NextChapter

Software Engineer I salary: median $104,500 a year

Software Engineer I listings that state pay run from $90,500 to $137,500 for the middle half, based on 26 current job listings. 86 software engineer i roles are open now.

Software Engineer I pay range

From 26 open listings that state pay. Annual, in US dollars.

Lower quarter
$90,500
Median
$104,500
Upper quarter
$137,500

Do AI skills change software engineer i pay?

For Engineering roles in general, as of October 26, 2026. This is the function’s figure, not one for software engineer i alone: one title rarely has enough listings on both sides.

Among Engineering listings, those that ask for an AI skill advertise +18% (about $31.5k) compared with similar listings that do not, matched on level and industry.

Listings that ask for an AI skill
$209,000
median, from 3,760 paid listings
Listings that never mention AI
$152,500
median, from 4,547 paid listings

Advertised pay only: the midpoint of the range an employer posted, on live U.S. postings read from the full text. “Asks for an AI skill” means the posting names a specific AI skill; “no AI” means it never mentions AI. A difference in what is advertised is not a promise of what you would be paid, and it does not show that learning a skill causes a raise.

See the AI-skill pay table for every function · Check your own pay against these listings

Open software engineer i jobs

Verified against the employer’s own career site within the last week.

Showing the newest 15 of about 86 verified open jobs here. Search all jobs

All 86 software engineer i jobs

Send this to a friendLinkedInEmail

Get software engineer i jobs that pay like this

We’ll email you new openings for this title. No account needed.

Related salaries

Software Engineer I salary questions

How much does a software engineer i make?
Among 26 open software engineer i listings that state pay, the median is $104,500 a year, and half of listings fall between $90,500 and $137,500.
Where does this software engineer i pay data come from?
From current job listings on employers’ own career sites that state a pay range. Hourly pay is converted at 2,080 hours a year, and a listing’s midpoint is used. Listed pay is what employers advertise, not what people are paid.

See how the market reads your background

NextChapter is the leading job transition platform. A free account gives you a plain-language read on what you are worth as a software engineer i, matched jobs and a weekly action plan.

Start free