Software Engineer pay in New York, by the numbers
Here is how that number compares with the rest of the United States, with NY, and with other jobs in New York.
How New York compares with United States and NY
Directly above New York is Seattle (US$167,280); directly below is Boston (US$166,090). The full range runs from US$128,430 in San Antonio to US$213,110 in San Jose.
New York is the only observed NY metro for this role, so there is no in-state average to compare; the national and metro ranking above is the better reference.
Is US$166,830 a good salary in New York?
Price levels in New York (index 100) neither inflate nor shrink the paycheck much; adjusted for costs it is worth about US$166,800.
Adjusting for prices does not move New York in the ranking: it is 4th of 21 on both cash and buying power.
Take-home on the median comes to roughly US$11,500 monthly (17% effective tax in our simplified model). Rent for a modeled 1-bedroom is 14% of it, and the single-adult budget ends about US$8,010 in the black.
If you compared New York with similarly priced cities
A software engineer moving from New York to Los Angeles (similar cost level, COL 100) would see the median fall 4% to US$160,920, with US$380 less left over monthly in our model.
Chicago (similar cost level, COL 100) pays US$134,380, 19% less than New York; modeled monthly leftover is US$2,060 lower.
Houston (similar cost level, COL 100) pays US$129,440, 22% less than New York; modeled monthly leftover is US$2,380 lower.
Software Engineer vs other occupations in New York
Of the 9 roles we track in New York, Software Engineer is 2nd by median; the highest is Lawyer (US$208,880).
Closest neighbours in the New York list: Data Scientist at US$135,980 (-18%).
Entry-level vs senior software engineer pay in New York
Entry and senior pay rank the same in New York: 4th of 21 at both the 10th and the 90th percentile.
For the top 10% of earners, San Jose leads with US$289,150 at the 90th percentile, +29% against New York.
Spread between low and high software engineer pay in New York
Expect wide variation between offers: the 10th percentile is US$101,690 and the 90th US$224,590, a 2.2× ratio.