Senior Sales Engineer salary in San Francisco, CA
Based on 112 certified H-1B filings at DOL wage level III in the San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA metro area, FY2025–FY2026. Includes Fremont, San Mateo, Pleasanton, Menlo Park, Dublin.
Also listed as: Solutions Engineer
Salary range
| Percentile | Salary |
|---|---|
| 10th | $155,522 |
| 25th | $156,000 |
| 50th (median) | $163,172 |
| 75th | $179,289 |
| 90th | $193,940 |
Salary by year
Median salary
Filings per year
Show as table
| Fiscal year | Median | P25 | P75 | Filings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2020 | $130,000 | $118,331 | $143,520 | 59 |
| FY2021 | $141,550 | $130,500 | $154,839 | 50 |
| FY2022 | $152,100 | $144,000 | $166,135 | 53 |
| FY2023 | $152,922 | $145,891 | $165,000 | 42 |
| FY2024 | $162,000 | $153,000 | $184,000 | 45 |
| FY2025 | $169,770 | $161,470 | $186,033 | 56 |
| FY2026 | $157,000 | $155,522 | $170,000 | 56 |
Cost of living
San Francisco's median senior Sales Engineer salary of $163,172 is worth about $141,100 at national average prices.
Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024 (U.S. = 100; San Francisco = 115.6).
Compared with all workers here
All Sales Engineers in the San Francisco, CA area earned a median of $151,610 in May 2025 (930 employed). The H-1B median here is $163,172, 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
| Employer | Median | Filings |
|---|---|---|
| $171,000 | 15 | |
| Cisco Systems | $155,522 | 10 |
| ServiceNow | too few | 9 |
| Salesforce | too few | 7 |
| Snowflake | too few | 7 |
| Databricks | too few | 4 |
| Liberate Innovations | too few | 4 |
| Siemens | too few | 3 |
| Amazon | too few | 2 |
| Akkodis | 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 | $115,000 | 41 |
| Mid-level · Level II | $138,618 | 100 |
| Senior · Level III | $163,172 | 112 |
| Expert · Level IV | $192,800 | 90 |
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 | $102,294 | $115,000 | 41 |
| Mid-level · Level II | $125,923 | $138,618 | 100 |
| Senior · Level III | $155,522 | $163,172 | 112 |
| Expert · Level IV | $185,099 | $192,800 | 90 |
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.