What are typical software engineer salaries?

Do some companies pay a lot more for this position than others? What does a top earner make in this field?

What skills should you learn to increase your salary?

Host said: Do some companies pay a lot more for this position than others? What does a top earner make in this field?

What skills should you learn to increase your salary?

Well, my cousin's a software engineer, and I'm going to be taking courses in it soon also. Once he had his BA, he said he made about $55,000 his first year. People with a MA make over $60,000 (not much more, but you'll get better jobs with a MA). Pay varies by company, but if you get a degree, you will most definitely make at least $50,000 a year.

He also said that employees with Linux/Unix experience (have the ability to script python/perl etc), will make slightly more money. Since most software engineers will be working with Windows, employees experienced with Linux/Unix are harder to come by.

a softwae engineer came to my school talking about [SE] he said that this is one of the best paying jobs in the united states. is that true

javier in Portmore, Jamaica said: a softwae engineer came to my school talking about [SE] he said that this is one of the best paying jobs in the united states. is that true

Far from it. More than working in the service industry, but far below other professions (law, medicine, accounting, etc.). Also far less respect and stability.

I specialize in Unix and Perl. I have a BA (in Liberal Arts). Currently I make $94,000 per year.

My last job I made $71,000. Before that I was making $60,000.

The way to make more money is to specialize in a technology that fewer people are using. Lots of Java programmers out there. Not as many people specializing in Perl, but there are lots of Perl jobs!

Also, you must be flexible enough to relocate and move around. It sounds like "job hopping" but really it's the best way to move up the ladder when you are first starting out.

A top earner can make around $130,000 per year, before moving into management positions.

The Salary Depend on Knowledge and Experience for every Software Developer .

Thanks

camel in Fort Lauderdale, Florida said: I specialize in Unix and Perl. I have a BA (in Liberal Arts). Currently I make $94,000 per year.

My last job I made $71,000. Before that I was making $60,000.

The way to make more money is to specialize in a technology that fewer people are using. Lots of Java programmers out there. Not as many people specializing in Perl, but there are lots of Perl jobs!

Also, you must be flexible enough to relocate and move around. It sounds like "job hopping" but really it's the best way to move up the ladder when you are first starting out.

A top earner can make around $130,000 per year, before moving into management positions.

hi camel,

Would you mind sharing how you got started in the computer field? I too have an unrelated BA degree but I'm finally starting to realize that I enjoy working with computers. I would like to head back to school for second degree in CIS but would also like to work in the field simultaneously to get my foot in the door.

Moximi in Chicago, Illinois said: blah blah blah

This article explains why some software developer jobs pay top figures and others don't :
www.it-career-coach.net/2007/03/22/discover-money-from-high-paying-careers/

The author of this article mentions how he got a $76,000 contract programming job within six months of launching his career and how he recently got an e-mail for a recruiter asking for candidates with 2 years of programming experience for a six figure job in New York:
www.it-career-coach.net/2007/01/28/s-i-x-figures-six-figures-programming-job-with-two-years-of-computing-experience/

Let me know if you need anything else.

Thank you

Looks to me like another marketing scam. If IT/programming/software engineering was the prestigious career that it isn't then we wouldn't see postings like the above directing people to their marketing websites. Proceed with caution and a critical mind!

Chris in Bremerton, Washington said: Well, my cousin's a software engineer, and I'm going to be taking courses in it soon also. Once he had his BA, he said he made about $55,000 his first year. People with a MA make over $60,000 (not much more, but you'll get better jobs with a MA). Pay varies by company, but if you get a degree, you will most definitely make at least $50,000 a year.

He also said that employees with Linux/Unix experience (have the ability to script python/perl etc), will make slightly more money. Since most software engineers will be working with Windows, employees experienced with Linux/Unix are harder to come by.

Hi,

I am Senior IT Recruiter and have open opportunity for IT Professional. These company offer a much higher salary,that you mentioned.

Please,if you interested or know someone, please send resume to mkaleko@gmail.com

Regards,

Marina k

Well, I'm a software engineer and getting parid around 95+, But do not jump in to it just because it pays well. As technology is changing every few months or years you have to keep updated with it otherwise you will get kicked off. Do not jump in to it just by seeing at salary, unless you like it and really want to make a career in it .

Most software engineering jobs will require a BSCS, or possibly BSEE. You'll be lucky to find one that's OK with a BA.

Many of these comments are incorrect. Your salary is affected by your experience, your desirability to organizations that are looking for senior developers (i.e. you've been doing this for years, your Resume shows you've been doing what they're looking for, etc.), the breadth of your skills (are you experienced in a number of disciplines? can you do user interface and services and database?) because they might be able to hire just you instead of two less-skilled resources, and, finally, because cost of living varies across the country, the job location (smallish town? huge metropolis?) is a major factor too. Degrees and certifications aren't even one-tenth as important in the industry as experience, flexibility, skill-set, proven track record, etc. That's why almost every software development job usually says "X degree preferred or equivalent experience". Degrees tend to hold more weight when the "engineer" part of "software engineer" is actually for real: i.e. you will actually be working in engineering, as opposed to helping some giant business manage and monitor their transactions. For a huge number of software "engineers", the heaviest math they need to master is how to "increment a number" (add 1 to a number), or maybe handle basic currency math (add, subtract, multiply, divide and percentages). Or Calendar math: adding/subtracting dates and dealing with ranges of dates.

Eagle in Pennington, New Jersey said: Far from it. More than working in the service industry, but far below other professions (law, medicine, accounting, etc.). Also far less respect and stability.

You must be young. Everyone is brought up to believe doctors and lawyers start off making 100k+ their first year out - that isn't the case anymore. Law schools graduates twice as many students per year than jobs available, and the current starting salary for lawyers is around 45k. I went to law school, I know. Get your facts straight next time.

I never went to school for Computer Science and don't have a degree. I was lucky enough to find a "need" for a piece of software and tought myself how to program and develop software. A large company found out about it and paid me to distribute it with their existing software. This gave me exposure and landed me more contracts. This eventually turned into a full time gig and now I've been doing this for about 8 years. I'm now a team leader and manager at a company of about 30 employees. My salary is 90k per year plus the potential to make a 10% bonus if the company does well. We pay our developers between 55k and 100k depending on experience and their track record to produce successful products/projects. The best part about this industry is usually the culture. We have flex time and we are all nerds who have fun at work with no dress code. The worst part about this job is as your company grows and gets more corporate (we got bought by a large corporation) and the executives get involved and they don't understand that you can't replace a 100k developer with two 50k developers and get the same production. The software profession has turned relatively hostile and corporate, along with every other service job and it's a scary world out there. Like other people have said, improve your skills and make yourself indespensible. It's the only way to command a higher salary and have security.

I never went to school for Computer Science nor have a degree either, I am at 120k right now, but it sure took me quite a while to get here, so...

And unlike medicine or law, the software industry evolves rapidly, truthfully, there haven't been many weekends that go by without me studying up the "Next Big Thing", so to be successful at this gig, you have got to LOVE to code. But like ParaDiddle mentioned, "you can't replace a 100k developer with two 50k developers" and the truth is, the executives (at least the ones I've dealt with) do realize that, so, there really isn't another profession more cut-and-dry than software development - the more you know, the more you will make.