Annual Salary, Salary Range, and Highest Paying States and Industries
.jpg)
Software Developers
Software Developers research, design, develop, and test operating systems-level software, compilers, and network distribution software for medical, industrial, military, communications, aerospace, business, scientific, and general computing applications. Set operational specifications and formulate and analyze software requirements. May design embedded systems software. Apply principles and techniques of computer science, engineering, and mathematical analysis.
Table of contents
- Average salary
- Starting salary
- Salary rank
- Salary range
- Highest paying states
- Highest paying industries
Average salary
Starting salary
Entry-level Systems Software Software Developers with little to no experience can expect to make anywhere between $65,210 to $84,020 per year or $31 to $40 per hour. Similar to any other job, their salary will increase as they gain experience.
Salary rank
We wanted to make it easy for our readers to compare the salary of Systems Software Software Developers to all the other careers out there. So we created Salary Rank. We compared the salary of all careers then we gave them a rank of A, B, C, or D depending on where their average salary sit in comparison to other careers.
Salary range
| Level | Hourly | Annual |
|---|---|---|
| Highest (Top 10%) | $82 | $170,100 |
| Senior (Top 25%) | $68 | $140,470 |
| Middle (Mid 50%) | $53 | $110,140 |
| Junior (Bottom 25%) | $40 | $84,020 |
| No experience (Bottom 10%) | $31 | $65,210 |
Highest paying states
| State | Hourly | Annual |
|---|---|---|
| WA | $67 | $138,400 |
| CA | $66 | $137,620 |
| NY | $59 | $122,300 |
| MA | $58 | $119,790 |
| DC | $58 | $119,630 |
| VA | $56 | $116,850 |
| DE | $56 | $115,580 |
| MD | $55 | $115,190 |
| NJ | $54 | $113,220 |
| CO | $54 | $112,700 |
Another simple way to increase your salary as a Systems Software Software Developer is to move to a higher paying state. However moving to a higher paying state like WA doesn’t guarantee that you will make more because the expenses at WA might be much higher than where you are currently living at right now.
According to BLS, the highest paid Software Developers are in the states of WA, CA, NY, MA and DC.
Highest paying industries
| Salary by industry | Annual | Hourly |
|---|---|---|
| Inland Water Transportation | $243130 | $116.89 |
| Independent Artists, Writers, and Performers | $187070 | $89.94 |
| Sporting Goods, Hobby, and Musical Instrument Stores | $146630 | $70.49 |
| Computer and Peripheral Equipment Manufacturing | $145800 | $70.10 |
| Electronics and Appliance Stores | $137170 | $65.95 |
| Electronic Shopping and Mail-Order Houses | $135870 | $65.32 |
| Remediation and Other Waste Management Services | $129590 | $62.30 |
| Cable and Other Subscription Programming | $128900 | $61.97 |
| Securities, Commodity Contracts, and Other Financial Investments and Related Activities | $128840 | $61.94 |
| Scientific Research and Development Services | $127780 | $61.43 |
| Other Information Services | $126270 | $60.70 |
| Manufacturing and Reproducing Magnetic and Optical Media | $126090 | $60.62 |
| Semiconductor and Other Electronic Component Manufacturing | $122800 | $59.04 |
| Software Publishers | $122630 | $58.96 |
| Aerospace Product and Parts Manufacturing | $122250 | $58.78 |
| Highway, Street, and Bridge Construction | $121820 | $58.57 |
| Automotive Repair and Maintenance | $120680 | $58.02 |
| Travel Arrangement and Reservation Services | $120240 | $57.81 |
| Navigational, Measuring, Electromedical, and Control Instruments Manufacturing | $119810 | $57.60 |
| Other Investment Pools and Funds | $119750 | $57.57 |
| Other Pipeline Transportation | $119270 | $57.34 |
| Credit Intermediation and Related Activities | $119260 | $57.34 |
| Real Estate | $119170 | $57.30 |
| Insurance and Employee Benefit Funds | $117420 | $56.45 |
| Support Activities for Water Transportation | $116860 | $56.18 |
| Local Messengers and Local Delivery | $116780 | $56.14 |
| Nondepository Credit Intermediation | $116720 | $56.11 |
| Communications Equipment Manufacturing | $115780 | $55.67 |
| Grantmaking and Giving Services | $115380 | $55.47 |
| Oil and Gas Extraction | $114990 | $55.29 |
Explore Other Careers
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
Don’t know which career to pursue?
Take the career quiz to find careers that match your personality type. Take The Career Quiz