Senior Systems Engineer / Architect salary in Winston-Salem, NC

Based on 20 certified H-1B filings at DOL wage level III in the Winston-Salem, NC metro area, FY2025–FY2026. Includes Winston Salem, Clemmons, Indian Trail, Pfafftown, Rural Hall.

Median salary$101,941
Middle 50%$86k–$101.9k
vs. all levels here+0%comparison median $101,941
Filings20FY2025–FY2026 · latest two fiscal years

Salary range

Box: middle 50% of filings. Whiskers: 10th–90th percentile. 99% of filings are between $85,987 and $131,200.
PercentileSalary
10th$85,987
25th$85,987
50th (median)$101,941
75th$101,941
90th$103,247

Salary by year

Median salary

$60k $85k $110k FY2020: median $70,616 (11 filings) FY2023: median $89,643 (10 filings) FY2024: median $94,286 (26 filings) FY2026: median $101,941 (12 filings) FY20 FY21 FY22 FY23 FY24 FY25 FY26

Filings per year

FY2020: 11 filings FY20 FY2021: 4 filings FY21 FY2022: 4 filings FY22 FY2023: 10 filings FY23 FY2024: 26 filings FY24 FY2025: 8 filings FY25 FY2026: 12 filings FY26 26
Shaded: FY2025–FY2026, the years behind the figures above. Median shown for years with at least 10 filings. FY2026 covers Q1–Q3 only.
Show as table
Fiscal yearMedianP25P75Filings
FY2020$70,616$70,574$88,79411
FY2021–––4
FY2022–––4
FY2023$89,643$84,427$107,57210
FY2024$94,286$94,286$94,28626
FY2025–––8
FY2026$101,941$101,941$101,94112

Cost of living

Winston-Salem's median senior Systems Engineer / Architect salary of $101,941 is worth about $110,800 at national average prices.

Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024 (U.S. = 100; Winston-Salem = 92.0).

Compared with all workers here

All Computer Systems Engineers/Architects in the Winston-Salem, NC area earned a median of $94,600 in May 2025 (520 employed). The H-1B median here is $101,941, 8% higher.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS metropolitan area estimates. BLS wages include some incentive pay; H-1B figures are base salary.

Employers filing at this level

EmployerMedianFilings
Cognizant$101,94116

Employers with at least 2 filings here. Median shown at 10+ filings.

By experience level

Wage levelMedianFilings
Entry-level · Level I – 0
Mid-level · Level II $77,688 12
Senior · Level III $101,941 20
Expert · Level IV $130,000 14

Median shown when a level has at least 10 filings.

Minimum H-1B salary by level

Wage levelPrevailing wage (most common)Median offered salaryFilings
Mid-level · Level II$66,851$77,68812
Senior · Level III$101,941$101,94120
Expert · Level IV$126,214$130,00014

The prevailing wage is the minimum an employer must pay for this job and area. Amounts vary by county within a metro and by wage source.