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Principal Engineer Jobs in San Diego.

San Diego is a major hub for biotechnology, defense, and telecommunications, with a growing technology and tourism economy. Browse jobs in San Diego from companies hiring across every field.

Principal engineers set technical direction at the highest individual-contributor level. Browse principal engineer jobs from companies hiring worldwide.

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Total jobs
182
positions indexed
New today
0
last 24 hours
Companies
18
actively hiring
Worldwide remote
0
from anywhere

How many Principal Engineer jobs in San Diego are there right now?

There are 182 open Principal Engineer jobs in San Diego on JobsRadar right now, from 18 companies hiring directly. 168 of them disclose pay, with a median of $149,750 a year and most offers between $142,500 and $177,800. The board was last refreshed on October 23, 2026 at 11:04 UTC.

Principal Engineer salary range in San Diego

$142.5k 25th
$149.8k Median
$177.8k 75th
$126.2k
$205.3k
Box 25th–75th · whiskers 10th–90th Full range $137.6k – $376.8k · outliers off-axis
Based on 168 disclosed live listings
Updated Oct 23, 2026 from live listings
See full salary breakdown
role: Principal Engineer in: San Diego Clear all
Sort Newest Top salary
Shieldai
Senior Principal Engineer, GNC & State Estimation (R6233)
Shieldai
⚡ Apply early San Diego, California Onsite
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 1d ago
Blue Origin
Principal ASIC Design Verification Engineer - Terawave
Blue Origin
⚡ Apply early Hutto, TX Onsite $269,175–$376,844
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 2d ago
Northrop Grumman
Senior Principal Engineer - Survivability (California)
Northrop Grumman
⚡ Apply early United States-California-Palmd... Onsite $156,400–$234,600
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 3d ago
Blue Origin
Principal Modem PHY IP Design Engineer - Terawave
Blue Origin
⚡ Apply early Hutto, TX Onsite $269,175–$376,844
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 3d ago
Northrop Grumman
Cyber Systems Engineer/Principal Cyber Systems Engineer
Northrop Grumman
⚡ Apply early United States-California-San D... Onsite $101,000–$151,400
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 3d ago
Northrop Grumman
Principal Software Engineer/Sr Principal Software Engineer - Payloads and Tasking Applications
Northrop Grumman
⚡ Apply early United States-California-San D... Onsite $114,000–$171,000
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 4d ago
Northrop Grumman
Principal Systems Engineer
Northrop Grumman
⚡ Apply early United States-California-San D... Onsite $98,400–$171,000
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 4d ago
Caterpillar
Additive Manufacturing (AM) Technology Engineer (Senior Principal Engineer)
Caterpillar
⚡ Apply early San Diego, California Onsite $128,470–$192,710
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 4d ago
Caterpillar
Senior Principal Electrical Engineer
Caterpillar
⚡ Apply early San Diego, California Onsite $128,470–$192,710
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 4d ago
Semtech
Principal NPI Product Engineer
Semtech
⚡ Apply early USA - San Diego, CA Onsite $110,000–$140,000
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 5d ago
Blue Origin
Principal Emulation & Prototyping Engineer
Blue Origin
⚡ Apply early Hutto, TX Onsite $230,398–$322,557
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 5d ago
Shieldai
Principal Engineer, Edge Applications & Mission Systems (R6245)
Shieldai
⚡ Apply early San Diego, California Onsite
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 6d ago
Northrop Grumman
Sr. Principal Engineer Systems
Northrop Grumman
⚡ Apply early United States-California-San D... Onsite $142,200–$213,400
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 1w ago
Northrop Grumman
Principal or Sr Principal Engineer Electrical (Circuit Design Engineer)
Northrop Grumman
⚡ Apply early United States-California-San D... Onsite $103,600–$155,400
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 1w ago
Northrop Grumman
Principal or Sr Principal Engineer Test
Northrop Grumman
⚡ Apply early United States-California-San D... Onsite $103,600–$155,400
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 1w ago
Northrop Grumman
Principal Retrofit Engineer
Northrop Grumman
⚡ Apply early United States-California-San D... Onsite $103,600–$155,400
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 1w ago
Northrop Grumman
Sr. Principal Electronics Engineer – Hardware/Infrastructure Lead
Northrop Grumman
⚡ Apply early United States-California-San D... Onsite $142,200–$213,400
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 1w ago
Northrop Grumman
Principal / Sr Principal Flight-Critical Hardware Avionics Engineer
Northrop Grumman
⚡ Apply early United States-California-San D... Hybrid $114,000–$171,000
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 1w ago
Shieldai
Power Electronics - Principal Electrical Engineer (R4822)
Shieldai
⚡ Apply early Seattle, Washington Onsite
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 1w ago
Blue Origin
Principal mmWave IC Design Engineer - TeraWave
Blue Origin
⚡ Apply early San Diego, CA Onsite $269,175–$376,844
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 1w ago
Northrop Grumman
Principal Electrical Engineer (FPGA Design Engineer)
Northrop Grumman
⚡ Apply early United States-California-San D... Onsite $114,000–$171,000
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 1w ago
Northrop Grumman
Principal Engineer Electronics
Northrop Grumman
⚡ Apply early United States-California-San D... Onsite $114,000–$171,000
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 1w ago
Shieldai
Principal Thermal Engineer - Aircraft Avionics & Thermal Systems (R3930)
Shieldai
⚡ Apply early Seattle, Washington Onsite
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 1w ago
Northrop Grumman
Principal Software Engineer - Integration and Test
Northrop Grumman
⚡ Apply early United States-California-San D... Onsite $114,000–$171,000
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 1w ago
Northrop Grumman
Sr Principal Cyber Systems Engineer
Northrop Grumman
⚡ Apply early United States-California-San D... Onsite $156,400–$234,600
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 1w ago

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Frequently asked questions

How many Principal Engineer jobs in San Diego are open right now?
182 Principal Engineer jobs in San Diego are open across 18 companies, as of October 23, 2026.
What do Principal Engineer jobs in San Diego pay?
Across the 168 Principal Engineer jobs in San Diego that disclose pay, the median is $149,750 a year, and the middle half of offers falls between $142,500 and $177,800.
Which companies are hiring Principal Engineer jobs in San Diego?
Shieldai, Blue Origin, Northrop Grumman, Caterpillar and Semtech are among the 18 companies currently hiring Principal Engineer jobs in San Diego.
How current are these listings?
Every listing comes straight from the employer’s own careers system and is re-checked three times a day. This page was last updated on October 23, 2026 at 11:04 UTC.

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