Principal Software Engineer H-1B salary at Cadence Design Systems — 171 certified filings (FY2016–FY2026)
- 17
- Filings · FY2025
- $178k
- Median base · FY2025
- $154k–$182k
- Middle 50% · FY2025
- −9%
- vs market median · all years
Cadence Design Systems filed 17 certified H-1B LCAs for Principal Software Engineer in FY2025, with a median base salary of $178k and the middle 50% of offers between $154k and $182k. Across all years its $138k median is 9% below the $151k market median for Principal Software Engineer. It has filed 171 Principal Software Engineer LCAs since FY2016, most often in San Jose, CA.
How much does Cadence Design Systems pay a Principal Software Engineer?
Certified base salary for Principal Software Engineer at Cadence Design Systems by fiscal year: each box is the p25–p75 range, the heavy line the median, the whiskers reach p10–p90. $178k median in FY2025. Base pay only — hover a year for its figures.
Does Cadence Design Systems pay Principal Software Engineers above the market?
Cadence Design Systems's all-years median against every employer's certified Principal Software Engineer LCAs — 9% below the market. Same cleaned DOL title, same base-salary definition, so the two rows compare like for like.
| Base salary for this title | Filings | Median |
|---|---|---|
| Cadence Design Systems | 171 | $138k |
| All employers · Principal Software Engineer | 7,525 | $151k |
How has Cadence Design Systems's Principal Software Engineer hiring changed by year?
11 certified Principal Software Engineer filings in FY2016 → 19 in FY2026. The change column is each year against the one before.
| Fiscal year | Filings | vs prior FY | Median base |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2026 | 19 | +12% | $154k |
| FY2025 | 17 | +31% | $178k |
| FY2024 | 13 | −35% | $139k |
| FY2023 | 20 | 0% | $155k |
| FY2022 | 20 | +43% | $131k |
| FY2021 | 14 | +8% | $125k |
| FY2020 | 13 | −41% | $137k |
| FY2019 | 22 | +47% | $126k |
| FY2018 | 15 | +114% | $112k |
| FY2017 | 7 | −36% | $132k |
| FY2016 | 11 | — | $122k |
Which wage levels does Cadence Design Systems file for Principal Software Engineer?
DOL prevailing-wage levels I–IV approximate experience tiers (I = entry, IV = fully competent). 65% of Cadence Design Systems's Principal Software Engineer filings sit at Level III–IV. Higher levels earn more entries in the wage-weighted H-1B lottery.
Share of 69 Principal Software Engineer filings with a wage level · all years
- Level II34.8%24
- Level III31.9%22
- Level IV33.3%23
Where does Cadence Design Systems hire H-1B Principal Software Engineers?
Worksite states and cities on the certified filings for this title, all years, with the median base salary at each.
| State | Filings | Median base |
|---|---|---|
| California | 110 | $148k |
| Texas | 28 | $125k |
| Massachusetts | 23 | $131k |
| New York | 3 | $85k |
| Arizona | 2 | $105k |
| Pennsylvania | 2 | $98k |
| Wisconsin | 2 | $118k |
| North Carolina | 1 | $103k |
| City | Filings | Median base |
|---|---|---|
| San Jose, CA | 107 | $148k |
| Austin, TX | 28 | $125k |
| Chelmsford, MA | 12 | $110k |
| Burlington, MA | 11 | $150k |
| Endicott, NY | 3 | $85k |
| Pittsburgh, PA | 2 | $98k |
| Tempe, AZ | 2 | $105k |
| Waukesha, WI | 2 | $118k |
Also filed as
Cadence Design Systems's other sponsored titles, and the employers that file the most Principal Software Engineer LCAs. All years.
Other titles at Cadence Design Systems
| Job title | Filings | Median base |
|---|---|---|
| Lead Software Engineer | 177 | $121k |
| Principal Application Engineer | 161 | $142k |
| Lead Application Engineer | 151 | $119k |
| Software Engineer II | 94 | $115k |
| Principal Design Engineer | 90 | $144k |
| Lead Design Engineer | 87 | $120k |
| Sr. Principal Software Engineer | 70 | $154k |
| Principal Product Engineer | 69 | $146k |
| Sr. Application Engineer | 66 | $97k |
| Lead Product Engineer | 63 | $124k |
Top Principal Software Engineer sponsors
| Employer | Filings | Median base |
|---|---|---|
| Walmart Associates | 333 | $186k |
| Microsoft | 237 | $190k |
| Palo Alto Networks | 163 | $204k |
| Nisum Technologies | 135 | $120k |
| Symantec | 122 | $139k |
| Intuit | 112 | $192k |
| Veritas Technologies | 100 | $138k |
| Staples | 98 | $113k |
| Splunk | 90 | $220k |
Common questions about Principal Software Engineer H-1B pay at Cadence Design Systems
- How much does Cadence Design Systems pay a Principal Software Engineer on an H-1B?
- Cadence Design Systems's median certified H-1B base salary for Principal Software Engineer is $178k in FY2025, from 17 filings; the middle 50% of offers fall between $154k and $182k. Across all years the median is $138k.
- How many Principal Software Engineer H-1B LCAs has Cadence Design Systems filed?
- Cadence Design Systems has 171 certified H-1B Labor Condition Applications for Principal Software Engineer on record (FY2016–FY2026), 19 of them in FY2026. That is 7% of its 2,376 certified filings across all titles.
- Does Cadence Design Systems pay Principal Software Engineers above the market?
- Cadence Design Systems's all-years median of $138k is 9% below the $151k median for Principal Software Engineer across all H-1B employers (7,525 certified filings).
- Where does Cadence Design Systems hire H-1B Principal Software Engineers?
- Cadence Design Systems's Principal Software Engineer LCAs name worksites mostly in California, Texas, Massachusetts; the top cities are San Jose, CA, Austin, TX, Chelmsford, MA.
- Does a certified LCA mean an H-1B visa was approved?
- No. A Labor Condition Application (LCA) is the Department of Labor attestation an employer must have certified before filing an H-1B petition with USCIS. It records the job, worksite and offered wage, but not whether the petition was filed, selected in the lottery, or approved. Filing counts measure intent to sponsor, not headcount.
- What salary do these figures show?
- The base annual wage offered on the certified LCA, converted to a yearly amount. Bonus, equity, overtime and benefits are not included, so total compensation is typically higher. Figures are medians and percentiles over certified filings; wages above $5,000,000 a year are excluded as data-entry errors.
- What do prevailing-wage levels I–IV mean?
- The Department of Labor assigns each LCA an OES wage level from I (entry) to IV (fully competent) for the occupation and area. Under the FY2027 wage-weighted H-1B lottery rule, a higher level earns more selection entries, so an employer's level mix is a proxy for how senior its sponsored roles are.
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Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Foreign Labor Certification — certified LCA disclosure data through June 2026 (FY2016–FY2026). An LCA is not an approved visa; pay figures are base salary and exclude bonus and equity. Methodology →