Software Engineer (5) H-1B salary at Snap — 193 certified filings (FY2017–FY2026)
- 37
- Filings · FY2025
- $190k
- Median base · FY2025
- $180k–$212k
- Middle 50% · FY2025
- ±0%
- vs market median · all years
Snap filed 37 certified H-1B LCAs for Software Engineer (5) in FY2025, with a median base salary of $190k and the middle 50% of offers between $180k and $212k. Across all years its $177k median is in line with the $177k market median for Software Engineer (5). It has filed 193 Software Engineer (5) LCAs since FY2017, most often in Santa Monica, CA.
How much does Snap pay a Software Engineer (5)?
Certified base salary for Software Engineer (5) at Snap by fiscal year: each box is the p25–p75 range, the heavy line the median, the whiskers reach p10–p90. $190k median in FY2025. Base pay only — hover a year for its figures.
Does Snap pay Software Engineer (5)s above the market?
Snap's all-years median against every employer's certified Software Engineer (5) LCAs — in line with 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Snap | 193 | $177k |
| All employers · Software Engineer (5) | 202 | $177k |
How has Snap's Software Engineer (5) hiring changed by year?
10 certified Software Engineer (5) filings in FY2017 → 27 in FY2026. The change column is each year against the one before.
| Fiscal year | Filings | vs prior FY | Median base |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2026 | 27 | −27% | $202k |
| FY2025 | 37 | +32% | $190k |
| FY2024 | 28 | +27% | $182k |
| FY2023 | 22 | +16% | $177k |
| FY2022 | 19 | −17% | $163k |
| FY2021 | 23 | +64% | $163k |
| FY2020 | 14 | +75% | $143k |
| FY2019 | 8 | +60% | $154k |
| FY2018 | 5 | −50% | $154k |
| FY2017 | 10 | — | $137k |
Which wage levels does Snap file for Software Engineer (5)?
DOL prevailing-wage levels I–IV approximate experience tiers (I = entry, IV = fully competent). 100% of Snap's Software Engineer (5) filings sit at Level III–IV. Higher levels earn more entries in the wage-weighted H-1B lottery.
Share of 178 Software Engineer (5) filings with a wage level · all years
- Level III2.2%4
- Level IV97.8%174
Where does Snap hire H-1B Software Engineer (5)s?
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 | 112 | $176k |
| Washington | 64 | $182k |
| New York | 12 | $180k |
| Texas | 2 | $139k |
| New Jersey | 1 | $137k |
| Utah | 1 | $140k |
| Virginia | 1 | $174k |
| City | Filings | Median base |
|---|---|---|
| Santa Monica, CA | 42 | $144k |
| Seattle, WA | 39 | $169k |
| Palo Alto, CA | 31 | $202k |
| Bellevue, WA | 25 | $190k |
| San Francisco, CA | 18 | $169k |
| Mountain View, CA | 14 | $171k |
| New York, NY | 12 | $180k |
| Venice, CA | 3 | $128k |
Also filed as
Snap's other sponsored titles, and the employers that file the most Software Engineer (5) LCAs. All years.
Other titles at Snap
| Job title | Filings | Median base |
|---|---|---|
| Software Engineer (4) | 529 | $150k |
| Software Engineer (3) | 229 | $121k |
| Machine Learning Engineer (4) | 112 | $159k |
| Machine Learning Engineer (5) | 67 | $193k |
| Software Engineer (2) | 64 | $95k |
| Data Scientist (4) | 47 | $141k |
| Machine Learning Engineer (3) | 30 | $127k |
Top Software Engineer (5) sponsors
| Employer | Filings | Median base |
|---|---|---|
| Specs | 5 | $185k |
| Snapchat | 3 | $128k |
| Stellar Global Solutions | 1 | $85k |
Common questions about Software Engineer (5) H-1B pay at Snap
- How much does Snap pay a Software Engineer (5) on an H-1B?
- Snap's median certified H-1B base salary for Software Engineer (5) is $190k in FY2025, from 37 filings; the middle 50% of offers fall between $180k and $212k. Across all years the median is $177k.
- How many Software Engineer (5) H-1B LCAs has Snap filed?
- Snap has 193 certified H-1B Labor Condition Applications for Software Engineer (5) on record (FY2017–FY2026), 27 of them in FY2026. That is 9% of its 2,193 certified filings across all titles.
- Does Snap pay Software Engineer (5)s above the market?
- Snap's all-years median of $177k is in line with the $177k median for Software Engineer (5) across all H-1B employers (202 certified filings).
- Where does Snap hire H-1B Software Engineer (5)s?
- Snap's Software Engineer (5) LCAs name worksites mostly in California, Washington, New York; the top cities are Santa Monica, CA, Seattle, WA, Palo Alto, CA.
- 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 (FY2017–FY2026). An LCA is not an approved visa; pay figures are base salary and exclude bonus and equity. Methodology →