Software Engineer H-1B salary at Microsoft — 29,968 certified filings (FY2016–FY2026)
- 3
- Filings · FY2025
- $173k
- Median base · FY2025
- $139k–$225k
- Middle 50% · FY2025
- +28%
- vs market median · all years
Microsoft filed 3 certified H-1B LCAs for Software Engineer in FY2025, with a median base salary of $173k and the middle 50% of offers between $139k and $225k. Across all years its $142k median is 28% above the $111k market median for Software Engineer. It has filed 29,968 Software Engineer LCAs since FY2016, most often in Redmond, WA.
How much does Microsoft pay a Software Engineer?
Certified base salary for Software Engineer at Microsoft by fiscal year: each box is the p25–p75 range, the heavy line the median, the whiskers reach p10–p90. $173k median in FY2025. Base pay only — hover a year for its figures.
Does Microsoft pay Software Engineers above the market?
Microsoft's all-years median against every employer's certified Software Engineer LCAs — 28% above 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Microsoft | 29,968 | $142k |
| All employers · Software Engineer | 301,963 | $111k |
How has Microsoft's Software Engineer hiring changed by year?
1,701 certified Software Engineer filings in FY2016 → 1 in FY2026. The change column is each year against the one before.
| Fiscal year | Filings | vs prior FY | Median base |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2026 | 1 | −67% | $150k |
| FY2025 | 3 | −100% | $173k |
| FY2024 | 2,289 | −53% | $160k |
| FY2023 | 4,822 | −22% | $163k |
| FY2022 | 6,184 | +58% | $145k |
| FY2021 | 3,921 | −13% | $142k |
| FY2020 | 4,514 | +47% | $141k |
| FY2019 | 3,079 | +66% | $136k |
| FY2018 | 1,857 | +16% | $127k |
| FY2017 | 1,597 | −6% | $125k |
| FY2016 | 1,701 | — | $121k |
Which wage levels does Microsoft file for Software Engineer?
DOL prevailing-wage levels I–IV approximate experience tiers (I = entry, IV = fully competent). 29% of Microsoft's Software Engineer filings sit at Level III–IV. Higher levels earn more entries in the wage-weighted H-1B lottery.
Share of 27,558 Software Engineer filings with a wage level · all years
- Level I16.9%4,660
- Level II53.6%14,771
- Level III25.1%6,929
- Level IV4.3%1,198
Where does Microsoft hire H-1B 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Washington | 24,706 | $142k |
| California | 2,240 | $162k |
| Georgia | 1,034 | $121k |
| Texas | 492 | $130k |
| Massachusetts | 370 | $130k |
| North Carolina | 239 | $125k |
| New York | 149 | $157k |
| New Jersey | 111 | $157k |
| City | Filings | Median base |
|---|---|---|
| Redmond, WA | 20,529 | $142k |
| Bellevue, WA | 3,716 | $142k |
| Atlanta, GA | 982 | $120k |
| Mountain View, CA | 976 | $170k |
| Sunnyvale, CA | 578 | $155k |
| Issaquah, WA | 298 | $140k |
| San Francisco, CA | 248 | $153k |
| Cambridge, MA | 241 | $127k |
Also filed as
Microsoft's other sponsored titles, and the employers that file the most Software Engineer LCAs. All years.
Other titles at Microsoft
| Job title | Filings | Median base |
|---|---|---|
| Software Engineering | 12,539 | $170k |
| Senior Software Engineer | 3,271 | $155k |
| Program Manager | 1,799 | $134k |
| Data and Applied Scientist | 1,788 | $141k |
| Senior Program Manager | 1,628 | $162k |
| Product Management | 1,069 | $176k |
| Applied Sciences | 959 | $173k |
| Product Manager | 920 | $169k |
| Data Science | 808 | $164k |
| Service Engineer | 796 | $130k |
Top Software Engineer sponsors
| Employer | Filings | Median base |
|---|---|---|
| 27,422 | $170k | |
| Meta Platforms | 12,265 | $200k |
| 7,220 | $167k | |
| Mphasis | 5,479 | $107k |
| Intel | 5,159 | $118k |
| Natsoft | 1,994 | $97k |
| Cisco Systems | 1,899 | $127k |
| Nvidia | 1,830 | $171k |
| Uber Technologies | 1,635 | $140k |
Common questions about Software Engineer H-1B pay at Microsoft
- How much does Microsoft pay a Software Engineer on an H-1B?
- Microsoft's median certified H-1B base salary for Software Engineer is $173k in FY2025, from 3 filings; the middle 50% of offers fall between $139k and $225k. Across all years the median is $142k.
- How many Software Engineer H-1B LCAs has Microsoft filed?
- Microsoft has 29,968 certified H-1B Labor Condition Applications for Software Engineer on record (FY2016–FY2026), 1 of them in FY2026. That is 39% of its 77,758 certified filings across all titles.
- Does Microsoft pay Software Engineers above the market?
- Microsoft's all-years median of $142k is 28% above the $111k median for Software Engineer across all H-1B employers (301,963 certified filings).
- Where does Microsoft hire H-1B Software Engineers?
- Microsoft's Software Engineer LCAs name worksites mostly in Washington, California, Georgia; the top cities are Redmond, WA, Bellevue, WA, Atlanta, GA.
- 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.
Keep exploring
Calculate your H-1B lottery odds →orCheck out the insights →
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 →