Side-by-side distribution
Embedded Engineer
$155,000
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 46.6%
- Live roles
- 1,117
Engineering Manager
$168,950
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 36%
- Live roles
- 9,976
Highest-paying jobs
AI Support Engineer – Embedded Systems
Principal Engineer, Embedded Vehicle Software
Embedded software engineer
Principal Software Engineer - Embedded Platform Software Development
Principal Software Engineer, Embedded (RIS)
Principal Software Engineer - Embedded (RIS)
Principal Embedded Software Engineer
Principal Embedded Software Engineer
Staff Embedded Security Engineer
Embedded SW Engineer
Highest-paying jobs
Engineering Manager, GPU (ML Accelerator)
Engineering Manager, Research Data Platform
Engineering Manager, Research Productivity
Junior Business Development Manager
Business Development Manager
Business Development Manager
Business Development Manager
Business Development Manager
Engineering Manager, Inference Infrastructure
Engineering Manager, Hardware Platform Security
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
Northrop Grumman
|
$142,500 | 82 |
Anduril Industries
|
$201,250 | 22 |
|
Blue Origin
|
$181,117 | 14 |
SpaceX
|
$145,000 | 13 |
Leidos
|
$122,275 | 13 |
Abbott
|
$171,000 | 11 |
Motorola Solutions
|
$121,750 | 11 |
Silvus Technologies
|
$170,000 | 9 |
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
|
Northrop Grumman
|
$183,100 | 164 |
Databricks
|
$225,625 | 35 |
Cushman & Wakefield
|
$143,375 | 30 |
Brex
|
$225,000 | 25 |
|
Anthropic
|
$445,000 | 23 |
Accenture
|
$217,450 | 23 |
PwC
|
$182,500 | 21 |
Atwell, LLC
|
$117,500 | 21 |
Embedded Engineer salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco | $188,750 | 20 |
| Seattle | $185,150 | 22 |
| Denver | $181,117 | 13 |
| Los Angeles | $180,000 | 25 |
| New York | $178,800 | 5 |
| Toronto | $163,554 | 4 |
| Boston | $157,500 | 6 |
| Austin | $155,934 | 6 |
| Chicago | $153,000 | 3 |
Engineering Manager salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| Sydney | $385,944 | 6 |
| San Francisco | $238,500 | 415 |
| Seattle | $205,800 | 172 |
| New York | $198,000 | 522 |
| Austin | $194,100 | 110 |
| London | $190,145 | 74 |
| Boston | $182,500 | 132 |
| Los Angeles | $180,891 | 119 |
| Denver | $171,989 | 103 |
| Atlanta | $168,025 | 94 |
Embedded Engineer vs Engineering Manager: which pays more?
The median for Embedded Engineer is $155,000 per year (typically $128,075–$193,000), versus $168,950 for Engineering Manager ($132,750–$210,194). That puts Engineering Manager about 9% ahead at the median.
Both figures are computed live from active listings on JobsRadar and normalized to annualized USD, so Embedded Engineer and Engineering Manager 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.