H-1B Software Engineer Salaries: City-by-City Breakdown (2026)
The average H-1B software engineer salary in the United States is $129,714 per year based on FY2024 certified LCA filings from the Department of Labor. Los Gatos, CA leads all cities at $250,913 (driven by Netflix), followed by Menlo Park, CA at $202,580 (driven by Meta), San Mateo at $188,720, and Palo Alto at $187,085.
This analysis covers 191,773 certified LCA filings for software engineer and developer roles in FY2024, using the union of SOC codes 15-1131, 15-1132, 15-1133, 15-1252, 15-1253, and 15-1251 to span the 2018 OEWS code revision. All salaries are normalized to annual figures.
Top 25 Cities by H-1B Software Engineer Salary (FY2024)
| # | City | State | Avg Salary | Filings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Los Gatos | CA | $250,913 | 139 |
| 2 | Menlo Park | CA | $202,580 | 1,903 |
| 3 | San Mateo | CA | $188,720 | 339 |
| 4 | Palo Alto | CA | $187,085 | 1,213 |
| 5 | San Francisco | CA | $186,214 | 3,654 |
| 6 | Mountain View | CA | $185,999 | 3,434 |
| 7 | Cupertino | CA | $184,273 | 941 |
| 8 | Burlingame | CA | $184,013 | 228 |
| 9 | San Jose | CA | $181,299 | 3,525 |
| 10 | East Palo Alto | CA | $180,060 | 265 |
| 11 | Oakland | CA | $176,118 | 214 |
| 12 | San Bruno | CA | $174,982 | 225 |
| 13 | Santa Clara | CA | $174,778 | 2,403 |
| 14 | Sunnyvale | CA | $172,170 | 4,904 |
| 15 | Bellevue | WA | $170,826 | 2,917 |
| 16 | Redwood City | CA | $170,246 | 312 |
| 17 | South San Francisco | CA | $168,078 | 127 |
| 18 | Kirkland | WA | $166,005 | 647 |
| 19 | Foster City | CA | $164,635 | 306 |
| 20 | Seattle | WA | $161,691 | 5,765 |
| 21 | Milpitas | CA | $161,518 | 253 |
| 22 | Redmond | WA | $161,355 | 5,135 |
| 23 | New York | NY | $160,105 | 6,150 |
| 24 | Dublin | CA | $159,134 | 144 |
| 25 | Newark | CA | $156,892 | 239 |
Salary Trend: FY2020 to FY2024
H-1B software engineer salaries have grown 16% in four years, from $111,663 in FY2020 to $129,714 in FY2024. Filing volume was highest in FY2022 at 225,212, then settled around 191,000-192,000 in FY2023-2024.
| Fiscal Year | Avg Salary | Total Filings |
|---|---|---|
| FY2020 | $111,663 | 214,342 |
| FY2021 | $117,166 | 188,482 |
| FY2022 | $122,932 | 225,212 |
| FY2023 | $124,774 | 192,282 |
| FY2024 | $129,714 | 191,773 |
Salary by Prevailing Wage Level
The DOL assigns one of four prevailing wage levels to each LCA filing. For software engineers in FY2024, the gap between Level I ($95,700 nationally) and Level IV ($172,388) is $76,688. In the SF Bay Area, Level IV averages $243,486.
| Wage Level | Description | National | SF Bay Area | NYC Metro |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Level I | Entry | $95,700 | $138,802 | $105,715 |
| Level II | Qualified | $115,657 | $177,679 | $140,424 |
| Level III | Experienced | $148,644 | $211,332 | $169,081 |
| Level IV | Expert | $172,388 | $243,486 | $200,126 |
How to Query Software Engineer Salaries by City
Use the H-1B Salary Data API to search software engineer salaries for any city:
GET /api/v1/salaries?job_title=software+engineer&city=seattle&sort=salary_desc
You can combine filters for employer, state, fiscal year, wage level, and salary range. See the API documentation for all available parameters.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the average H-1B software engineer salary in 2024?
The average H-1B software engineer salary in the U.S. is $129,714/year based on FY2024 certified LCA filings (SOC codes 15-1131/1132/1133/1252/1253/1251). This varies significantly by city: Menlo Park averages $202,580 while nationwide small-metro averages are below $130,000.
Which city pays the most for H-1B software engineers?
Los Gatos, CA leads on average H-1B software engineer salary at $250,913/year (139 filings), driven by Netflix. Menlo Park follows at $202,580 (1,903 filings, driven by Meta), then San Mateo ($188,720), Palo Alto ($187,085), and San Francisco ($186,214).
How much do H-1B software engineers make at Google in Mountain View?
Google LLC filed 5,938 certified software engineer LCAs in FY2024 with a median salary of $181,000. The Mountain View, CA worksite specifically averages $185,999 per filing across all employers. Individual Google SWE filings range from roughly $120,000 to over $300,000 depending on level.
What is the H-1B prevailing wage for software engineers?
The prevailing wage for software engineers in FY2024 averages (SF Bay Area): Level I $138,802, Level II $177,679, Level III $211,332, Level IV $243,486. Nationally it is lower: Level I $95,700, Level II $115,657, Level III $148,644, Level IV $172,388.
Are H-1B software engineer salaries increasing?
Yes. The average H-1B software engineer salary increased from $111,663 in FY2020 to $129,714 in FY2024, a 16% increase over four years. See the yearly trend table below for details.
What is the difference between Wage Level I and Level IV?
Wage Level I is the entry-level prevailing wage (17th percentile). Level II is qualified (34th). Level III is experienced (50th). Level IV is expert (67th percentile). For software engineers, the gap between Level I and Level IV can be $100,000+ in major tech hubs.
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