Tesla — 13,893 certified H-1B filings (FY2017–FY2026)
- 2,446
- Filings · FY2025
- $150k
- Median base · FY2025
- Software Development Engineer
- Top role · 437 all-time
- CA
- Top state · 10,022 all-time
Tesla filed 2,446 certified H-1B LCAs in FY2025 (up 21% from the year before), with a median base salary of $150k and the middle 50% of offers between $125k and $179k. That is 20% above the market median for the same job titles. Across all years it has 13,893 certified filings since FY2017, most often for Software Development Engineer in California.
How much does Tesla pay H-1B workers?
Certified base salary by fiscal year: each box is the p25–p75 range, the heavy line the median, the whiskers reach p10–p90. $150k median in FY2025. Base pay only — hover a year for its figures.
How has Tesla's H-1B hiring changed by year?
724 certified filings in FY2017 → 2,563 in FY2026. The change column is each year against the one before.
| Fiscal year | Filings | vs prior FY | Median base |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2026 | 2,563 | +5% | $150k |
| FY2025 | 2,446 | +21% | $150k |
| FY2024 | 2,015 | +56% | $145k |
| FY2023 | 1,289 | +5% | $141k |
| FY2022 | 1,227 | +12% | $135k |
| FY2021 | 1,100 | +53% | $130k |
| FY2020 | 718 | −12% | $125k |
| FY2019 | 818 | −18% | $115k |
| FY2018 | 993 | +37% | $110k |
| FY2017 | 724 | — | $108k |
Which wage levels does Tesla file?
DOL prevailing-wage levels I–IV approximate experience tiers (I = entry, IV = fully competent). 49% of Tesla's filings sit at Level III–IV. A heavy I–II skew reads as entry-level or contractor-style hiring; a heavy IV skew as senior in-house roles — and higher levels earn more lottery entries.
Share of 9,868 filings with a wage level · all years
- Level I9.4%923
- Level II42.1%4,154
- Level III32.5%3,204
- Level IV16.1%1,587
What jobs does Tesla sponsor for H-1B?
The most-filed job titles across all years (DOL titles, employer pay-grade codes stripped), with base-salary percentiles. Open a title for Tesla's pay on that role by year, wage level and worksite.
| Job title | Filings | Median base |
|---|---|---|
| Software Development Engineer | 437 | $140k |
| Mechanical Design Engineer | 354 | $122k |
| Process Engineer | 300 | $103k |
| Manufacturing Engineer | 284 | $114k |
| Senior Software Development Engineer | 274 | $157k |
| Manufacturing Equipment Engineer | 245 | $108k |
| Staff Software Development Engineer | 229 | $197k |
| Software Engineer | 154 | $130k |
| Senior Mechanical Design Engineer | 139 | $130k |
| Sr Software Development Engineer | 139 | $183k |
Where does Tesla hire H-1B workers?
Worksite states on the certified filings, all years. Deeper pink = more filings; hover a state for its figures.
| State | Filings | Median base |
|---|---|---|
| CA | 10,022 | $141k |
| TX | 2,017 | $134k |
| NV | 1,404 | $105k |
| NY | 160 | $103k |
| WA | 118 | $157k |
| UT | 34 | $105k |
| IL | 31 | $110k |
| MN | 20 | $119k |
| MI | 16 | $109k |
| CO | 11 | $129k |
What has Tesla filed recently?
The 50 most recent of 13,893 certified LCAs: job title, worksite, prevailing-wage level and the offered base salary.
Common questions about Tesla's H-1B filings
- How much does Tesla pay H-1B workers?
- Tesla's median certified H-1B base salary is $150k (FY2025), from 2,446 filings. See the full salary distribution and percentiles above.
- How many H-1B workers does Tesla sponsor?
- Tesla has 13,893 certified H-1B Labor Condition Applications on record (FY2017–FY2026).
- What jobs does Tesla sponsor for H-1B?
- Tesla's most-sponsored H-1B roles include Software Development Engineer, Mechanical Design Engineer, Process Engineer, Manufacturing Engineer.
- Where does Tesla hire H-1B workers?
- Tesla's top H-1B worksite states are CA, TX, NV, NY.
- 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
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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 →