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QA Engineer Salary and Equity in 2026
How much do QA Engineers expect to make at US-based startups? The average expected salary for QA Engineers in a startup is 95k per year, with a range from 45k to 205k. The salary range for QA Engineers varies depending on factors such as location, industry, experience, skills, and startup stage.
94.6k
Average Salary
3 years
Average years of experience
Salary
The average QA Engineer salary is $94,625, which is 16.1% lower than the average startup salary of $112,833. QA Engineer 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
$166,833/yr
Range $135k - $205k
Average
$94,625/yr
Range $70k - $113k
Below Average
$60,875/yr
Range $45k - $78k
Top Locations
The highest average salary a QA Engineer can get in San Diego, that is $192,500. This pay is 103.4% higher than the average QA Engineer salary in startups, which is $94,625. Salaries will vary based on your location. The top-paying markets in the US, on average, are currently: San Diego (avg $192,500 per year), Toronto (avg $112,500 per year), San Francisco Bay Area (avg $105,000 per year). Remote jobs often pay based on the location you reside in.
San Diego
$192.5k
Toronto
$112.5k
Denver
$100k
Vancouver
$100k
Chicago
$85k
Los Angeles
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View SalariesIndustries
The highest average salary a QA Engineer can get in Storage, that is $219,000. This pay is 28.5% higher than the average QA Engineer salary, which is $170,400. The highest-paying industries in 2023 are: Storage (avg $219,000 per year), Logistics (avg $187,500 per year), Consumer Electronics (avg $169,500 per year).
Tech Stack
The highest average salary a QA Engineer can get with C++, that is $125,000. This pay is 32.1% higher than the average QA Engineer salary in startups, which is $94,625. Salary range for specific skills will vary based on the supply and demand in the current market.
Top Tech Stacks
The top-paying QA Engineer skills of 2026 are:
1. C++
$125k
2. Node.js
$112k
3. Solidity
$105k
4. Kubernetes
$100k
5. AWS
$100k
6. Swift
$100k
7. Xcode
$100k
8. SwiftUI
$100k
9. Android
$90k
10. MongoDB
$85k
Years of experience
Below Average
Average
Top of Market
The highest average salary a QA Engineer can get with 10+ years of experience, that is $95,000. This pay is 0.4% higher than the average QA Engineer salary, which is $94,625. 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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