See The 8 Best-Paying Tech Jobs in San Francisco Today

Key Points

• San Francisco is known for its tech job opportunities.
• Several globally recognized tech brands are based in San Francisco.
• Salaries for the best-paying tech jobs in San Francisco range from $184,631 to over $200,000.
• Understanding the tech job opportunities in San Francisco can help you land a lucrative position.
• Tech jobs range from Cloud Architect and Software Developer to Data Engineer and Natural Language Processing (NLP) Engineer.

San Francisco has a reputation as a tech-lover’s dream come true. The city offers many career opportunities to entry-level and experienced technology professionals. With a clear understanding of the best-paying tech jobs in San Francisco today, you can fine-tune your job search. Most importantly, you can put yourself in a great position to secure a lucrative tech job in San Francisco — and take another step forward in your tech career.

8 Must-Know Facts About Tech Jobs in San Francisco

• San Francisco is one of the most prosperous tech cities in the world. As part of Silicon Valley, tech companies often flock to the City by the Bay in the hopes of growing their operations, driving sales, and extending their global reach.
• Many globally recognized tech brands have set up shop in San Francisco. The Golden Gate City is home to Dropbox, Salesforce, and many other prominent tech companies.
• You may be able to explore on-site and remote work opportunities at tech companies in San Francisco. If you want to go into the office every day, work from home, or a combination of the two, you may be able to find a San Francisco tech company that can accommodate your preferred work style.
• You may be able to earn a six-figure annual salary at a San Francisco tech company. Research indicates the average tech worker’s annual salary in San Francisco is $162,000.
• Dozens of San Francisco technology startups are hiring. Some of San Francisco’s fastest-growing tech startups want to add talent — and this trend may continue in the months and years to come.
• Help is available for your San Francisco tech job search. TechSF offers free tech skills training and other perks to those ready to pursue careers at San Francisco technology companies.
• New tech jobs are becoming available every day. It pays to keep an eye on job boards, as tech companies in San Francisco frequently publish new postings as they search for quality candidates to fill a variety of roles.
• The City of San Francisco has tech jobs it wants to fill. Many city departments in San Francisco are looking to hire candidates for jobs relating to cybersecurity and other tech areas.

8 Best-Paying Tech Jobs in San Francisco Today

1. Cloud Architect

As a cloud architect, you manage a company’s cloud computing system. You work with cloud technology to help a business create and maintain an effective and secure cloud system. Plus, you utilize virtual machines (VMs), hypervisors, and other cloud computing components to ensure a business can get the most value out of its cloud investments.

Cloud architects are in high demand, due in large part to the rising interest for cloud services globally. If you want to kick off a career as a cloud architect, it pays to learn Java, Python, and other coding languages. It also helps to learn the ins and outs of cloud security.

As a Cloud Architect, Your Career Earnings Can Help You Reach Cloud Nine

A cloud architect career gives you a chance to earn a high annual salary. You probably won’t have to conduct a lengthy search to find a cloud architect job in San Francisco that allows you to earn a salary that lines up with your expectations, either.

The average salary in the United States is $125,223. Meanwhile, the average salary for a cloud architect in San Francisco tends to be higher than the national average. Some cloud architects in San Francisco earn annual salaries that exceed $200,000.

2. Software Developer

A software developer builds the software used to power business applications and systems. Software developers generally work with quality assurance testers and analysts to make sure a computer app or program delivers the desired results. They are typically in high demand in manufacturing and many other industries where computer systems design and development are key.

Where you work as a software developer in San Francisco or anywhere else can dictate how you work. For example, if you’re a software developer at a tech startup, you’ll probably work independently most of the time. Yet, if you work as part of a world-renowned tech corporation, you may be one of many software developers who work together to create and maintain software for apps and systems.

You Can Find Many Software Developer Job Opportunities That Pay Well

In the United States, most software developers earn anywhere from about $90,000 to $152,000 annually. Comparatively, the average annual salary of software developers in San Francisco is around $113,000.

Of course, software developers in San Francisco who possess a wealth of experience and training may be able to earn more than their counterparts.

3. Software Engineer

A software engineer creates computer programs and operating systems. The engineer utilizes mathematical models and other tools to project how computer programs and operating systems will work. If you’re a software engineer, you may have no trouble finding a job in virtually any industry.

When you’re a software engineer, you may have the option to work on-site or at home. A typical day as a software engineer involves completing coding projects and ensuring that computer programs and operating systems work as expected. You may be expected to attend meetings with internal teams and clients, too.

The Average Annual Salary of a Software Engineer Checks in Around Six Figures

At first glance, a software engineer job may seem like it doesn’t pay as well as many comparable tech jobs in San Francisco. When you look around for software engineer jobs in the Bay Area, however, you may find many opportunities where you can earn a great annual salary.

On average, a software engineer in the United States earns just over $100,000 per year. In San Francisco, the average salary for a software engineer is closer to $200,000. Thus, if you choose to work in San Francisco as a software engineer, you should expect to earn more than the national average.

4. Development and Operations (DevOps) Architect

When you’re a DevOps architect, you’re responsible for designing and launching enterprise apps. Many DevOps architects create platforms that enterprises use to manage their apps and infrastructure. These platforms may be used across production and non-production environments.

