Founding Engineer Salary at Startups
What startups pay founding engineers, from the pay their live postings state: base salary as the employer writes it, on roles still taking applications.
32 of 181 live roles state payChecked dailyUpdated
Median base pay
$205Ka year
The median of 29 live founding 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
- $175K–$225K
- One in ten pays over
- $250K
- A typical posted range
- $175K–$230K
- Under $160K: 1 posting
- $160K–$170K: 3 postings
- $170K–$180K: 4 postings
- $180K–$190K: 3 postings
- $190K–$200K: 1 posting
- $200K–$210K: 4 postings
- $210K–$220K: 2 postings
- $220K–$230K: 6 postings
- $230K–$240K: 1 posting
- $240K–$250K: 0 postings
- $250K and up: 4 postings
By city
Each in the currency its postings use. Pounds, euros and Canadian dollars aren't converted.
MedianMiddle half10th to 90th percentile
- Remote$215K$185K–$225K · 11 postings
- San Francisco$200K$174K–$240K · 11 postings
- New York$190K$184K–$205K · 9 postings
Who pays the most
Companies with at least three live founding engineer postings stating pay, by their median.
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Common questions
How much does a founding engineer make at a startup?
As of October 2026, the median base pay startups advertise for founding engineers is $205K a year, across 29 live postings that state it in US dollars. The middle half of those postings pay between $175K and $225K, and one in ten pays over $250K.
Which companies pay founding engineers the most?
Among companies with at least three live postings stating pay, the highest medians are at Raydar ($220K), Cleara ($200K) and MLabs ($188K).
Where do founding engineers earn the most?
Remote roles, with a median of $215K a year across 11 postings.
Does a founding engineer at a startup get equity?
Often, though few postings say how much: 51% of the 124 founding 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.