Entry-level QA Engineer salary in San Jose, CA
Based on 370 certified H-1B filings at DOL wage level I in the San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA metro area, FY2025–FY2026. Includes Sunnyvale, Santa Clara, Mountain View, Cupertino, Palo Alto.
Also listed as: Software Tester, Test Automation Engineer
Salary range
| Percentile | Salary |
|---|---|
| 10th | $94,162 |
| 25th | $100,000 |
| 50th (median) | $103,000 |
| 75th | $120,012 |
| 90th | $133,846 |
Salary by year
Median salary
Filings per year
Show as table
| Fiscal year | Median | P25 | P75 | Filings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2020 | $96,540 | $84,460 | $121,125 | 50 |
| FY2021 | $95,430 | $84,490 | $105,000 | 44 |
| FY2022 | $104,291 | $89,648 | $120,175 | 96 |
| FY2023 | $98,509 | $87,651 | $105,660 | 146 |
| FY2024 | $104,000 | $98,509 | $123,040 | 195 |
| FY2025 | $103,000 | $102,710 | $117,925 | 210 |
| FY2026 | $103,136 | $94,162 | $122,600 | 160 |
Cost of living
San Jose's median entry-level QA Engineer salary of $103,000 is worth about $93,300 at national average prices.
Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024 (U.S. = 100; San Jose = 110.4).
Compared with all workers here
All Software Quality Assurance Analysts and Testers in the San Jose, CA area earned a median of $166,530 in May 2025 (6,480 employed). The H-1B median here is $103,000, 38% lower.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Amazon | $123,250 | 36 |
| TikTok | $110,400 | 20 |
| ByteDance | $123,040 | 15 |
| Apple | $141,800 | 13 |
| Virtusa | $102,710 | 13 |
| HCLTech | $102,710 | 12 |
| Sandisk Technologies | $94,162 | 12 |
| Flexon Technologies | too few | 7 |
| Applied Intuition | too few | 6 |
| Etouch Systems | too few | 5 |
Employers with at least 2 filings here. Median shown at 10+ filings.
By experience level
| Wage level | Median | Filings |
|---|---|---|
| Entry-level · Level I | $103,000 | 370 |
| Mid-level · Level II | $133,500 | 889 |
| Senior · Level III | $166,000 | 458 |
| Expert · Level IV | $201,053 | 344 |
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 | $94,162 | $103,000 | 370 |
| Mid-level · Level II | $129,792 | $133,500 | 889 |
| Senior · Level III | $165,422 | $166,000 | 458 |
| Expert · Level IV | $201,053 | $201,053 | 344 |
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.