Austin has emerged as one of the fastest-growing H1B markets in the US, driven by Tesla's Gigafactory Texas, Apple's expanding 3M sqft campus, Oracle's headquarters relocation, and Samsung's $17 billion semiconductor fab in nearby Taylor. Texas has no state income tax and Austin's cost of living is 28% lower than San Francisco — making its $148,000 median H1B wage highly competitive on a purchasing-power basis.
Key fact: Texas has no state income tax, and Austin's cost of living is 28% lower than San Francisco — making Austin's $148,000 median H1B salary equivalent to approximately $195,000 on a purchasing-power-parity basis compared to San Francisco.
| Role | Median |
|---|---|
| Software Engineer (L3) | $148,000 |
| Senior Software Engineer (L4) | $192,000 |
| ML Engineer (L4) | $175,000 |
| Data Engineer (L3) | $138,000 |
| Electrical / Embedded Engineer (L3) | $142,000 |
| DevOps / Site Reliability Engineer (L3) | $145,000 |
Source: DOL LCA disclosures, FY2024.
| Employer | Median Wage |
|---|---|
| Tesla (Gigafactory Texas) | $148,000 |
| Apple (Austin campus) | $162,000 |
| Oracle (HQ, Austin) | $118,000 |
| Dell Technologies | $128,000 |
| Samsung Austin Semiconductor | $138,000 |
| Indeed / Glassdoor | $155,000 |