
Skills
Trending
c#
0 %
javascript
0 %
android studio
0 %
augmented reality
0 %
cassandra
0 %
computer information systems
0 %
computer science
0 %
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