Side-by-side distribution
Application Security
$194,750
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 53.4%
- Live roles
- 324
Penetration Tester
$183,600
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 30.9%
- Live roles
- 94
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
Offensive Security Engineer, Agent Products
Offensive Security Agent Engineer
Offensive Hardware Security Engineer, Platform Security
Member of Technical Staff (Offensive Security Engineer)
Principal Offensive Security Engineer
Senior Information Security Engineer, Offensive Security
Staff Offensive Security Engineer
Senior Information Security Engineer, Offensive Security
Senior Information Security Engineer, Offensive Security
Senior Offensive Security Engineer
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 |
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
Fortreum
|
$145,000 | 4 |
| GR GRVTY | $212,500 | 3 |
|
OpenAI
|
$418,500 | 2 |
|
Robinhood
|
$193,114 | 2 |
Accenture Federal Services
|
$174,200 | 2 |
TP-Link Systems Inc.
|
$106,000 | 2 |
|
Anthropic
|
$362,500 | 1 |
|
Perplexity
|
$312,500 | 1 |
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 |
Penetration Tester salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco | $337,500 | 6 |
| New York | $312,500 | 7 |
| Seattle | $268,750 | 6 |
Application Security vs Penetration Tester: which pays more?
The median for Application Security is $194,750 per year (typically $157,500–$237,952), versus $183,600 for Penetration Tester ($148,921–$219,255). That puts Application Security about 6% ahead at the median.
Both figures are computed live from active listings on JobsRadar and normalized to annualized USD, so Application Security and Penetration Tester 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.