Principal Engineer Jobs

Discover Principal Engineer opportunities at companies seeking experienced technical leaders. Principal Engineers shape architecture, guide complex engineering work, and help teams deliver reliable, scalable products and systems. Browse vetted roles on Ladders, where listed jobs pay $100,000 or more.

What Does a Principal Engineer Do?

A Principal Engineer is a senior individual contributor who influences technical direction across teams or an organization. Depending on the employer and discipline, the role may involve setting architecture standards, evaluating technologies, solving high-impact engineering problems, mentoring engineers, and partnering with product and business leaders. Principal Engineers often lead through expertise and influence rather than direct people management.

Skills and Qualifications

Employers commonly seek deep experience in a relevant engineering specialty, a record of delivering complex projects, and strong system-design and problem-solving skills. Communication, technical judgment, collaboration, and the ability to align stakeholders around a sound approach are also important. Requirements vary by industry and role; some positions emphasize software architecture, while others focus on infrastructure, hardware, data, security, or other engineering domains.

Principal Engineer Salary and Career Outlook

Compensation depends on factors such as location, industry, scope, and experience. Ladders focuses on vetted professional opportunities paying $100,000 or more, helping experienced candidates explore senior engineering roles. Review each listing for details about compensation, responsibilities, and qualifications.

Find Principal Engineer Jobs on Ladders

Search Principal Engineer jobs to compare opportunities and identify roles that match your expertise and career goals. Explore openings across companies and engineering disciplines, and use each job description to assess technical scope, team influence, and the experience required.

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$83K - $118K *

Unlock your potential by leading complex IT/SaaS projects, driving execution, and enhancing business processes. Collaborate with diverse teams to ensure project success while utilizing Agile methodolo...

United StatesRemote

4 weeks ago

  •   8 - 10 years exp.  •   Information Technology

$84K - $129K *

Empower your career by joining a dynamic team in structural engineering, tackling innovative projects in nuclear facilities. Collaborate, guide, and utilize advanced tools to design and analyze struct...

United StatesRemote

2 weeks ago

  •   5 - 7 years exp.  •   Technical Services

$88K - $163K *

Develop and maintain integrated system solutions by collaborating with multidisciplinary teams to translate customer requirements into mission-critical capabilities, ensuring quality and efficiency th...

Lower Peach Tree, ALRemote

Today

  •   Less than 5 years exp.  •   Aerospace & Defense

$173K - $220K *

Drive the security of AI infrastructure and cloud applications by implementing and enhancing DevSecOps practices. Collaborate with teams to integrate security into development workflows, ensuring robu...

Alameda, CARemote

Today

  •   Less than 5 years exp.  •   Pharmaceuticals & Biotech

$135K - $145K *

Drive innovative software solutions by developing robust, cloud-native systems that enhance provider data management capabilities and meet the evolving needs of clients in a dynamic, collaborative env...

United StatesRemote

Reposted 6 days ago

  •   5 - 7 years exp.  •   Healthcare

$165K - $225K *

Elevate infrastructure capabilities by designing and implementing a unified platform that integrates bare-metal servers, storage, and networking for large-scale computation and AI workloads, ensuring...

United StatesRemote

5 days ago

  •   5 - 7 years exp.  •   Enterprise Technology

$110K - $130K *

Optimize enterprise monitoring solutions by administering Dynatrace, enhancing application performance, and ensuring operational observability across diverse environments. Collaborate with teams to im...

Columbus, OHRemote

6 days ago

  •   5 - 7 years exp.  •   Staffing

$134K - $201K *

Design and engineer identity governance solutions to ensure secure access across diverse environments. Collaborate with cross-functional teams to implement standards, automate workflows, and maintain...

United StatesRemote

6 days ago

  •   5 - 7 years exp.  •   Information Technology

$110K - $130K *

Join a dynamic team as a Sales Engineer, where you'll lead technical discussions, map customer architectures, and drive enterprise integrations. Collaborate with engineering to deliver tailored soluti...

RemoteRemote

Yesterday

  •   Less than 5 years exp.  •   Enterprise Technology

$112K - $193K *

Shape the future of AI solutions by defining end-to-end architecture, integrating advanced capabilities, and driving innovation across cross-functional teams while ensuring scalability, security, and...

Hartford, CTRemote

1 week ago

  •   8 - 10 years exp.  •   Healthcare

$125K - $150K *

Elevate your career by leading civil site projects in the energy sector. Collaborate with a dynamic team to design, coordinate, and manage impactful utility projects while ensuring compliance with loc...

United StatesRemote

1 week ago

  •   8 - 10 years exp.  •   Energy & Utilities

$120K - $150K *

Lead the charge in delivering advanced utility grid management solutions, focusing on ADMS, OMS, and DERMS integrations. Drive project success through expert consulting, solution design, and implement...

