Software Developers salary in Tennessee

The median Software Developer in Tennessee earned $117,340 in 2024, about 15% below the US median of $138,520. That gap looks significant on paper. It shrinks once you account for cost of living.

Tennessee's overall price index sits at 92.5, meaning the average dollar goes further here than in most states. Adjusted for that, the in-state median comes out closer to $126,900 in national-baseline terms. The real gap narrows to roughly 8%. For developers weighing a Nashville or Knoxville offer against a coastal role, that difference matters.

The spread across earners is wide. Developers at the 10th percentile earned $72,140 in 2024, while those at the 90th earned $164,420. Top earners made about 2.3 times what entry-level peers made. That kind of range usually reflects differences in experience, specialization, and the types of companies hiring in the state. The 25th to 75th percentile band runs from $95,060 to $134,890, so mid-career developers in Tennessee cluster in a fairly tight range even as the tails stretch out.

The mean and median are nearly identical at $117,940 and $117,340. When those two figures land this close, a small group of high earners is not pulling the average up by much. The pay distribution here is more compressed than what we see in states like California or Washington.

BLS projects Software Developer employment to grow 15.8% between 2024 and 2034, a pace it classifies as much faster than average. Tennessee had about 18,750 developers employed in 2024, a base large enough that even moderate growth translates to a meaningful number of new roles over the decade.