Backend Engineer Salary at Startups
What startups pay backend engineers, from the pay their live postings state: base salary as the employer writes it, on roles still taking applications.
102 of 439 live roles state payChecked dailyUpdated
Median base pay
$203Ka year
The median of 80 live backend engineer postings that state pay in US dollars, as of October 2026. Each posting counts at the middle of its range.
- Middle half of postings
- $170K–$230K
- One in ten pays over
- $243K
- A typical posted range
- $171K–$235K
- Under $140K: 4 postings
- $140K–$160K: 8 postings
- $160K–$180K: 11 postings
- $180K–$200K: 15 postings
- $200K–$220K: 18 postings
- $220K–$240K: 14 postings
- $240K–$260K: 3 postings
- $260K and up: 7 postings
By level
As the title states it: "Senior", "Staff" and so on. Mid-level is a title with no level in it.
MedianMiddle half10th to 90th percentile
- Mid-level$183K$150K–$203K · 21 postings
- Senior$205K$180K–$222K · 38 postings
- Staff$237K$189K–$253K · 20 postings
By city
Each in the currency its postings use. Pounds, euros and Canadian dollars aren't converted.
Who pays the most
Companies with at least three live backend engineer postings stating pay, by their median.
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Common questions
How much does a backend engineer make at a startup?
As of October 2026, the median base pay startups advertise for backend engineers is $203K a year, across 80 live postings that state it in US dollars. The middle half of those postings pay between $170K and $230K, and one in ten pays over $243K.
How much does a senior backend engineer make at a startup?
Postings with "senior" in the title have a median of $205K a year, across 38 of them, against $183K for titles that state no level. The middle half pay $180K–$222K.
Which companies pay backend engineers the most?
Among companies with at least three live postings stating pay, the highest medians are at Verkada ($233K), Horizon3 ($217K), Raydar ($209K) and GitLab ($206K).
Where do backend engineers earn the most?
New York, with a median of $213K a year across 11 postings, against $203K for remote roles.
Does a backend engineer at a startup get equity?
Often, though few postings say how much: 45% of the 572 backend engineer postings we've read mention equity. The figures on this page are base pay only.
Where do these figures come from?
From the postings themselves: the pay range each employer states, on roles still taking applications, which we check against the company's own careers page every day. Each posting counts once, at the middle of its range. Postings that don't state pay, and pay in other currencies, are left out of the main figures.