Principal Engineer salaries in San Francisco.
What Principal Engineer roles in San Francisco pay, from live listings on JobsRadar.
Compare with anotherMedian salary
$266,000
per year · annualized USD
Typical range
$233.8k – $314.2k
25th–75th percentile
Disclosing pay
82.2%
111 of 135 roles
Live roles
135
open right now
Salary trend
median · annualized USDSalary distribution
annualized USD · disclosed rolesHighest-paying jobs
Principal Software Engineer, Productivity
Principal Software Engineer, ChatGPT Education and Learning
Principal Software Engineer, Infrastructure Security
Principal Security Engineer, Infrastructure Security
Principal Engineer, Autonomy
Principal Engineer, AI Platform
Principal Engineer, Shopping & Delivery Infra
Principal Engineer, Big Data Platform
Top companies hiring
| Company | Median | Roles |
|---|---|---|
| SA Salesforce | $261,800 | 7 |
| LS Lila Sciences | $257,000 | 7 |
Snap Inc.
|
$345,000 | 5 |
Databricks
|
$308,725 | 5 |
Early Warning Services
|
$215,500 | 5 |
|
OpenAI
|
$476,500 | 4 |
|
Pinterest
|
$371,088 | 4 |
Pragmatike
|
$300,000 | 4 |
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How much do Principal Engineer roles in San Francisco pay?
The median salary for Principal Engineer roles in San Francisco is $266,000 per year. Most pay falls between $233,750 (25th percentile) and $314,188 (75th percentile), with the broader 10th–90th percentile band running from $201,500 to $370,369.
These figures are computed live from 135 active Principal Engineer roles in San Francisco on JobsRadar, of which 111 (82.2%) publish a salary range. Pay is normalized to annualized USD so roles can be compared on equal terms; the highest-paying roles listed above show their original posted currency. Numbers refresh every few hours as new roles are posted and older ones close.
Employers currently hiring well-paid Principal Engineer roles in San Francisco include OpenAI, AeroVect and Pinterest.
Salary transparency varies by employer and region, so the disclosing share above reflects only roles that publish pay — not every open position. Use it as a directional benchmark rather than an exact offer.
Frequently asked questions
- What is the average Principal Engineer salary in San Francisco?
- The median is $266,000 per year, with most pay between $233,750 and $314,188 (25th–75th percentile), based on 111 live listings that disclose pay on JobsRadar.
- What is the Principal Engineer salary range in San Francisco?
- Pay ranges from about $201,500 to $370,369 per year (10th–90th percentile) around a median of $266,000. Figures are annualized USD from live listings, refreshed every few hours.