Computer Programmers
Median $100,390
Occupation · SOC 15-1252
Software Developers: pay and where the jobs are
What software developers earn in the U.S., how pay varies across workers and states, and tools to plan around it.
National pay, May 2025
$135,980 median annual wage
- Mean (average) annual wage
- $148,100
- Median hourly wage
- $65.38
- Mean hourly wage
- $71.20
- Employment
- 1,687,890
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 15-1252.
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How much do software developers make?
The median annual wage for software developers was $135,980 in May 2025, so half of workers earned more and half earned less. The lowest-paid 10% earned less than $82,460 and the highest-paid 10% more than $214,670. As an hourly rate, the median is $65.38. About 1,687,890 people work in this occupation nationwide. The highest state medians are in California ($174,410), Washington ($166,540) and New York ($166,180). After taxes and local prices, though, a median paycheck goes furthest in Washington.
Pay ladder
What each step of the pay range for software developers looks like per month. Take-home here includes federal tax, Social Security and Medicare for a single filer; add your state in the paycheck calculator.
| Step | Annual | Hourly | Monthly gross | Monthly after federal tax & FICA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $82,460 | $39.64 | $6,872 | $5,570 |
| 25th percentile | $105,210 | $50.58 | $8,768 | $6,904 |
| Median | $135,980 | $65.38 | $11,332 | $8,684 |
| 75th percentile | $171,980 | $82.68 | $14,332 | $10,735 |
| 90th percentile | $214,670 | $103.21 | $17,889 | $13,166 |
Software Developers: pay by state
51 states and territories have a published median, sorted from highest to lowest. The last two columns are our estimates: the median after 2026 federal and state taxes, and that take-home restated in national-average prices.
1
$114,739 take-home in national prices
2
$109,105 take-home in national prices
3
$107,155 take-home in national prices
Where a median software developer paycheck goes furthest after 2026 taxes and BEA price levels.
| State | Employment | Median | 10th pct. | 90th pct. | Median after tax* | In national prices† |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| California | 284,390 | $174,410 | $105,060 | $272,670 | $116,233 | $104,979 |
| Washington | 107,030 | $166,540 | $96,810 | $255,350 | $122,786 | $114,739 |
| New York | 113,510 | $166,180 | $97,430 | $224,590 | $115,643 | $107,155 |
| Massachusetts | 48,190 | $165,210 | $102,810 | $213,970 | $115,387 | $109,105 |
| Oregon | 21,830 | $142,720 | $83,070 | $213,540 | $95,973 | $92,852 |
| New Hampshire | 10,840 | $139,720 | $92,510 | $205,370 | $106,765 | $102,496 |
| Maryland | 31,350 | $138,680 | $87,690 | $222,610 | $99,609 | $94,902 |
| Colorado | 43,320 | $138,390 | $96,480 | $213,010 | $99,866 | $96,908 |
| District of Columbia | 6,120 | $136,880 | $85,140 | $197,000 | $96,157 | $87,494 |
| Virginia | 88,280 | $136,460 | $83,350 | $211,930 | $97,504 | $96,439 |
| New Jersey | 51,570 | $135,940 | $84,880 | $207,200 | $96,950 | $89,105 |
| North Carolina | 58,470 | $134,710 | $83,840 | $179,310 | $98,474 | $104,398 |
