Software Engineer Salary at Startups
What startups pay software engineers, from the pay their live postings state: base salary as the employer writes it, on roles still taking applications.
1,328 of 3,265 live roles state payChecked dailyUpdated
Median base pay
$195Ka year
The median of 1,181 live software 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
- $165K–$224K
- One in ten pays over
- $260K
- A typical posted range
- $165K–$220K
- Under $120K: 52 postings
- $120K–$140K: 60 postings
- $140K–$160K: 121 postings
- $160K–$180K: 228 postings
- $180K–$200K: 174 postings
- $200K–$220K: 188 postings
- $220K–$240K: 154 postings
- $240K–$260K: 78 postings
- $260K–$280K: 46 postings
- $280K–$300K: 26 postings
- $300K and up: 54 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
- Junior or entry-level$101K$85K–$123K · 14 postings
- Mid-level$170K$148K–$197K · 496 postings
- Senior$200K$172K–$222K · 350 postings
- Lead$193K$168K–$208K · 12 postings
- Staff$237K$203K–$265K · 234 postings
- Principal$215K$199K–$299K · 32 postings
- Manager$215K$185K–$243K · 41 postings
By city
Each in the currency its postings use. Pounds, euros and Canadian dollars aren't converted.
MedianMiddle half10th to 90th percentile
- Remote$195K$167K–$225K · 472 postings
- San Francisco$209K$185K–$245K · 173 postings
- New York$213K$188K–$249K · 102 postings
- TorontoCA$197KCA$160K–CA$208K · 17 postings
Who pays the most
Companies with at least three live software engineer postings stating pay, by their median.
MedianMiddle half10th to 90th percentile
- Anthropic$403K$403K–$445K · 13 postings
- $369K–$388K · 3 postings
- Figma$317K$317K · 4 postings
- Decagon$300K$300K · 7 postings
- Hightouch$290K$290K · 4 postings
- Harvey$286K$275K–$286K · 8 postings
- Pinterest$280K$271K–$312K · 6 postings
- Brex$270K$257K–$270K · 4 postings
- Roblox$269K$220K–$320K · 17 postings
- Asana$265K$244K–$281K · 4 postings
Find the ones that fit you
Paste your LinkedIn. Antijob finds startup roles posted today and writes you a short, tailored email to the person who can hire you.
Common questions
How much does a software engineer make at a startup?
As of October 2026, the median base pay startups advertise for software engineers is $195K a year, across 1,181 live postings that state it in US dollars. The middle half of those postings pay between $165K and $224K, and one in ten pays over $260K.
How much does a senior software engineer make at a startup?
Postings with "senior" in the title have a median of $200K a year, across 350 of them, against $170K for titles that state no level. The middle half pay $172K–$222K.
Which companies pay software engineers the most?
Among companies with at least three live postings stating pay, the highest medians are at Anthropic ($403K), Thinking Machines Lab ($388K), Figma ($317K) and Decagon ($300K).
Where do software engineers earn the most?
New York, with a median of $213K a year across 102 postings, against $195K for remote roles.
Does a software engineer at a startup get equity?
Often, though few postings say how much: 50% of the 3,782 software 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.