Side-by-side distribution
Application Security
$194,750
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 53.4%
- Live roles
- 324
CISO
$283,375
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 32.4%
- Live roles
- 108
Highest-paying jobs
Staff+ Application Security Engineer - M&A
Staff+ Application Security Engineer
Security Engineer, Application Security
Security Engineer, Application Security
Security Engineer, Application Security
Principal Software Engineer II - Product Security
Senior Software Engineer, Application Security
Security Engineer, Application Security
Principal Security Software Engineer, Application Security
Security Engineer, Product
Highest-paying jobs
Head of National Security Sales (DoW/IC)
Head of Vulnerability Disclosure & Security Community
Chief Information Security Officer (CISO)
Chief Information Security Officer (CISO)
Deputy Chief Information Security Officer (CISO), US
Member of Technical Staff, Head of Security
Deputy Chief Information Security Officer - Bank
Head of Security
Chief Information Security Officer (CISO)
Field CISO
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
Anduril Industries
|
$187,250 | 8 |
DigitalOcean
|
$155,150 | 6 |
Compass
|
$222,050 | 4 |
SpaceX
|
$175,000 | 4 |
|
OpenAI
|
$355,500 | 3 |
Brex
|
$216,000 | 3 |
Okta
|
$213,500 | 3 |
Airwallex
|
$205,000 | 3 |
Planet
Cohere
Application Security salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco | $237,500 | 42 |
| New York | $235,000 | 31 |
| London | $220,000 | 4 |
| Denver | $219,000 | 3 |
| Chicago | $213,750 | 7 |
| Seattle | $197,500 | 13 |
| Boston | $197,500 | 9 |
| Toronto | $185,000 | 6 |
| Austin | $165,000 | 3 |
| Los Angeles | $150,000 | 6 |
CISO salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| Austin | $313,750 | 3 |
| New York | $305,913 | 12 |
| San Francisco | $280,000 | 11 |
| Seattle | $280,000 | 3 |
Application Security vs CISO: which pays more?
The median for Application Security is $194,750 per year (typically $157,500–$237,952), versus $283,375 for CISO ($246,875–$300,000). That puts CISO about 46% ahead at the median.
Both figures are computed live from active listings on JobsRadar and normalized to annualized USD, so Application Security and CISO are compared on equal terms regardless of the currency each role was originally posted in. Only roles that publish a salary range feed the medians; numbers refresh every few hours as new roles post and older ones close, so this comparison reflects the market right now rather than a fixed survey. Use it as a directional benchmark when weighing one path against the other.