Software Engineer salary in Athens, GA

Based on 37 certified H-1B filings in the Athens-Clarke County, GA metro area, FY2025–FY2026. Includes Watkinsville.

Also listed as: Software Developer, Software Development Engineer, SDE

Median salary$54,018
Middle 50%$54k–$90k
vs. national median−61%comparison median $139,194
Filings37FY2025–FY2026 · latest two fiscal years

Salary range

Box: middle 50% of filings. Whiskers: 10th–90th percentile. 99% of filings are between $54,018 and $170,476.
PercentileSalary
10th$54,018
25th$54,018
50th (median)$54,018
75th$90,000
90th$127,400

Salary by year

Median salary

$40k $80k $120k FY2023: median $105,211 (10 filings) FY2024: median $92,294 (10 filings) FY2025: median $54,018 (27 filings) FY2026: median $90,000 (10 filings) FY20 FY21 FY22 FY23 FY24 FY25 FY26

Filings per year

FY2020: 5 filings FY20 FY2021: 4 filings FY21 FY2022: 7 filings FY22 FY2023: 10 filings FY23 FY2024: 10 filings FY24 FY2025: 27 filings FY25 FY2026: 10 filings FY26 27
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–––5
FY2021–––4
FY2022–––7
FY2023$105,211$81,777$116,30810
FY2024$92,294$75,587$136,62210
FY2025$54,018$54,018$54,01827
FY2026$90,000$88,086$106,80310

Cost of living

Athens's median Software Engineer salary of $54,018 is worth about $57,900 at national average prices.

Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024 (U.S. = 100; Athens = 93.3).

Compared with all workers here

All Software Developers in the Athens, GA area earned a median of $106,870 in May 2025 (150 employed). The H-1B median here is $54,018, 49% lower.

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

Top employers filing

EmployerMedianFilings
BeyondCareer$54,01821
Intellisoft Systemstoo few2

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

By experience level

Wage levelMedianFilings
Entry-level · Level I $54,018 27
Mid-level · Level II too few 2
Senior · Level III – 0
Expert · Level IV – 0

Median shown when a level has at least 10 filings.

Minimum H-1B salary by level

Wage levelPrevailing wage (most common)Median offered salaryFilings
Entry-level · Level I$54,018$54,01827

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.