Side-by-side distribution
CFO
$222,500
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 19.4%
- Live roles
- 345
Firmware Engineer
$191,250
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 53.6%
- Live roles
- 194
Highest-paying jobs
1.1. Chief Financial Officer
VP of Finance
Chief Financial Officer
Chief Financial Officer
Chief Financial Officer
CFO, Prism Media LLC
Chief Financial Officer
VP, Finance
VP, Finance
Chief Financial Officer
Highest-paying jobs
Firmware Engineer, Robotics
Networking Operating System Firmware Engineer
ASIC Firmware Engineer, Modeling
Firmware Engineer, RTOS, Consumer Devices
Staff Embedded Firmware Engineer
Firmware/ Embedded Systems Engineer
Firmware Engineer, Robotics and Surgery Engineering
Staff Embedded Software Engineer - Camera Firmware
Founding Firmware Engineer
Staff Firmware Engineer
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
CFO Insights
|
$187,539 | 8 |
The Symicor Group
|
$170,000 | 5 |
The Brydon Group
|
$268,750 | 2 |
Hold Brothers
|
$232,500 | 2 |
Black White Zebra
|
$125,000 | 2 |
The Pod Group
|
$112,500 | 2 |
|
Phoenix Tailings
|
$737,500 | 1 |
|
Duolingo
|
$440,000 | 1 |
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
|
Anduril Industries
|
$222,000 | 14 |
|
OpenAI
|
$345,500 | 4 |
ALSO
|
$187,500 | 4 |
CoreWeave
|
$197,500 | 3 |
Mach Industries
|
$172,500 | 3 |
ALTEN Technology USA
|
$120,000 | 3 |
42dot
|
$228,000 | 2 |
Everpure
|
$216,250 | 2 |
CFO salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco | $301,250 | 8 |
| New York | $275,000 | 17 |
| Los Angeles | $215,000 | 3 |
| London | $187,539 | 9 |
| Chicago | $115,000 | 3 |
Firmware Engineer salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco | $210,458 | 14 |
| New York | $197,500 | 7 |
CFO vs Firmware Engineer: which pays more?
The median for CFO is $222,500 per year (typically $174,425–$279,000), versus $191,250 for Firmware Engineer ($160,000–$214,625). That puts CFO about 16% ahead at the median.
Both figures are computed live from active listings on JobsRadar and normalized to annualized USD, so CFO and Firmware 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.