Microsoft

Principal Software Engineer

Microsoft$142K — $274K *
Consumer Technology
5 - 7 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related field AND 6+ years of experience in coding (C, C++, Rust) OR equivalent experience.
  • Master's Degree or 8+ years of experience in coding OR Bachelor’s Degree with 12+ years of experience in coding.
  • Experience with large-scale software engineering projects.
  • Familiarity with the Chromium codebase and web standards.
  • Strong design, coding, and debugging skills in C++.

Responsibilities

  • Drive API design to enhance interoperability across Microsoft and the web ecosystem.
  • Contribute to Chromium for shared features among Chromium-based browsers.
  • Deliver innovative web platform features based on customer and developer feedback.

Benefits

  • Work in a collaborative environment with global standards bodies.
  • Opportunity to influence web standards and features impacting millions.
  • Engage in end-to-end project ownership from prototyping to deployment.
Full Job Description
Overview

Software engineers on the Edge Web Platform team build foundational technologies that shape how hundreds of millions of people experience the web and AI-powered computing. Edge operates at a massive scale and extends beyond a traditional browser as a gateway to Microsoft's products and AI ecosystem. This role offers the opportunity to shape a widely used web platform by advancing performance and user experience.

As a principal engineer on the Rendering team, you will shape the core primitives of the web platform - advancing DOM, HTML, and emerging web APIs. You will help drive web standards, collaborate with the broader standards community, and deliver interoperable implementations that improve browsing across Microsoft Edge and Chromium.

We are seeking engineers with solid systems thinking and deep interest in browser architecture, especially DOM tree construction and mutation, eventing, editing and form controls, selection and ranges, and accessibility semantics. In this role, you will design and own core platform features that shape how web content is represented, and experienced by millions of customers daily, with a focus on correctness, performance, and compatibility at web scale.

You will work on initiatives central to Edge's web platform strategy, collaborating with standards bodies (WHATWG/W3C), community groups, other browser vendors, and internal teams to bring new capabilities to the platform. Success in this role requires depth in browser or runtime systems and end-to-end ownership from exploration and prototyping to shipping.

Starting January 26, 2026, Microsoft AI (MAI) employees who live within a 50- mile commute of a designated Microsoft office in the U.S. or 25-mile commute of a non-U.S., country-specific location are expected to work from the office at least four days per week. This expectation is subject to local law and may vary by jurisdiction.

Responsibilities
  • Drive high-quality API design across Microsoft and the broader web ecosystem, including through standards forums, to improve interoperability.
  • Contribute directly to Chromium in areas that can be shared across Chromium-based browsers.
  • Deliver web platform innovations in key browser engine areas, grounded in customer and developer needs.


Qualifications

Required Qualifications:
  • Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field AND 6+ years technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, C, C++ and/or Rust
    • OR equivalent experience.

Other Requirements:
Ability to meet Microsoft, customer and/or government security screening requirements are required for this role. These requirements include but are not limited to the following specialized security screenings:
  • Microsoft Cloud Background Check: This position will be required to pass the Microsoft Cloud background check upon hire/transfer and every two years thereafter.

Preferred Qualifications:
  • Master's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field AND 8+ years technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python
    • OR Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field AND 12+ years technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python
    • OR equivalent experience.
  • Experience contributing to large-scale software engineering projects.
  • Experience with the Chromium codebase and web standards.
  • Solid design, coding, and debugging skills in C++.

#MicrosoftAI

Software Engineering IC5 - The typical base pay range for this role across the U.S. is USD $142,800 - $274,800 per year. There is a different range applicable to specific work locations, within the San Francisco Bay area and New York City metropolitan area, and the base pay range for this role in those locations is USD $188,000 - $304,200 per year.

Certain roles may be eligible for benefits and other compensation. Find additional benefits and pay information here:
https://careers.microsoft.com/us/en/us-corporate-pay

This position will be open for a minimum of 5 days, with applications accepted on an ongoing basis until the position is filled.

About Microsoft

Microsoft is an American multinational corporation that develops, manufactures, licenses, supports, and sells a range of software products and services. Microsoft’s devices and consumer (D&C) licensing segment licenses the Windows operating system and related software, Microsoft Office for consumers, and the Windows Phone operating system. The company’s computing and gaming hardware segment provides Xbox gaming and entertainment consoles and accessories, second-party and third-party video games, and Xbox Live subscriptions; surface devices and accessories; and Microsoft PC accessories. Its phone hardware segment offers Lumia smartphones and other non-Lumia phones. Its D&C segment provides Windows Store, Xbox Live transactions, and Windows phone store; search advertising; display advertising; Office 365 Home and Office 365 Personal; first-party video games; and other consumer products and services as well as operating retail stores. Microsoft’s commercial licensing segments license server products, including Windows Server, Microsoft SQL Server, Visual Studio, System Center, and related Client Access Licenses (CALs); Windows Embedded; Windows operating system; Microsoft Office for business, including Office, Exchange, SharePoint, Lync, and related CALs; Microsoft Dynamics business solutions; and Skype. Its commercial segment offers enterprise services, including premier support services and Microsoft consulting services; commercial cloud comprising Office 365 Commercial, other Microsoft Office online offerings, Dynamics CRM Online, and Microsoft Azure; and other commercial products and online services. The company markets and distributes its products through original equipment manufacturers, distributors, and resellers, as well as online.

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Learn more about Microsoft
Size
181,000 employees
Market Cap
$1,762.4 billion
Industry
Net Income
$51.3 billion
Founded
1975
5 Year Trend
+15.5%
Revenue
$153.2 billion
NASDAQ

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