Expert Engineering Director salary in San Jose, CA
Based on 91 certified H-1B filings at DOL wage level IV in the San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA metro area, FY2025–FY2026. Includes Santa Clara, Sunnyvale, Cupertino, Palo Alto, Mountain View.
Also listed as: Architectural and Engineering Manager, Manager Hardware Engineering
Salary range
| Percentile | Salary |
|---|---|
| 10th | $278,387 |
| 25th | $278,444 |
| 50th (median) | $282,880 |
| 75th | $309,000 |
| 90th | $330,000 |
Salary by year
Median salary
Filings per year
Show as table
| Fiscal year | Median | P25 | P75 | Filings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2020 | $238,285 | $234,270 | $243,100 | 30 |
| FY2021 | $238,285 | $238,285 | $265,476 | 27 |
| FY2022 | $268,625 | $263,952 | $300,000 | 28 |
| FY2023 | $274,063 | $262,974 | $280,000 | 18 |
| FY2024 | – | – | – | 2 |
| FY2025 | $279,500 | $278,387 | $309,500 | 46 |
| FY2026 | $282,880 | $282,880 | $308,000 | 45 |
Cost of living
San Jose's median expert Engineering Director salary of $282,880 is worth about $256,200 at national average prices.
Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024 (U.S. = 100; San Jose = 110.4).
Compared with all workers here
All Architectural and Engineering Managers in the San Jose, CA area earned a median of $234,590 in May 2025 (5,130 employed). The H-1B median here is $282,880, 21% 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
| Employer | Median | Filings |
|---|---|---|
| NVIDIA | $282,880 | 24 |
| Intel | $278,387 | 11 |
| Applied Intuition | too few | 5 |
| Apple | too few | 4 |
| Meta | too few | 3 |
| Rivian | too few | 3 |
| Cadence Design Systems | too few | 3 |
| Siemens | too few | 2 |
| d-MATRiX | too few | 2 |
| Samsung Electronics America | too few | 2 |
Employers with at least 2 filings here. Median shown at 10+ filings.
By experience level
| Wage level | Median | Filings |
|---|---|---|
| Entry-level · Level I | $178,818 | 87 |
| Mid-level · Level II | $213,512 | 239 |
| Senior · Level III | $248,186 | 131 |
| Expert · Level IV | $282,880 | 91 |
Median shown when a level has at least 10 filings.
Minimum H-1B salary by level
| Wage level | Prevailing wage (most common) | Median offered salary | Filings |
|---|---|---|---|
| Entry-level · Level I | $172,994 | $178,818 | 87 |
| Mid-level · Level II | $213,512 | $213,512 | 239 |
| Senior · Level III | $248,186 | $248,186 | 131 |
| Expert · Level IV | $282,880 | $282,880 | 91 |
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.