Principal Software Engineer, H-1B salary
What 7,995 H-1B filings report for “Principal Software Engineer” (LCA, FY2017–2026): pay percentiles, the states paying most, and who files.
What is the H-1B salary for a Principal Software Engineer?
$153k median H-1B base salary for a Principal Software Engineer, typically $114k to $218k, across 7,995 H-1B LCA filings with the U.S. Department of Labor (FY2017 to FY2026). Highest in Oregon at $187k median.
Median pay & filings over time · H-1B · FY2017–2026*
Top-paying states
Median for this title · ≥20 filings
- 1Oregon42$187k+$34k
- 2Washington456$185k+$32k
- 3California3,155$172k+$19k
- 4Arkansas112$165k+$12k
- 5Missouri122$158k+$5k
- 6New Jersey204$150k−$3k
- 7Connecticut51$147k−$6k
- 8New York184$146k−$7k
- 9Texas834$142k−$11k
- 10Illinois132$141k−$12k
- 11Virginia278$140k−$13k
- 12North Carolina274$140k−$13k
Where the pay sits state by state, against the national $153kfor the same title. States with at least 20 filings, so a median is not built on a handful of rows.
Which companies sponsor H-1B for a Principal Software Engineer?
The employers that file the most H-1B labor condition applications for Principal Software Engineer roles are Walmart, Microsoft, Cadence, Palo Alto Networks, and Nisum, based on their U.S. Department of Labor (LCA) filings. Open any for its full Principal Software Engineer filing history, pay, and open roles.
Top employers for this title
Most H-1B filings · with each employer’s median for the role
- 1Walmart442 filings$181k
- 2Microsoft222 filings$192k
- 3Cadence184 filings$141k
- 4Palo Alto Networks166 filings$203k
- 5Nisum119 filings$120k
- 6Intuit112 filings$192k
- 7Symantec105 filings$140k
- 8CBRE99 filings$140k
- 9Citizens Financial Group97 filings$140k
- 10Splunk97 filings$215k
- 11Mastercard94 filings$165k
- 12Medtronic89 filings$135k
- 13Veritas Technologies87 filings$141k
- 14Informatica83 filings$165k
- 15REI Systems83 filings$132k
- 16Staples81 filings$113k
- 17Salesforce69 filings$169k
- 18Depository Trust & Clearing68 filings$142k
- 19AT&T66 filings$160k
- 20Roblox64 filings$322k
- 21Gen Digital64 filings$159k
- 22Arris61 filings$115k
- 23Ruckus Wireless60 filings$153k
- 24Autodesk57 filings$164k
- 25F554 filings$168k
- 26MathWorks53 filings$173k
- 27Airline Tariff Publishing Company (ATPCO)51 filings$141k
- 28Liberty Mutual51 filings$132k
- 29Citrix Systems48 filings$178k
- 30Manhattan Associates47 filings$110k
- 31ACI Worldwide46 filings$133k
- 32Red Hat45 filings$167k
- 33SVB Financial Group44 filings$140k
- 34Akamai Technologies44 filings$170k
- 35Ally Financial42 filings$149k
- 36Inovalon41 filings$138k
- 37Asurion36 filings$179k
- 38Dell35 filings$123k
- 39Okta34 filings$183k
- 40ABOTTS Consulting33 filings$100k
- 41First Citizens Bank32 filings$141k
- 42CA31 filings$149k
- 43Infor31 filings$123k
- 44SiriusXM31 filings$120k
- 45Fidelity30 filings$129k
- 46OneTrust30 filings$160k
- 47Motorola Solutions29 filings$135k
- 48Qualcomm29 filings$188k
- 49Comcast28 filings$124k
- 50Amtrak27 filings$141k
See more employers that sponsor Principal Software Engineer →
Related titles in this family
13,925 filings carry “Principal Software Engineer” in the title, across 567 variants. Pay differs by variant, so each is listed with its own median.
- 1Principal Software Engineer/Developer2,392 filings$117k
- 2Principal Software Engineer - IT546 filings$125k
- 3Senior Principal Software Engineer475 filings$155k
- 4Sr. Principal Software Engineer276 filings$165k
- 5Senior Principal Software Engineer - IT239 filings$150k
- 6Principal Software Engineering118 filings$169k
- 7Principal Software Engineering Manager106 filings$195k
- 8Consulting/Principal Software Engineer104 filings$145k
- 9Principal Software Engineer I99 filings$140k
- 10Associate Principal, Software Engineering88 filings$135k
- 11Principal Software Engineer in Test82 filings$135k
- 12Principal Software Engineer - Full Stack57 filings$122k
Figures are for the exact title “Principal Software Engineer”; for a rare title we widen to the closest related titles (flagged above when that happens). To benchmark a specific offer by employer and state, use Salary Check.