Software Engineer H-1B Salary in California 2026
Based on 166,755 certified LCA filings for Software Engineer roles in California (DOL FY2022–2026). Median wage: $168K. See national Software Engineer data →
Wage Level Breakdown, California
| DOL Wage Level | Filings | Share | Est. Lottery Odds |
|---|---|---|---|
| Level I | 14,260 | 10.9% | ~8% |
| Level II | 55,177 | 42.1% | ~22% |
| Level III | 34,015 | 26.0% | ~44% |
| Level IV | 27,521 | 21.0% | ~67% |
Top Software Engineer H-1B Cities in California
| City | Filings | Avg Wage |
|---|---|---|
| Sunnyvale | 22,699 | $176K |
| San Francisco | 18,679 | $186K |
| Mountain View | 17,471 | $184K |
| San Jose | 16,336 | $178K |
| Santa Clara | 9,541 | $176K |
| San Diego | 8,358 | $139K |
| Menlo Park | 7,424 | $201K |
| Cupertino | 6,025 | $188K |
| Palo Alto | 5,773 | $185K |
| Fremont | 2,800 | $162K |
Top Software Engineer H-1B Employers in California
| Employer | Filings | Avg Wage |
|---|---|---|
| Google LLC | 21,071 | $181K |
| Apple Inc. | 8,331 | $187K |
| Amazon.com Services LLC | 5,643 | $170K |
| Meta Platforms, Inc | 4,404 | $211K |
| Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. | 3,511 | $131K |
| WAL-MART ASSOCIATES, INC. | 3,219 | $154K |
| Meta Platforms, Inc. | 3,054 | $197K |
| Salesforce, Inc. | 2,673 | $211K |
| Microsoft Corporation | 2,605 | $186K |
| LINKEDIN CORPORATION | 1,978 | $171K |
Software Engineer H-1B Filings Trend, California
| Fiscal Year | Filings | Avg Wage |
|---|---|---|
| FY2021 | 757 | $151K |
| FY2022 | 45,504 | $157K |
| FY2023 | 34,885 | $165K |
| FY2024 | 40,879 | $177K |
| FY2025 | 35,285 | $183K |
| FY2026 | 9,445 | $190K |
Green Card (PERM) Sponsorship in California
Beyond H-1B, employers across all roles in California filed 374,915 PERM green-card petitions (339,604 certified) in DOL disclosure data 2007–2026, with a median offered wage of $119K. PERM (ETA-9089) is a separate DOL process from the H-1B LCA data above and isn't broken out by role in DOL's disclosure files. See full California state data →
Related Data
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Wage data aggregated from DOL LCA disclosure files (FY2022–2026), filtered to certified petitions with wages between $30K and $1M in California. Lottery-odds estimates reflect the 2026 wage-weighted selection model and are illustrative.