| Connecticut | 13,660 | $134,120 | $85,930 | $205,160 | $95,469 | $92,143 |
| Delaware | 3,380 | $133,020 | $96,620 | $174,390 | $94,215 | $94,396 |
| Texas | 163,880 | $132,150 | $82,600 | $183,680 | $101,591 | $104,671 |
| Illinois | 56,310 | $132,110 | $80,980 | $194,740 | $95,169 | $95,209 |
| Idaho | 5,750 | $131,590 | $71,030 | $178,980 | $95,342 | $99,841 |
| Georgia | 49,700 | $131,010 | $80,110 | $176,000 | $95,022 | $98,681 |
| Florida | 87,890 | $130,980 | $80,050 | $204,400 | $100,791 | $97,463 |
| Rhode Island | 5,070 | $130,590 | $83,540 | $168,630 | $94,823 | $92,709 |
| Minnesota | 35,890 | $130,050 | $79,900 | $169,810 | $92,207 | $93,496 |
| Arizona | 38,050 | $129,690 | $81,740 | $178,500 | $97,061 | $96,408 |
| South Carolina | 13,230 | $129,450 | $76,010 | $212,460 | $93,967 | $100,232 |
| Nevada | 4,520 | $128,810 | $73,990 | $194,470 | $99,308 | $99,328 |
| Utah | 31,940 | $128,810 | $77,810 | $177,970 | $93,576 | $94,651 |
| Pennsylvania | 55,920 | $126,550 | $77,750 | $178,080 | $93,789 | $96,123 |
| Missouri | 20,020 | $126,120 | $72,570 | $169,340 | $92,479 | $101,830 |
| Michigan | 43,460 | $125,570 | $78,930 | $166,510 | $92,007 | $95,625 |
| Vermont | 1,740 | $125,280 | $82,480 | $209,420 | $91,130 | $93,030 |
| New Mexico | 3,960 | $124,520 | $77,110 | $184,710 | $91,605 | $99,342 |
| Hawaii | 1,600 | $124,040 | $64,690 | $238,930 | $88,034 | $80,067 |
| Maine | 2,790 | $123,120 | $82,930 | $179,990 | $87,709 | $90,375 |
| Wisconsin | 21,730 | $122,660 | $77,710 | $168,630 | $89,331 | $94,938 |
| Alabama | 17,450 | $122,540 | $71,590 | $175,330 | $90,042 | $101,373 |
| Tennessee | 19,030 | $122,430 | $75,280 | $166,380 | $94,947 | $103,349 |
| Montana | 2,160 | $121,990 | $73,370 | $221,400 | $89,115 | $94,157 |
| West Virginia | 2,650 | $121,000 | $60,480 | $168,620 | $89,301 | $99,781 |
| Oklahoma | 6,880 | $118,100 | $75,190 | $169,700 | $87,144 | $99,205 |
| Wyoming | 1,510 | $115,170 | $72,950 | $156,620 | $89,852 | $96,937 |
| Iowa | 9,040 | $114,890 | $74,390 | $165,880 | $85,941 | $97,925 |
| Ohio | 44,790 | $114,090 | $77,790 | $168,400 | $86,391 | $93,120 |
| Kansas | 13,580 | $113,420 | $71,690 | $165,740 | $83,092 | $92,255 |
| Nebraska | 7,260 | $110,900 | $77,520 | $158,720 | $82,682 | $91,764 |
| Kentucky | 7,660 | $109,010 | $76,310 | $168,110 | $81,821 | $90,752 |
| Indiana | 14,130 | $105,920 | $74,850 | $164,650 | $80,250 | $85,986 |
| North Dakota | 1,450 | $105,600 | $62,900 | $158,060 | $82,320 | $92,537 |
| Arkansas | 6,050 | $104,490 | $60,570 | $162,380 | $78,673 | $90,494 |
| Louisiana | 4,080 | $102,800 | $66,350 | $151,780 | $78,452 | $88,941 |
| South Dakota | 2,380 | $96,310 | $65,530 | $160,380 | $76,584 | $86,452 |
| Mississippi | 1,880 | $95,330 | $44,700 | $158,300 | $72,813 | $83,739 |
| Puerto Rico | 2,020 | $79,380 | $49,610 | $107,680 | — | — |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 15-1252. *Our estimate for a single filer paid biweekly with no pre-tax deductions or local tax, 2026 federal and state rules. †Take-home ÷ BEA Regional Price Parity × 100 (2024 price levels).
Sources
- OEWS May 2025 (oesm25nat.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.
- OEWS May 2025 (oesm25st.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.