RateOrchard
Specialty Profile · California

Software Development Engineer - Test salary in California

A real-employer view of Software Development Engineer - Test 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.

Adrian Serafin, founder and editor of RateOrchardBy Adrian SerafinFounderUpdated August 3, 2026
Real disclosed salaries

Software Development Engineer - Test in California: actual employer-disclosed pay

Public records from 66 certified H-1B Labor Condition Applications filed with the U.S. Department of Labor. Median offered wage: $180,247. 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.

LevelFilingsMedian offer
Level I — entry2$128,400
Level II — qualified18$168,000
Level III — experienced17$165,422
Level IV — fully competent20$201,053

Top employers filing for this role

Companies with the most certified filings for Software Development Engineer - Test in California. Median offer is across all of that employer's filings. Click a company for its full H-1B salary breakdown.

EmployerMost-filed titleFilingsMedian
Apple Inc.Software Development Engineer - Test44$181,474
Amazon.com Services LLCSoftware Development Engineer II-TEST20$168,000
Align Technology IncSenior Software Development Engineer Test (SDET)1$165,497
Annapurna Labs (U.S.) Inc.Software Development Engineer II-TEST1$168,000

Recent sample filings

A snapshot of recent certified offers. Each line is a real, public, verifiable record.

  • Software Development Engineer - Test at Apple Inc.
    $126,800
    CupertinoWage Level IDecided I-200-26084-727636
  • Software Development Engineer II-TEST at Amazon.com Services LLC
    $185,800
    East Palo AltoWage Level IIDecided Mar 24, 2026I-200-26076-708287
  • Software Development Engineer II-TEST at Annapurna Labs (U.S.) Inc.
    $168,000
    CupertinoWage Level IIDecided Feb 5, 2026I-200-26029-600392
  • Software Development Engineer - Test at Apple Inc.
    $139,500
    San DiegoWage Level IIDecided Mar 20, 2026I-200-26073-703562
  • Software Development Engineer - Test at Apple Inc.
    $147,400
    CupertinoDecided Mar 20, 2026I-200-26072-700792
  • Software Development Engineer- Test at Apple Inc.
    $147,400
    SunnyvaleWage Level IIDecided Mar 18, 2026I-200-26070-695857
  • Software Development Engineer - Test at Apple Inc.
    $181,100
    CupertinoDecided Mar 13, 2026I-200-26066-687400
  • Software Development Engineer - Test at Apple Inc.
    $201,053
    SunnyvaleWage Level IVDecided Mar 12, 2026I-200-26064-681372

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.