What senior engineers earn at funded startups: SF vs NYC, mid-2026
Posted salary ceilings from 364 live senior and staff roles at venture-backed startups, pulled from the companies' own job sites in June 2026.
·3 min read
Most salary content is survey data: self-reported, months old, and blended across company types. This is different. The numbers below come from the live roles.cc board, which lists engineering roles at venture-backed startups, pulled straight from each company's own job site and refreshed several times a day. When a company publishes a compensation range, we show it. On June 11, 2026, 364 live senior and staff roles in San Francisco, New York, and US-remote published a range. Here is what they say.
The numbers
We use the posted ceiling, the top of each published range, because it is the number companies negotiate beneath and candidates anchor against. Medians and quartiles, by city and level:
| Market | Level | Median ceiling | Middle 50% | Roles |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Francisco | Senior | $257K | $221K to $300K | 114 |
| San Francisco | Staff | $330K | $280K to $405K | 75 |
| New York | Senior | $245K | $220K to $280K | 56 |
| New York | Staff | $300K | $250K to $350K | 31 |
| US-remote | Senior | $230K | $210K to $262K | 63 |
| US-remote | Staff | $290K | $250K to $325K | 25 |
Base-salary ceilings posted by the companies themselves, June 11, 2026. Equity is on top and is usually the larger number at early stage.
How to read these numbers
- These are posted ceilings, not offers. Most offers land inside the range, and where you land depends on the interview, the level call, and how the company banded the role.
- About 37% of live roles post compensation. Companies that publish ranges skew toward the ones competing hardest for senior people, so the true market median likely sits a little below these figures.
- Cash is only part of startup compensation. A seed-stage offer at $230K with meaningful equity can be worth more than $280K at a public company. We wrote about what to ask about equity at each stage.
Is San Francisco still ahead of New York?
Yes, and the gap widens with seniority. At senior, SF's median ceiling runs about $12K ahead of New York. At staff, the gap is $30K at the median and the top quartile separates further: $405K in SF against $350K in New York. The concentration of AI infrastructure money in the Bay Area is the visible driver; the highest bands on our board right now belong to SF model-infrastructure and developer-tools companies.
Does remote still pay less?
On posted ranges, US-remote runs roughly 10% below SF at senior and about 12% below at staff. Two things narrow that gap in practice: remote roles draw national applicant pools, so companies that post low fill slow, and several of the best-paying remote roles on our board are at SF-headquartered companies paying SF bands regardless of location. If you are choosing between markets, the live board shows what is open today.
What moves an individual offer
- 01The level call. The senior-to-staff line is worth $60K to $75K at the median. If you have staff-scope evidence, make sure the process levels you for it.
- 02Stage. Later-stage companies post higher cash and lower equity. Earlier ones invert that. Neither is better; they are different bets.
- 03Scarcity of your stack. Infrastructure, ML systems, and security roles consistently band above product engineering on our board.
- 04Timing. Companies hire fastest, and negotiate most generously, in the months right after a raise. That window is the whole premise of how we sort the board.
Questions people ask
What does a senior software engineer make at a startup in San Francisco in 2026?
On the roles.cc board in June 2026, the median posted salary ceiling for senior engineering roles at venture-backed startups in San Francisco is $257,000, with the middle half of roles posting ceilings between $221,000 and $300,000. Equity comes on top.
What does a staff engineer make at a startup in New York in 2026?
The median posted ceiling for staff-level roles in New York is $300,000, with the middle half between $250,000 and $350,000, based on 31 live roles posting ranges in June 2026.
Do remote engineering roles pay less than San Francisco roles?
On posted ranges, US-remote roles run about 10 to 12 percent below San Francisco at the same level. Some SF-headquartered companies pay SF bands for remote roles, so the practical gap is often smaller.
Are posted salary ranges accurate?
They are accurate as ranges: companies publish them under pay-transparency rules and negotiate within them. Treat the ceiling as the top of the band for a strong candidate at that level, not as the typical offer.
The data is a live board
Every number in this post comes from roles you can open right now: live, US-only, sorted by funding recency.
About roles.cc. roles.cc is a recruiting agency for software engineers at venture-backed startups in San Francisco, New York, and other major US hubs. The public board lists engineering roles pulled straight from each company's own job site, sorted by how recently the company raised. It is free for engineers, and companies pay only when a hire happens. Start with the live board or what we do.