Side-by-side distribution
Backend Engineer
$185,000
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 31.5%
- Live roles
- 2,797
Mobile Engineer
$155,000
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 24.5%
- Live roles
- 1,077
Highest-paying jobs
Senior/Staff Backend Engineer, Applied AI
Expert Backend Engineer
Software Engineer, Backend
Senior Backend Engineer, Perpetuals
Senior Staff Software Engineer, API
Staff/Principal Backend Software Engineer
Staff/Principal Backend Software Engineer
Software Engineer, API Agents
Backend Software Engineer, GTM Innovation
Software Engineer, API Safety
Highest-paying jobs
Mobile Infrastructure Engineer
Mobile / Full Stack Staff & Software Engineer, Consumer Monetization
Mobile Android Engineer
Mobile iOS Engineer
Senior Software Engineer, Rips (Mobile)
Mobile Engineer
Software Engineer, Mobile Web — Dots
Android Engineer, Plugin Developer Platform
Design Engineer, Mobile
Mobile Android Engineer
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
Affirm
|
$158,000 | 50 |
Air Apps
|
$65,555 | 33 |
|
OpenAI
|
$355,500 | 17 |
Databricks
|
$195,500 | 14 |
Grafana Labs
|
$148,144 | 14 |
Verkada
|
$225,000 | 11 |
| KA Kalepa | $219,000 | 11 |
Robinhood
|
$180,500 | 9 |
Cushman & Wakefield
Compass
SpaceX
Esri
Konrad
Backend Engineer salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco | $215,000 | 148 |
| New York | $205,000 | 173 |
| Seattle | $200,000 | 52 |
| Los Angeles | $196,000 | 17 |
| Boston | $191,500 | 19 |
| Denver | $167,950 | 11 |
| Austin | $160,625 | 14 |
| Chicago | $150,350 | 10 |
| Singapore | $143,718 | 6 |
| Toronto | $139,976 | 42 |
Mobile Engineer salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| Seattle | $216,250 | 10 |
| San Francisco | $211,250 | 28 |
| New York | $197,750 | 34 |
| Los Angeles | $181,650 | 4 |
| Austin | $170,250 | 4 |
| Boston | $170,000 | 9 |
| Chicago | $151,538 | 4 |
| Paris | $143,151 | 3 |
| Toronto | $115,539 | 14 |
| London | $61,075 | 6 |
Backend Engineer vs Mobile Engineer: which pays more?
The median for Backend Engineer is $185,000 per year (typically $140,342–$219,213), versus $155,000 for Mobile Engineer ($103,081–$200,000). That puts Backend Engineer about 19% ahead at the median.
Both figures are computed live from active listings on JobsRadar and normalized to annualized USD, so Backend Engineer and Mobile 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.