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QA Engineer Salary and Equity in Santa Monica 2026
How much does a QA Engineer expect to make at Santa Monica-based startups? The average expected salary for QA Engineers in Santa Monica-based startups is 156k per year, with a range from 80k to 225k. These amounts were gathered from Wellfound self-reported data and represent the median salary range. The salary range for QA Engineers in Santa Monica startups varies depending on factors such as industry, experience, skills, and startup stage.
156.0k
Average Salary
4 years
Average years of experience
Salary
The average salary for a QA Engineer in Santa Monica is $156,000, which is 9.0% higher than the average Santa Monica startup salary of$143,083. QA Engineer salaries in Santa Monica 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
$185,125/yr
Range $166k - $225k
Average
$156,000/yr
Range $137k - $175k
Below Average
$117,625/yr
Range $80k - $134k
Industries
The highest average salary a QA Engineer in Santa Monica can get in Media, that is $144,500. This pay is 0.0% lower than the average QA Engineer salary in Santa Monica, which is $144,500. The highest-paying industries in 2023 are: Media (avg $144,500 per year), Games (avg $144,500 per year), Entertainment (avg $144,500 per year).
Tech Stack
The highest average salary a QA Engineer in Santa Monica can get with SQL, that is $175,000. This pay is 22.3% higher than the average salary in Santa Monica startups, which is $143,083. 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 in Santa Monica of 2026 are:
1. SQL
$175k
2. Java
$144.5k
3. Javascript
$144.5k
4. Node.js
$144.5k
5. Python
$137k
6. Selenium
$137k
Years of experience
Below Average
Average
Top of Market
The highest average salary a QA Engineer in Santa Monica can get with 4-6 years of experience, that is $132,500. This pay is 7.4% lower than the average salary in Santa Monica startups, which is $143,083. 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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