Side-by-side distribution
Backend Engineer
$185,375
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 33%
- Live roles
- 2,443
Embedded Engineer
$185,000
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 52.9%
- Live roles
- 450
Highest-paying jobs
Senior Staff Backend Engineer ($500k - $1.5m salary)
Intermediate Backend Software Engineer
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
Helix AI Engineer, Embedded Android Systems
Principal Embedded Security Engineer
Sr. Software Engineer, Embedded Agentic AI
Staff Embedded Firmware Engineer
Principal Embedded Software Engineer
Embedded Software Test Engineer, Onboard Test Automation
Embedded SW Engineer
Staff Embedded Linux Engineer
Embedded Systems Engineer-Federal
Senior Embedded Systems Engineer
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 |
|---|---|---|
Anduril Industries
|
$199,500 | 25 |
Silvus Technologies
|
$170,000 | 10 |
SpaceX
|
$142,500 | 9 |
| AX Axon | $183,300 | 7 |
Verkada
|
$245,000 | 6 |
Applied Intuition
|
$202,000 | 6 |
TP-Link Systems Inc.
|
$140,000 | 6 |
STR
|
$130,500 | 6 |
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 |
Embedded Engineer salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| Toronto | $195,500 | 4 |
| Seattle | $193,000 | 13 |
| San Francisco | $187,500 | 18 |
| Austin | $186,975 | 6 |
| Boston | $183,300 | 11 |
| Los Angeles | $180,000 | 15 |
| Denver | $177,500 | 3 |
| New York | $167,500 | 6 |
Backend Engineer vs Embedded Engineer: which pays more?
The median for Backend Engineer is $185,375 per year (typically $145,499–$225,000), versus $185,000 for Embedded Engineer ($155,000–$208,938). That puts Backend Engineer about 0% ahead at the median.
Both figures are computed live from active listings on JobsRadar and normalized to annualized USD, so Backend Engineer and Embedded Engineer 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.