Side-by-side distribution
Backend Engineer
$185,375
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 33%
- Live roles
- 2,443
Blockchain
$181,241
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 9.9%
- Live roles
- 81
Highest-paying jobs
Intermediate Backend Software Engineer
Senior Staff Backend Engineer ($500k - $1.5m salary)
Staff Software Engineer (Backend)
Lead Software Engineer (Backend)
Senior/Staff Backend Engineer, Applied AI
Backend Engineer, AI
Backend Engineer
Senior Backend Engineer
Senior Backend Engineer (Java)
Senior Backend Engineer (Java)
Highest-paying jobs
Blockchain Engineer
Senior Staff Software Engineer - Blockchain Platform
Smart Contract Engineer
Senior Software Engineer - Blockchain Network
Smart Contract Engineer (EVM)
Blockchain Security Engineer - Senior Level (Solidity / Rust / Golang )
Blockchain Security Engineer - (Solidity / Rust / Golang)
Backend Engineer, Blockchain - Assistant Vice President
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
Air Apps
|
$68,094 | 33 |
Affirm
|
$183,000 | 20 |
Databricks
|
$205,100 | 16 |
Grafana Labs
|
$192,485 | 15 |
OpenAI
|
$309,000 | 9 |
Teleport
|
$261,440 | 9 |
Whoop
|
$150,000 | 9 |
Satispay
|
$55,934 | 9 |
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
|
Coinbase
|
$239,390 | 2 |
|
Certik
|
$141,000 | 2 |
| HA Harmony | $3,000,000 | 1 |
| CL Category Labs | $215,000 | 1 |
|
Waterfall
|
$160,000 | 1 |
|
iCapital
|
$132,500 | 1 |
Backend Engineer salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco | $220,000 | 166 |
| New York | $207,500 | 165 |
| Seattle | $205,500 | 38 |
| Denver | $195,875 | 4 |
| Austin | $194,500 | 7 |
| Los Angeles | $184,075 | 12 |
| Chicago | $175,000 | 5 |
| Boston | $175,000 | 21 |
| Singapore | $151,034 | 3 |
| Toronto | $149,375 | 38 |
Backend Engineer vs Blockchain: which pays more?
The median for Backend Engineer is $185,375 per year (typically $145,499–$225,000), versus $181,241 for Blockchain ($141,000–$230,324). That puts Backend Engineer about 2% ahead at the median.
Both figures are computed live from active listings on JobsRadar and normalized to annualized USD, so Backend Engineer and Blockchain 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.