Software engineer salary
Space employers offer software engineers a median of $169k a year, and the middle half of their postings sits at $148k–$200k. That comes from 881 jobs at 67 employers whose own postings name a salary.
- 25th percentile$147,500/hr
- Median (50th)$169,050/hr
- 75th percentile$200,000/hr
- Distinct posted rates881
- Jobs stating an hourly rate881
- Employers67
The median is the middle of the 881 distinct rates they post, and the middle half, $147,500–$200,000 an hour, runs from their 25th percentile to their 75th: half of the rates fall between them. Each range counts at its midpoint, and a job posted many times at one rate counts once, so no employer's posting volume sets the figure.
- 25th percentile$147,500/hr
- Median (50th)$169,050/hr
- 75th percentile$200,000/hr
- Distinct posted rates881
- Jobs stating an hourly rate881
- Employers67
The median is the middle of the 881 distinct rates they post, and the middle half, $147,500–$200,000 an hour, runs from their 25th percentile to their 75th: half of the rates fall between them. Each range counts at its midpoint, and a job posted many times at one rate counts once, so no employer's posting volume sets the figure.
- Median posted pay, a year$169,100
- Hours in a full-time year2,080
- The same per hour, full time$81.27/hr
Every figure here is a year's pay: a job that posts pay counts at 2,080 hours (40 a week for 52 weeks). Rounded to the nearest $100.
- SpaceX168 jobs
- Amazon Leo104 jobs
- Northrop Grumman67 jobs
- Lockheed Martin60 jobs
- Blue Origin39 jobs
- True Anomaly36 jobs
- Muon Space26 jobs
- Viasat26 jobs
- Boeing24 jobs
- Relativity Space21 jobs
Jobs stating pay, the employers with the most first: 571 at the 10 shown and 310 at 57 other employers, 881 in all.
The jobs themselves: Software engineer jobs
What software engineers are paid
How many postings fall in each salary step, a range counted at its midpoint; the darker bars are the middle half of what employers offer.
Median $169k a year. Middle half $148k to $200k. Point at a bar for its count. Tap a bar for its count.
Posted on open jobs
Middle half of 881 distinct posted rates (a job posted many times at one rate counted once), median $169k. 79% of the 1,112 open software engineer jobs state pay. Another 1 states an "up to" ceiling, a weekly travel rate or a per-visit fee, left out.
Software alerts
Software: new openings every week
Every week we gather the newest Software openings from the space companies we follow, straight from their careers sites. Free, stop anytime.
Only job openings in your inbox. Leave anytime with one click.
Software engineer pay by employer
What each employer posts for software engineers, the employers with the most jobs stating pay first. An employer with at least 5 such jobs has a page of its own with every range it posts.
Median of each employer's own jobs (a range at its midpoint), and the lowest and highest rate it posts. Jobs stating pay link to the employer's open jobs.
Software engineer pay by state
States where at least 8 open jobs from 3 employers state pay, highest median first. Each opens the state's own page, with its towns and employers.
| State | Median posted | Middle half | BLS median | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| California | $180k | $155k–$212k | n/a | 449 |
| Maryland | $180k | $151k–$213k | n/a | 23 |
| District of Columbia | $174k | $163k–$218k | n/a | 20 |
| Alabama | $169k | $138k–$212k | n/a | 28 |
| Washington | $169k | $163k–$198k | n/a | 171 |
| Florida | $162k | $151k–$198k | n/a | 15 |
| Colorado | $159k | $135k–$198k | n/a | 249 |
| Virginia | $159k | $135k–$204k | n/a | 53 |
| Arizona | $156k | $138k–$189k | n/a | 20 |
| Texas | $140k | $116k–$169k | n/a | 21 |
Median and middle half of employers' rates in the state. BLS medians are for the occupation's main SOC code in the state (latest release).
Best-paid open software engineer jobs
The current postings with the highest stated salaries, no more than two per employer.
$269,175–$376,844/yr
$275,000–$325,000/yr- $248,830–$348,362/yr
$205,300–$381,300/yr
$230,000–$340,000/yr
$210,000–$355,000/yr
$266,000–$298,000/yr- $210,000–$345,000/yr
- $220,000–$320,000/yr
$220,100–$297,700/yr
$206,000–$308,000/yr
$220,000–$292,000/yr
Every open job: Software engineer jobs
Questions about software engineer pay in space
What do space companies pay software engineers?
Postings that state a salary put the median at $169k a year and the middle half at $148k–$200k, across 881 postings from 67 employers (one employer's repeated posting counted once). Full time, the median is about $81.27/hr an hour.
Where do software engineers earn the most?
Ranked by the median salary in each state's postings: California ($180k), Maryland ($180k) and District of Columbia ($174k) come first, Texas ($140k), Arizona ($156k) and Virginia ($159k) last. A state's own salary page splits its figure by town and employer.
Which space companies pay software engineers the most?
Of the employers that state a salary on at least 5 postings: Muon Space ($225k), Stoke Space ($222k) and Blue Origin ($218k). The employer table covers the 40 with the most postings that state pay.
Where do these figures come from?
From the salaries in space companies' own postings, read every night: 881 of 1,112 current software engineer postings (79%) state one. Nothing is estimated for a posting without pay, "up to" ceilings are set aside, and an hourly rate counts as 2,080 hours.
Sources and method
- SpaceJobs.Now: salaries stated in space companies' own postings, read every night, published 7 Nov 2026
Cite this page
SpaceJobs.Now. (2026). Software engineer salary. Data as of 7 Nov 2026. https://spacejobs.now/salaries/software-engineers