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Principal Software Engineer salary: median $270,000 a year

Principal Software Engineer listings that state pay run from $206,500 to $320,000 for the middle half, based on 100 current job listings. 377 principal software engineer roles are open now.

Principal Software Engineer pay range

From 100 open listings that state pay. Annual, in US dollars.

Lower quarter
$206,500
Median
$270,000
Upper quarter
$320,000

Do AI skills change principal software engineer pay?

For Engineering roles in general, as of November 9, 2026. This is the function’s figure, not one for principal software engineer alone: one title rarely has enough listings on both sides.

Among Engineering listings, those that ask for an AI skill advertise +19.1% (about $32.5k) compared with similar listings that do not, matched on level and industry.

Listings that ask for an AI skill
$209,000
median, from 3,968 paid listings
Listings that never mention AI
$152,500
median, from 4,882 paid listings

Advertised pay only: the midpoint of the range an employer posted, on live U.S. postings read from the full text. “Asks for an AI skill” means the posting names a specific AI skill; “no AI” means it never mentions AI. A difference in what is advertised is not a promise of what you would be paid, and it does not show that learning a skill causes a raise.

See the AI-skill pay table for every function · Check your own pay against these listings

More pay data: Engineering pay by level, skills that pay more and pay by employer size.

Open principal software engineer jobs

Verified against the employer’s own career site within the last week.

Showing the newest 15 of about 377 verified open jobs here. Search all jobs

All 377 principal software engineer jobs

Engineering jobs in the rankings

Rankings about engineering jobs

Engineering jobs · Top Engineering employers · All rankings

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Related salaries

Principal Software Engineer salary questions

How much does a principal software engineer make?
Among 100 open principal software engineer listings that state pay, the median is $270,000 a year, and half of listings fall between $206,500 and $320,000.
Where does this principal software engineer pay data come from?
From current job listings on employers’ own career sites that state a pay range. Hourly pay is converted at 2,080 hours a year, and a listing’s midpoint is used. Listed pay is what employers advertise, not what people are paid.
Which state pays principal software engineers the most?
Of the states with enough listings, California has the highest median listed pay at $320,000.

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