Side-by-side distribution
Backend Engineer
$185,000
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 31.5%
- Live roles
- 2,797
Software Engineer
$174,500
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 33.3%
- Live roles
- 32,707
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
Senior Software Engineer, Machine Learning (Audio)
Senior Software Engineer
Software Engineer - AI
Senior Software Engineer - Database team
Staff Software Engineer, Node Infra
Staff Software Engineer, Kubernetes Platform
Staff Software Engineer, Code RL
Software Engineer, Research Productivity
Staff+ Software Engineer, Developer Productivity
Staff Software Engineer, Claude Code
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 |
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
Anduril Industries
|
$222,000 | 352 |
Northrop Grumman
|
$129,500 | 273 |
Leidos
|
$151,475 | 176 |
Booz Allen Hamilton
|
$142,400 | 169 |
SpaceX
|
$142,500 | 167 |
|
OpenAI
|
$355,500 | 149 |
Blue Origin
|
$197,582 | 138 |
CACI
|
$139,950 | 132 |
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 |
Software Engineer salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco | $226,300 | 1,572 |
| New York | $212,500 | 1,398 |
| Seattle | $207,300 | 681 |
| Sydney | $195,000 | 3 |
| Los Angeles | $190,000 | 239 |
| Austin | $186,650 | 198 |
| Boston | $186,050 | 283 |
| Denver | $180,000 | 211 |
| London | $178,829 | 127 |
| Atlanta | $167,500 | 125 |
Backend Engineer vs Software Engineer: which pays more?
The median for Backend Engineer is $185,000 per year (typically $140,342–$219,213), versus $174,500 for Software Engineer ($133,500–$216,263). That puts Backend Engineer about 6% ahead at the median.
Both figures are computed live from active listings on JobsRadar and normalized to annualized USD, so Backend Engineer and Software 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.