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DevOps Salary and Equity in 2026
How much do DevOpss expect to make at US-based startups? The average expected salary for DevOpss in a startup is 137k per year, with a range from 90k to 218k. The salary range for DevOpss varies depending on factors such as location, industry, experience, skills, and startup stage.
137.4k
Average Salary
4 years
Average years of experience

Salary
The average DevOps salary is $137,375, which is 21.8% higher than the average startup salary of $112,833. DevOps salaries are based on exclusive Wellfound data. All data is updated on a weekly basis. Factors that may influence salary include: location, years of experience, title, size of company, skill-set, and industry.
Top of market
$196,875/yr
Range $170k - $218k
Average
$137,375/yr
Range $109k - $160k
Below Average
$103,167/yr
Range $90k - $118k
Top Locations
The highest average salary a DevOps can get in Seattle, that is $190,000. This pay is 38.3% higher than the average DevOps salary in startups, which is $137,375. Salaries will vary based on your location. The top-paying markets in the US, on average, are currently: Seattle (avg $190,000 per year), San Francisco Bay Area (avg $170,000 per year), Vancouver (avg $155,000 per year). Remote jobs often pay based on the location you reside in.
Seattle
$190k
Vancouver
$155k
Minneapolis
$153.5k
New York
$132k
Toronto
$130k
Remote
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View SalariesIndustries
The highest average salary a DevOps can get in Events, that is $288,500. This pay is 23.6% higher than the average DevOps salary, which is $233,350. The highest-paying industries in 2023 are: Events (avg $288,500 per year), Researchers (avg $279,000 per year), Language Learning (avg $239,000 per year).
Tech Stack
The highest average salary a DevOps can get with Kafka, that is $170,000. This pay is 23.7% higher than the average DevOps salary in startups, which is $137,375. Salary range for specific skills will vary based on the supply and demand in the current market.
Top Tech Stacks
The top-paying DevOps skills of 2026 are:
1. Kafka
$170k
2. ElasticSearch
$170k
3. Django
$170k
4. TypeScript
$170k
5. Go
$167k
6. Prometheus
$166k
7. Redis
$155k
8. Machine Learning
$150k
9. SQL
$150k
10. Ruby on Rails
$135k
Years of experience
Below Average
Average
Top of Market
The highest average salary a DevOps can get with 10+ years of experience, that is $182,000. This pay is 32.5% higher than the average DevOps salary, which is $137,375. The salary range varies with years of experience and depends on other factors such as skill set, size of company, and industry.
Popular roles
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