Software Development Engineer salary in California
A real-employer view of Software Development Engineer pay, clustered from DOL OFLC certified filings. Variants like Senior, Lead, and II/III titles fold into this cluster — the wage range below reflects all of them.
Software Development Engineer in California: actual employer-disclosed pay
Public records from 204 certified H-1B Labor Condition Applications filed with the U.S. Department of Labor. Median offered wage: $175,000. Every figure below is an actual offered salary an employer attested to under federal law.
By DOL wage level
DOL classifies every offer into one of four wage levels based on the role's experience and skill requirements.
| Level | Filings | Median offer |
|---|---|---|
| Level I — entry | 42 | $149,365 |
| Level II — qualified | 47 | $186,200 |
| Level III — experienced | 27 | $226,138 |
| Level IV — fully competent | 13 | $250,601 |
Top employers filing for this role
Companies with the most certified filings for Software Development Engineer in California. Median offer is across all of that employer's filings. Click a company for its full H-1B salary breakdown.
| Employer | Most-filed title | Filings | Median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adobe Inc. | Software Development Engineer | 61 | $187,741 |
| Amazon.com Services LLC | Software Development Engineer II | 49 | $174,960 |
| Amazon Development Center U.S., Inc. | Software Development Engineer II | 18 | $168,299 |
| Environmental Systems Research Institute, Inc. | Software Development Engineer | 12 | $139,828 |
| Tesla, Inc. | Sr Software Development Engineer | 12 | $189,184 |
| Zoom Communications, Inc. | Software Development Engineer | 11 | $160,000 |
| Amazon Web Services, Inc. | Software Development Engineer II | 9 | $153,493 |
| Workday, Inc. | Software Development Engineer | 5 | $161,637 |
| Amazon Data Services, Inc | Software Development Engineer II | 3 | $187,741 |
| Nokia of America Corporation | Software Development Engineer | 3 | $185,527 |
Recent sample filings
A snapshot of recent certified offers. Each line is a real, public, verifiable record.
- Software Development Engineer II at Amazon.com Services LLC$174,960SunnyvaleDecided —I-200-26084-728193
- Software Development Engineer II at Amazon Development Center U.S., Inc.$187,741SANTA CLARAWage Level IIDecided —I-200-26084-728478
- Principal Software Development Engineer at Environmental Systems Research Institute, Inc.$202,342RedlandsWage Level IIDecided —I-200-26084-728262
- Sr Software Development Engineer at Tesla, Inc.$190,000FremontWage Level IIIDecided —I-200-26084-727920
- Sr. Staff Software Development Engineer at Zscaler, Inc.$210,000San JoseDecided —I-200-26084-729001
- Sr. Software Development Engineer at Environmental Systems Research Institute, Inc.$174,221RedlandsWage Level IIIDecided —I-200-26084-730317
- Software Development Engineer III at Amazon Development Center U.S., Inc.$223,300East Palo AltoWage Level IVDecided —I-200-26084-728053
- Software Development Engineer II at Amazon Development Center U.S., Inc.$153,493SANTA CLARADecided Mar 31, 2026I-200-26083-724590
Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Foreign Labor Certification. Disclosed wages reflect what employers attested to pay; actual paid wages may differ. Only certified filings are shown — denied and withdrawn cases are excluded.