Side-by-side distribution
Principal Engineer
$223,250
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 46.2%
- Live roles
- 1,771
Radiologist
$163,857
median · per year, annualized USD
- Disclosing
- 42.9%
- Live roles
- 35
Highest-paying jobs
Principal Software Engineer
Distinguished Engineer
Staff / Principal Data Engineer
Principal Engineer
Principal Engineer (Payments)
Principal Machine Learning Engineer, Ads Delivery
Principal Research Engineer, Model Training & Post-Training
Principal Engineer, Agentic AI Systems
Principal .NET Software Engineer - Cloud Payments Platform
Principal .NET Software Engineer- Cloud Payments Platform
Highest-paying jobs
Daytime Musculoskeletal Radiologist Partner-Track Denver, CO
7 Nights On /21 Nights Off, Overnight Emergency Body Imaging Radiologist - 10p - 7a MST
Remote Evening Body Imaging Radiologist | 5 PM–2 AM MST | 7 On/14 Off
Remote Overnight Pediatric Radiologist | 7 On/14 Off | $75K Sign-On
Body Imaging Radiologist Opportunity in Vail, CO ($75k Sign On Bonus)
Daytime Nuclear Medicine Radiologist - Partner Track
Radiologist
Locum Consultant Radiologist (GI) - Birmingham
Locum Consultant Radiologist - Manchester
Consultant Radiologist - North England
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
Roblox
|
$320,145 | 42 |
| AL Astera Labs | $207,500 | 21 |
Motional
|
$285,000 | 20 |
Elastic
|
$134,329 | 18 |
| SE Sezzle | $111,000 | 16 |
Zscaler
|
$213,281 | 14 |
Anduril Industries
|
$256,000 | 13 |
Snowflake
|
$321,750 | 12 |
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
|
Diversified Radiology
|
$475,000 | 9 |
| PH Pulse Healthcare | $163,857 | 4 |
| SA Schwarzman Animal Medical Center | $320,000 | 1 |
Prenuvo
|
$56,000 | 1 |
Principal Engineer salary by location
| Location | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco | $278,000 | 70 |
| New York | $260,000 | 59 |
| Boston | $250,000 | 45 |
| Chicago | $232,500 | 15 |
| Seattle | $232,175 | 34 |
| Austin | $232,000 | 10 |
| Los Angeles | $225,000 | 31 |
| Toronto | $210,000 | 16 |
| London | $199,724 | 16 |
| Denver | $190,000 | 17 |
Principal Engineer vs Radiologist: which pays more?
The median for Principal Engineer is $223,250 per year (typically $187,500–$275,639), versus $163,857 for Radiologist ($119,429–$487,500). That puts Principal Engineer about 36% ahead at the median.
Both figures are computed live from active listings on JobsRadar and normalized to annualized USD, so Principal Engineer and Radiologist 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.