If you work in tech: what are your salaries?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Very simple place to look at salaries for DMV software engineers:
https://www.levels.fyi/Salaries/Software-Engineer/Northern-Virginia-Washington-DC/

Many of us post on there and it is fairly accurate. You can keep telling yourself about those "average" number you want to believe. You can def get pay more than that in this area if you are willing to study/prepare.

this is shocking

Agree. It is the salary difference that's shocking. I wonder what's the real difference between 90k and 250k engineer with same yoe

What's the difference between a first year lawyer at a big law firm and first year public defender, other than $140K a year?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just to let everybody know, the salaries that have been reported here are, for the most part, so outlandish compared to what the average computer science or engineering grad can home to make coming out of a top 25 program as to be worth ignoring. These folks are the the 1% of graduates. Not everybody can work at FAANG. By comparison, the average salary for a top 25-ish fresh computer engineer is 91k, but at google it's more like 170k.

Exactly this. I work in a local tech company that sells to the DoD. None of our engineers are making that kind of money. $150K for managers, $130K or so for senior developers, 80k for new hires fresh out of school.

Are you a boomer and thinking of 1980s salaries? Your company must either have lots of vacancies or really low performers if those are your rates. I'd avoid working w/ you.

Well those are essentially gov employee salaries, and tech contractors only make a little more than civilians except for the rock stars.

I’ve tried for years to get into FAANG, I’m likely too old now, so where else in DC would I get higher pay like you allude to?

Faang is literally only 5 companies and only 3 of them hire here. There are plenty of companies you can get a lot of compensation now that a lot of companies are hiring remotely.

Well how do you find those high compensation companies? I’ve had offers from over a dozen companies, and they were barely above my contractor salary ($160k).

[Anonymous]

For the past 8 years, DH has ridden the competitive market with the FAANGs. Eight years ago he went job searching and got a competitive offer at another FAANG as the FAANGs were stealing each other's talent at any cost. At 4 years in and when his stock/bonus from that jump were about to be all vested and his comp would have been reduced by 50%, he took his 4th year comp and presented it another FAANG after a job offer. He has made $1.5M+ a year for 8 years. Sadly the gravy boat has turned dry, and 2022 comp will be somewhere in the $400K.
(seattle)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Very simple place to look at salaries for DMV software engineers:
https://www.levels.fyi/Salaries/Software-Engineer/Northern-Virginia-Washington-DC/

Many of us post on there and it is fairly accurate. You can keep telling yourself about those "average" number you want to believe. You can def get pay more than that in this area if you are willing to study/prepare.

I'm an "average" software systems engineer. I don't see that there is a disagreement. It looks like my salary is slightly above the median. I don't think anyone has said that there aren't those high performers who are making more, just that those tend to be the exceptions, rather than the rule. Using the link you posted, those making $400k are in the top 1%, as someone else mentioned earlier in this thread. Also using your link, we see that most of the top earners have over 10 years of work experience, very few have less than that. Again, not that they don't exist or are not possible, just not something that a person can plan to become. It takes a special combination of personality, work ethic, and know-how.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For the past 8 years, DH has ridden the competitive market with the FAANGs. Eight years ago he went job searching and got a competitive offer at another FAANG as the FAANGs were stealing each other's talent at any cost. At 4 years in and when his stock/bonus from that jump were about to be all vested and his comp would have been reduced by 50%, he took his 4th year comp and presented it another FAANG after a job offer. He has made $1.5M+ a year for 8 years. Sadly the gravy boat has turned dry, and 2022 comp will be somewhere in the $400K.
(seattle)

The comp structure (RSUs/equity that vest over a few years and then stop) is very strange. I know some companies do refreshers, but seems they often still lead to significantly reduced comp. Is this basically an up or out strategy? I don't understand the concept behind effectively reducing comp for long term employees.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For the past 8 years, DH has ridden the competitive market with the FAANGs. Eight years ago he went job searching and got a competitive offer at another FAANG as the FAANGs were stealing each other's talent at any cost. At 4 years in and when his stock/bonus from that jump were about to be all vested and his comp would have been reduced by 50%, he took his 4th year comp and presented it another FAANG after a job offer. He has made $1.5M+ a year for 8 years. Sadly the gravy boat has turned dry, and 2022 comp will be somewhere in the $400K.
(seattle)

What is your DH specialty to command that kind of comp? What is he doing?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just to let everybody know, the salaries that have been reported here are, for the most part, so outlandish compared to what the average computer science or engineering grad can home to make coming out of a top 25 program as to be worth ignoring. These folks are the the 1% of graduates. Not everybody can work at FAANG. By comparison, the average salary for a top 25-ish fresh computer engineer is 91k, but at google it's more like 170k.

Exactly this. I work in a local tech company that sells to the DoD. None of our engineers are making that kind of money. $150K for managers, $130K or so for senior developers, 80k for new hires fresh out of school.

I confirm. I make 120k in low cost area. If I hoped now I may get 150k but that's for a senior position.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just to let everybody know, the salaries that have been reported here are, for the most part, so outlandish compared to what the average computer science or engineering grad can home to make coming out of a top 25 program as to be worth ignoring. These folks are the the 1% of graduates. Not everybody can work at FAANG. By comparison, the average salary for a top 25-ish fresh computer engineer is 91k, but at google it's more like 170k.