The best DevOps architects are in demand across the globe. If you have hands-on DevOps experience, you may find many tech companies in San Francisco will want to hire you. Furthermore, you may be able to earn big bucks.

DevOps Architects Have Lots of Opportunities to Get Paid

Look online for DevOps architect jobs, and you’ll likely see thousands of career opportunities that offer a competitive annual salary.

As of May 2023, the average annual salary for a DevOps architect in the United States was $161,064. For most DevOps architects, they earn anywhere from $142,980 to $177,481 per year. In San Francisco, the average DevOps architect earns around $178,000 annually.

5. DevOps Engineer

A DevOps engineer is commonly considered to be an IT generalist. In this role, you perform some combination of engineering, infrastructure provisioning and management, systems administration, security, and DevOps tasks. The duties of a DevOps engineer can vary based on the business, its industry, and other factors.

To succeed as a DevOps engineer, it helps to know all about continuous integration/continuous delivery (CI/CD). Once you do, you can build and test changes to software through the development lifecycle. Moreover, you’ll be able to seamlessly add to data repositories and update software.

On an Hourly or Annual Basis, You Can Earn a Lot as a DevOps Engineer

In terms of hourly wage, a DevOps engineer in the United States averages $62.50 per hour. This works out to about $130,000 in annual salary. If you work as a DevOps engineer in San Francisco, the average annual salary is about $174,000.

When you’re a DevOps engineer, the more you learn, the more you’ll earn. If you continue to grow your DevOps skill set, you can boost your hourly or annual DevOps engineer earnings. And, you can build a rewarding DevOps engineer career as well.

6. Infrastructure Engineer

An infrastructure engineer designs, builds, and maintains an IT environment. With this environment in place, a business can gather data and use it to develop and release new products.

To become an infrastructure engineer, it helps to have a bachelor’s degree in computer science or IT. Also, many tech companies require infrastructure engineers to hold various certifications based on the daily duties and responsibilities associated with their respective roles, too.

Infrastructure Engineers Earn Around $100,000 Annually

If you’re pursuing your first infrastructure engineer job or have several years of relevant experience, you’re sure to find many high-paying career opportunities at your disposal.

Research shows a U.S. infrastructure engineer’s average annual salary tends to fall between $98,060 and $123,987. When you serve as an infrastructure engineer in San Francisco, the average annual salary checks in around $168,000.    

7. Data Engineer

If you decide to be a data engineer, you are responsible for storing and managing a company’s data. You design and establish data warehouses or lakes where information must remain secure. On top of that, you look for ways to optimize the security and performance of your company’s data storage.  

An average day as a data engineer involves building storage solutions, making sure data is stored and managed properly, and establishing solutions to ensure that the employees who need data can access it and keep it secure. Data engineers also spend their days looking for ways to make data clean and accurate. You may find that some tech companies have specialized duties for data engineers that involve the storage and management of big data and other complex data sets, too.

Industry Experience Can Help You Boost Your Earnings as a Data Engineer

The range of data engineer salaries in the United States runs from about $83,000 to $195,000 annually. San Francisco data engineers earn an average yearly salary of nearly $152,000.

Many tech companies want data engineers with plenty of skills and experience. If you’ve done a lot in your career as a data engineer to date, you may be able to earn an annual salary in San Francisco or elsewhere that approaches $200,000.

8. Natural Language Processing (NLP) Engineer

If you are all about artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML), you may want to consider a job as an NLP engineer. In this role, you design NLP systems that detect speech patterns and learn from them. You also create algorithms for NLP systems and stay up to date on AI and ML technologies that may help you optimize these systems moving forward.

Becoming an NLP engineer is a terrific option for anyone that has advanced math skills. As an NLP engineer, you’ll put your math skills to the test every day, as you’ll be tasked with building in-depth data models. It helps to be an effective communicator as well since you’ll be required to engage with multiple stakeholders to develop and maintain NLP systems.

If You Become an NLP Engineer, Expect a High Annual Salary

NLP engineering is a relatively new role for many companies, and it tends to come with an above-average annual salary that may continue to increase in the foreseeable future.

The median salary for NLP engineers in the United States is $160,000. In the San Francisco Bay Area, the average annual salary for an NLP engineer totals $184,631.

How the Best-Paying Tech Jobs in San Francisco Stack Up Against Others Across the United States

Oftentimes, the best-paying tech jobs in San Francisco are similar to those in other U.S. states. Now, here’s a look at three states with tech jobs available to individuals of all skill and experience levels — and how these jobs stack up against those available in San Francisco.

Hawaii

Ultimately, software engineer manager is one of the best-paying tech jobs in Hawaii, with an average annual salary of $134,156. On the other hand, a software engineer in San Francisco is likely to earn the same or more than the average annual salary for a software engineer manager in Hawaii.

Los Angeles

Like San Francisco, Los Angeles is a tech mecca. Therefore, if you look for a tech job in San Francisco or LA, you’re likely to find a wealth of opportunities that pay over $100,000 annually.

North Dakota

Generally, if you prefer the quiet serenity of North Dakota over the hustle and bustle of San Francisco, you may want to explore the tech jobs available in the Roughrider State. When you do, you may discover that the average annual salary for these jobs is significantly lower than that of those in San Francisco.

The image featured at the top of this post is ©Photo by Joonyeop Baek on Unsplash.