BuildList

Salaries

What companies building the future pay, straight from their own job postings.

22,921 openings with posted pay · 514 companies · Updated Oct 13, 2026

Browse jobs
On this page

Find high-paying roles

Sorted by top of posted range

Software & Data: median base salary $210k · Typical range $165k–$255k · 5,228 openings with pay.

Software & Data

5,228 matching openings with posted pay
1
Staff+ Research Engineer, RL Data Platform

Anthropic · San Francisco, CA · Staff / Principal

$500k–$850k / year
2
Staff+ Software Engineer, Developer Productivity

Anthropic · San Francisco, CA · Staff / Principal

$405k–$625k / year
3
Staff Software Engineer, Code RL

Anthropic · San Francisco, CA · Staff / Principal

$405k–$625k / year
4
Staff Software Engineer, Claude Code

Anthropic · San Francisco, CA · Staff / Principal

$320k–$625k / year
5
Staff Software Engineer, Environments Infrastructure

Anthropic · San Francisco, CA · Staff / Principal

$405k–$605k / year
6
Distinguished Software Architect

Wayve · Sunnyvale, CA · Staff / Principal

$500k–$600k / year
7
Researcher, Training

OpenAI · San Francisco, CA · Mid-Level

$300k–$600k / year
8
Methodology Engineer (Silicon)

MatX · Mountain View, CA · Senior

$250k–$600k / year

Median base salary

$177k

All openings with posted pay

Typical range

$134k–$226k

25th to 75th percentile

22,921 openings with pay data across 514 companies · 51% of 44,916 tracked openings. Annual base salary. Equity and bonus excluded. Methodology

Distribution

Share of openings by posted midpoint

Under $50k
228
$50k–$100k
2,720
$100k–$150k
4,517
$150k–$200k
6,605
$200k–$250k
4,829
$250k–$300k
2,274
$300k–$400k
1,390
$400k+
358

By role

Bar shows 25th to 75th percentile

AI & Autonomy1,233 openings
Typical range $183k–$276k
$230k
Software & Data5,228 openings
Typical range $165k–$255k
$210k
Infrastructure, IT, & Security1,837 openings
Typical range $160k–$251k
$203k
Product, Programs, & Systems1,925 openings
Typical range $160k–$231k
$193k
Marketing & Design782 openings
Typical range $150k–$220k
$180k
Business Development & Customer Ops2,383 openings
Typical range $130k–$240k
$180k
Electrical & Firmware1,718 openings
Typical range $139k–$218k
$175k
Finance, Legal, & Compliance1,152 openings
Typical range $130k–$228k
$170k
Mechanical & Physical Systems1,606 openings
Typical range $125k–$185k
$158k
Business & People Operations1,090 openings
Typical range $111k–$185k
$148k
Test, Quality, & Reliability1,692 openings
Typical range $99k–$177k
$143k
Supply Chain & Procurement780 openings
Typical range $100k–$170k
$138k
Manufacturing & Production1,495 openings
Typical range $73k–$148k
$103k

By experience level

Intern761 openings
Typical range $60k–$95k
$73k
Entry-Level2,024 openings
Typical range $70k–$155k
$108k
Mid-Level6,222 openings
Typical range $115k–$195k
$150k
Senior9,021 openings
Typical range $160k–$230k
$193k
Staff / Principal1,936 openings
Typical range $193k–$270k
$228k
Manager1,918 openings
Typical range $148k–$236k
$186k
Director964 openings
Typical range $215k–$294k
$248k
Executive75 openings
Typical range $260k–$317k
$297k

By funding stage

Seed553 openings
Typical range $120k–$188k
$155k
Series A1,330 openings
Typical range $125k–$200k
$165k
Series B1,483 openings
Typical range $130k–$220k
$173k
Series C+14,718 openings
Typical range $143k–$235k
$185k
Public4,787 openings
Typical range $115k–$220k
$165k

By sector

AI Research1,778 openings
Typical range $215k–$352k
$278k
Compute & Semiconductors2,804 openings
Typical range $177k–$262k
$219k
AI App3,250 openings
Typical range $170k–$260k
$214k
Fintech839 openings
Typical range $143k–$246k
$194k
Robotics620 openings
Typical range $128k–$210k
$175k
Public Services142 openings
Typical range $136k–$225k
$171k
Defense3,590 openings
Typical range $143k–$208k
$170k
Construction & Housing114 openings
Typical range $135k–$215k
$170k
Bio & Health488 openings
Typical range $128k–$219k
$168k
Supply Chain259 openings
Typical range $112k–$212k
$162k
Energy & Climate1,631 openings
Typical range $120k–$188k
$158k
Agriculture158 openings
Typical range $115k–$167k
$158k
Transportation1,667 openings
Typical range $94k–$215k
$154k
Aerospace4,748 openings
Typical range $106k–$180k
$145k
Manufacturing796 openings
Typical range $90k–$175k
$135k
Education37 openings
Typical range $80k–$175k
$134k

Top-paying companies

Median pay · 8+ openings each

1Anthropic379 roles$363k
2Aaru18 roles$353k
3Thinking Machines Lab35 roles$330k
4Whop11 roles$325k
5OpenAI649 roles$308k
6Normal Computing17 roles$300k
7Goodfire12 roles$300k
8World Labs11 roles$288k
9MatX44 roles$288k
10Luma AI16 roles$288k
11Lambda88 roles$287k
12Wispr Flow30 roles$285k
13Wayve61 roles$285k
14Periodic Labs26 roles$281k
15Oxide15 roles$275k

Methodology

All figures come from salary ranges companies publish on their own job postings, pulled from their applicant tracking systems hourly. Nothing is self-reported or estimated.

Pay in other currencies is converted at fixed recent exchange rates. Hourly, weekly, and monthly pay is annualized. Everything is base salary only. Equity and bonus are excluded because postings rarely quantify them.

Stats are medians and quartiles of each posting's range midpoint, weighted by open roles. Groups with fewer than 30 openings (8 for a single company) are not shown.

Numbers reflect currently open roles, not historical offers. About 51% of tracked openings post pay. US pay-transparency laws drive most disclosure, so coverage skews to US roles. Explore hiring patterns in the hiring report.

Frequently asked questions

What is the median salary at companies building the future?
The median posted base salary is $177k per year, across 22,921 live openings at 514 companies. The middle half of postings falls between $134k and $226k.
Which startup roles pay the most?
AI & Autonomy roles lead at a $230k median, followed by Software & Data ($210k) and Infrastructure, IT, & Security ($203k), based on the ranges companies post on live openings.
Which companies building the future pay the highest salaries?
Anthropic tops the list with a $363k median posted base salary, ahead of Aaru ($353k) and Thinking Machines Lab ($330k), among companies with eight or more openings that post pay.
Do startup job postings include salary?
About 51% of the openings BuildList tracks post a pay range. Disclosure is highest at US companies covered by pay-transparency laws, so coverage skews to US roles.
Where does this salary data come from?
From the pay ranges companies publish on their own job postings, pulled hourly from their applicant tracking systems and normalized to annual base salary. Equity and bonus are excluded. Nothing is self-reported or estimated.

These numbers come from 22,921 live openings. Browse the roles behind them.

Browse JobsGet Weekly Jobs