Exactly this. I work in a local tech company that sells to the DoD. None of our engineers are making that kind of money. $150K for managers, $130K or so for senior developers, 80k for new hires fresh out of school.

Are you a boomer and thinking of 1980s salaries? Your company must either have lots of vacancies or really low performers if those are your rates. I'd avoid working w/ you.

Well those are essentially gov employee salaries, and tech contractors only make a little more than civilians except for the rock stars.

I’ve tried for years to get into FAANG, I’m likely too old now, so where else in DC would I get higher pay like you allude to?

Faang is literally only 5 companies and only 3 of them hire here. There are plenty of companies you can get a lot of compensation now that a lot of companies are hiring remotely.

Well how do you find those high compensation companies? I’ve had offers from over a dozen companies, and they were barely above my contractor salary ($160k).

PP, please come back and share your wisdom!

[Anonymous]

$210K total comp, S&OP Dell Austin

[Anonymous]

Data scientist at a non-profit trade association: $200k.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For the past 8 years, DH has ridden the competitive market with the FAANGs. Eight years ago he went job searching and got a competitive offer at another FAANG as the FAANGs were stealing each other's talent at any cost. At 4 years in and when his stock/bonus from that jump were about to be all vested and his comp would have been reduced by 50%, he took his 4th year comp and presented it another FAANG after a job offer. He has made $1.5M+ a year for 8 years. Sadly the gravy boat has turned dry, and 2022 comp will be somewhere in the $400K.
(seattle)

The comp structure (RSUs/equity that vest over a few years and then stop) is very strange. I know some companies do refreshers, but seems they often still lead to significantly reduced comp. Is this basically an up or out strategy? I don't understand the concept behind effectively reducing comp for long term employees.

At Amazon, year 5, it significantly goes down with RSU's especially if the RSU value goes up. You basically have to job jump every few years and go where the money is. You cannot count on how much you make with RSU's. We live on salary only.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just to let everybody know, the salaries that have been reported here are, for the most part, so outlandish compared to what the average computer science or engineering grad can home to make coming out of a top 25 program as to be worth ignoring. These folks are the the 1% of graduates. Not everybody can work at FAANG. By comparison, the average salary for a top 25-ish fresh computer engineer is 91k, but at google it's more like 170k.

Exactly this. I work in a local tech company that sells to the DoD. None of our engineers are making that kind of money. $150K for managers, $130K or so for senior developers, 80k for new hires fresh out of school.

Are you a boomer and thinking of 1980s salaries? Your company must either have lots of vacancies or really low performers if those are your rates. I'd avoid working w/ you.

Well those are essentially gov employee salaries, and tech contractors only make a little more than civilians except for the rock stars.

I’ve tried for years to get into FAANG, I’m likely too old now, so where else in DC would I get higher pay like you allude to?

Faang is literally only 5 companies and only 3 of them hire here. There are plenty of companies you can get a lot of compensation now that a lot of companies are hiring remotely.

Well how do you find those high compensation companies? I’ve had offers from over a dozen companies, and they were barely above my contractor salary ($160k).

PP, please come back and share your wisdom!

Do you have a clearance? You have to shop around. You have to go to the big companies, not the small companies.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Very simple place to look at salaries for DMV software engineers:
https://www.levels.fyi/Salaries/Software-Engineer/Northern-Virginia-Washington-DC/

Many of us post on there and it is fairly accurate. You can keep telling yourself about those "average" number you want to believe. You can def get pay more than that in this area if you are willing to study/prepare.

I'm an "average" software systems engineer. I don't see that there is a disagreement. It looks like my salary is slightly above the median. I don't think anyone has said that there aren't those high performers who are making more, just that those tend to be the exceptions, rather than the rule. Using the link you posted, those making $400k are in the top 1%, as someone else mentioned earlier in this thread. Also using your link, we see that most of the top earners have over 10 years of work experience, very few have less than that. Again, not that they don't exist or are not possible, just not something that a person can plan to become. It takes a special combination of personality, work ethic, and know-how.

Some years my spouse has it that but its mostly because off the RSU's not actual salary.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Data scientist at a non-profit trade association: $200k.

Or, industry lobbying….

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just to let everybody know, the salaries that have been reported here are, for the most part, so outlandish compared to what the average computer science or engineering grad can home to make coming out of a top 25 program as to be worth ignoring. These folks are the the 1% of graduates. Not everybody can work at FAANG. By comparison, the average salary for a top 25-ish fresh computer engineer is 91k, but at google it's more like 170k.

Exactly this. I work in a local tech company that sells to the DoD. None of our engineers are making that kind of money. $150K for managers, $130K or so for senior developers, 80k for new hires fresh out of school.

Are you a boomer and thinking of 1980s salaries? Your company must either have lots of vacancies or really low performers if those are your rates. I'd avoid working w/ you.

Well those are essentially gov employee salaries, and tech contractors only make a little more than civilians except for the rock stars.

I’ve tried for years to get into FAANG, I’m likely too old now, so where else in DC would I get higher pay like you allude to?

Faang is literally only 5 companies and only 3 of them hire here. There are plenty of companies you can get a lot of compensation now that a lot of companies are hiring remotely.

Well how do you find those high compensation companies? I’ve had offers from over a dozen companies, and they were barely above my contractor salary ($160k).

PP, please come back and share your wisdom!

Do you have a clearance? You have to shop around. You have to go to the big companies, not the small companies.

Secret clearance, that’s it.