Florida, USRemote

1 week ago

  •   5 - 7 years exp.  •   Energy & Utilities

$88K - $163K *

Unlock potential by joining a dynamic team as a Systems Engineer, where you'll drive the development and integration of mission-critical capabilities in an Agile environment, collaborating with multid...

Lower Peach Tree, ALRemote

Today

  •   Less than 5 years exp.  •   Aerospace & Defense

$125K - $150K *

Empower teams by designing and building scalable, secure systems that enhance performance and reliability. Collaborate across disciplines to innovate with AI while maintaining a security-first approac...

United StatesRemote

5 days ago

  •   5 - 7 years exp.  •   Media

$108K - $130K *

Empower enterprise infrastructures by designing automated workflows for secure, scalable network management. Utilize advanced scripting and automation to optimize systems while leveraging your experti...

United StatesRemote

Reposted 6 days ago

  •   Less than 5 years exp.  •   Enterprise Technology

$108K - $130K *

Unlock the potential of facilities engineering by leading resilience programs, setting global standards, and providing technical support across a vast manufacturing network. Drive innovation and ensur...

United StatesRemote

4 days ago

  •   5 - 7 years exp.  •   Food & Beverages

$130K - $155K *

Optimize and implement secure, scalable infrastructure solutions across Windows, Citrix, AWS, and Azure. Collaborate with teams to drive automation and design zero-trust architectures, enhancing infra...

New York, NYRemote

3 weeks ago

  •   5 - 7 years exp.  •   Information Technology

$130K - $155K *

Optimize and implement scalable, secure infrastructure solutions across Windows, Citrix, AWS, and Azure. Drive automation and collaborate with teams to design zero-trust architectures, enhancing infra...

United StatesRemote

4 weeks ago

  •   5 - 7 years exp.  •   Information Technology

$120K - $145K *

Elevate your career by leading cloud infrastructure design and automation. As a senior technical leader, you'll mentor engineers, optimize systems, and ensure robust, secure solutions for clients whil...

United StatesRemote

Today

  •   8 - 10 years exp.  •   Information Technology

$110K - $130K *

Drive enterprise solution implementations by leading requirements analysis, designing scalable architectures, and delivering innovative solutions. Collaborate with teams to ensure quality and manage c...

United StatesRemote

1 week ago

  •   8 - 10 years exp.  •   Information Technology

$116K - $145K *

Develop high-performance software solutions while collaborating with cross-functional teams. Take ownership of features and components, applying your expertise to solve complex problems and deliver cu...

RemoteRemote

3 days ago

  •   5 - 7 years exp.  •   Finance & Insurance

$110K - $120K *

Join us to lead a dynamic software engineering team, driving innovation in fleet management technology. You'll mentor developers, oversee the software delivery lifecycle, and contribute hands-on to co...

CanadaRemote

3 weeks ago

  •   5 - 7 years exp.  •   Enterprise Technology

$135K - $160K *

Shape the future of enterprise architecture by leading strategic initiatives, translating business goals into scalable solutions, and guiding cross-functional teams in integrating complex healthcare a...

Texas, USRemote

2 weeks ago

  •   8 - 10 years exp.  •   Information Technology

$190K - $240K *

Champion the design and engineering of a cutting-edge perfusion system, leading a team to innovate and scale operations while ensuring quality and reliability in medical device manufacturing...

New Haven, CTRemote

2 weeks ago

  •   5 - 7 years exp.  •   Pharmaceuticals & Biotech

$120K - $140K *

Drive the development and optimization of GTM strategies, leveraging automation and campaign execution across multiple platforms to enhance pipeline generation and account prioritization in a dynamic...

United StatesRemote

Reposted 1 week ago

  •   Less than 5 years exp.  •   Information Technology

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

  • What is a Principal Engineer?question toggle

    A Principal Engineer is a senior technical individual contributor who helps set engineering direction, addresses complex problems, and influences architecture and practices across teams or an organization.

  • What does a Principal Engineer do?question toggle

    Responsibilities vary, but may include designing systems, establishing technical standards, guiding high-impact projects, mentoring engineers, and collaborating with product and business stakeholders.

  • How is a Principal Engineer different from an Engineering Manager?question toggle

    A Principal Engineer typically leads through technical expertise and influence, while an Engineering Manager generally focuses on people management, team operations, and delivery. Some organizations combine or vary these responsibilities.

  • What qualifications are commonly required for Principal Engineer jobs?question toggle

    Employers often look for extensive experience in a relevant engineering discipline, a history of delivering complex projects, strong system-design skills, and effective communication and collaboration.

  • How much do Principal Engineers earn?question toggle

    Pay varies by location, industry, specialization, and role scope. Ladders features vetted professional job listings paying $100,000 or more; check individual listings for compensation details.