Software Engineer at Microsoft
Pay by year, the work locations, and the prevailing-wage level breakdown.
What does Microsoft pay a Software Engineer on an H-1B?
$144k Microsoft has filed 29,027 H-1B labor condition applications for the role of Software Engineer with the U.S. Department of Labor between FY2017 and FY2026 at a median base salary of $144k. Most of those filings fall between $128k and $163k. Base salary is the wage stated on the filing, not total compensation.
H-1B LCA filings
29,027
Median base salary
$144k
Middle 50%
$128k to $163k
Filings and pay by year
Software Engineer at Microsoft, by fiscal year
Show the numbers behind this chart
| Fiscal year | Filings | Median base salary |
|---|---|---|
| FY2026 (partial) | 1 | $150k |
| FY2025 | 3 | $173k |
| FY2024 | 2,335 | $160k |
| FY2023 | 4,898 | $163k |
| FY2022 | 6,257 | $146k |
| FY2021 | 3,982 | $142k |
| FY2020 | 4,596 | $141k |
| FY2019 | 3,174 | $136k |
| FY2018 | 1,924 | $127k |
| FY2017 | 1,857 | $124k |
A fiscal year marked partial is still in progress, so its total is lower than a complete year and the two are not comparable.
Where this work is
Work locations named on the filings, most common first
| Location | Filings | Median base salary |
|---|---|---|
| Redmond, WA | 19,858 | $144k |
| Bellevue, WA | 3,575 | $143k |
| Atlanta, GA | 984 | $120k |
| Mountain View, CA | 944 | $172k |
| Sunnyvale, CA | 547 | $155k |
| Issaquah, WA | 272 | $144k |
| Cambridge, MA | 237 | $127k |
| San Francisco, CA | 235 | $155k |
| New York, NY | 111 | $160k |
| Austin, TX | 110 | $130k |
| Irving, TX | 108 | $122k |
| Charlotte, NC | 103 | $127k |
Prevailing-wage level
The experience level DOL assigns the role, I (entry) to IV (expert)
| Level | Filings | Median base salary |
|---|---|---|
| Level I | 4,914 | $120k |
| Level II | 15,119 | $140k |
| Level III | 7,008 | $170k |
| Level IV | 1,215 | $203k |