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Software Engineer Salary and Equity in Seattle 2026
How much does a Software Engineer expect to make at Seattle-based startups? The average expected salary for Software Engineers in Seattle-based startups is 164k per year, with a range from 101k to 260k. These amounts were gathered from Wellfound self-reported data and represent the median salary range. The salary range for Software Engineers in Seattle startups varies depending on factors such as industry, experience, skills, and startup stage.
163.7k
Average Salary
4 years
Average years of experience
Salary
The average salary for a Software Engineer in Seattle is $163,667, which is 17.6% higher than the average Seattle startup salary of$139,125. Software Engineer salaries in Seattle are based on exclusive Wellfound data. All data is updated on a weekly basis. Factors that may influence salary include: years of experience, title, size of company, skill-set, and industry.
Top of market
$224,667/yr
Range $167k - $260k
Average
$163,667/yr
Range $140k - $177k
Below Average
$133,125/yr
Range $101k - $145k
Industries
The highest average salary a Software Engineer in Seattle can get in Curated Web, that is $260,500. This pay is 5.5% higher than the average Software Engineer salary in Seattle, which is $247,000. The highest-paying industries in 2023 are: Curated Web (avg $260,500 per year), Social Media (avg $260,500 per year), Social Commerce (avg $260,500 per year).
Tech Stack
The highest average salary a Software Engineer in Seattle can get with C, that is $225,000. This pay is 61.7% higher than the average salary in Seattle startups, which is $139,125. Salary range for specific skills will vary based on the supply and demand in the current market.
Top Tech Stacks
The top-paying Software Engineer skills in Seattle of 2026 are:
1. C
$225k
2. Java
$181k
3. GCP
$175k
4. TypeScript
$175k
5. Android
$175k
6. Javascript
$175k
7. SQL
$167k
8. C++
$165k
9. Python
$162k
10. Kubernetes
$160k
Years of experience
Below Average
Average
Top of Market
The highest average salary a Software Engineer in Seattle can get with 10+ years of experience, that is $102,000. This pay is 26.7% lower than the average salary in Seattle startups, which is $139,125. The salary range varies with years of experience and depends on other factors such as skill set, size of company, and industry.
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