Principal Software Engineer Jobs

Explore Principal Software Engineer jobs for experienced technologists ready to shape architecture, guide engineering teams, and solve complex technical challenges. Ladders features vetted professional opportunities with salaries of $100,000 or more, helping you find senior roles that match your expertise and career goals.

What Does a Principal Software Engineer Do?

Principal Software Engineers provide technical leadership across products, platforms, or engineering organizations. They design scalable systems, establish engineering standards, evaluate architectural tradeoffs, and partner with product, security, and operations teams. Depending on the organization, the role may involve mentoring engineers and influencing roadmaps without direct people-management responsibilities.

Skills and Qualifications

Employers commonly seek deep software development experience, strong system design and architecture skills, and expertise in one or more programming languages or technology domains. Successful candidates communicate clearly, make sound decisions amid ambiguity, and build alignment across teams. Experience with cloud infrastructure, distributed systems, reliability, security, or data platforms may be valuable depending on the role.

Career Opportunities and Compensation

Principal-level positions are available across industries, including technology, finance, healthcare, retail, and business services. Compensation varies by employer, location, scope, and specialization. Browse Ladders for vetted opportunities paying $100,000 or more, and review each listing for its stated salary range, responsibilities, and requirements.

Find Your Next Principal Software Engineer Role

Use Ladders to discover senior engineering opportunities aligned with your experience. Compare roles by industry, location, and technical focus, then tailor your application to highlight measurable impact, architectural leadership, and the systems you have helped deliver.

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$150K - $170K *

Innovate with AI to enhance HR software. Design and develop scalable web services, lead initiatives, and mentor engineers while focusing on user experience and collaboration in a dynamic environment...

United StatesRemote

Today

  •   Less than 5 years exp.  •   Enterprise Technology

$110K - $130K *

Unlock potential by leading product vision and strategy, driving customer insights to align with business goals. Collaborate across teams to deliver innovative solutions, ensuring impactful outcomes f...

United StatesRemote

3 weeks ago

  •   Less than 5 years exp.  •   Healthcare

$175K - $204K *

Champion innovative software solutions by leading engineering teams, driving strategic initiatives, and fostering a culture of collaboration and growth. Oversee technical execution and ensure alignmen...

Portland, MERemote

1 week ago

  •   8 - 10 years exp.  •   Finance & Insurance

$124K - $241K *

Join a visionary team to architect cloud networking solutions, drive innovation in DPU and NIC technologies, and collaborate with global experts to redefine data center architecture from hardware to a...

RemoteRemote

Reposted yesterday

  •   Less than 5 years exp.  •   Manufacturing & Automotive

$236K - $309K *

Transform the future of AI teamwork by architecting scalable ML systems that enhance Rovo's capabilities, ensuring measurable improvements in customer trust and experience through innovative evaluatio...

San Francisco, CARemote

3 days ago

  •   Less than 5 years exp.  •   Information Technology

$150K - $220K *

Transform LLM inference efficiency by leading the performance measurement, diagnosis, and enhancement efforts to optimize customer experience through cost-effective and speedy solutions in a hands-on...

United StatesRemote

3 weeks ago

  •   5 - 7 years exp.  •   Information Technology

$120K - $145K *

Lead the charge in designing and scaling a cutting-edge payments platform, overseeing everything from backend services to user interfaces. Collaborate with cross-functional teams to deliver secure, hi...

San Mateo, CARemote

Today

  •   5 - 7 years exp.  •   Finance & Insurance

$112K - $135K *

Elevate your career by driving delivery across mobile platform teams, ensuring alignment and timely releases. Collaborate with engineering leads to enhance app architecture and improve CI/CD processes...

Texas, USRemote

Yesterday

  •   5 - 7 years exp.  •   Pharmaceuticals & Biotech

$110K - $220K *

Drive engineering excellence as a Principal Technical Program Manager, leading initiatives that enhance reliability and operational performance across thousands of engineers while collaborating with c...

Bentonville, ARRemote

Reposted 4 weeks ago

  •   5 - 7 years exp.  •   Retail & Consumer Goods

$140K - $160K *

Drive your career with a role that leads data engineering initiatives, collaborates cross-functionally, and implements innovative solutions to enhance data security and performance for scalable cloud...

United StatesRemote

Reposted 4 weeks ago

  •   5 - 7 years exp.  •   Finance & Insurance

$150K - $180K *

Accelerate progress at the forefront of ASIC physical design, leading complex SoC implementations, optimizing performance, and ensuring design integrity through collaboration and innovative methodolog...

Irvine, CARemote

2 days ago

  •   5 - 7 years exp.  •   Information Technology

$135K - $160K *

Unlock the future of AI as you design and enhance multi-agent orchestration frameworks, implementing state management and human-in-the-loop workflows to empower enterprise-level agent development at s...

RemoteRemote

3 weeks ago

  •   5 - 7 years exp.  •   Information Technology

$120K - $145K *

Drive product strategy and modernization for merchant onboarding solutions, collaborating with cross-functional teams to enhance risk management capabilities and ensure market-leading standards in a d...

United StatesRemote

1 week ago

  •   5 - 7 years exp.  •   Finance & Insurance

$144K - $288K *

Drive modernization and operational stability for eligibility processing, leading a multi-team engineering organization to enhance cloud-based data services and APIs, ensuring high availability and co...

Illinois, USRemote

1 week ago

  •   8 - 10 years exp.  •   Pharmaceuticals & Biotech

$150K - $200K *

Lead and develop a high-performing engineering team, driving real-time financial infrastructure projects while fostering individual growth and establishing engineering standards for scalable practices...

CanadaRemote

Today

  •   8 - 10 years exp.  •   Finance & Insurance

$135K - $180K *

Lead the charge in delivering complex projects with clarity and control. Drive client success through effective management of scope, budget, and timelines while fostering collaboration across diverse...

Chicago, ILRemote

2 days ago

  •   8 - 10 years exp.  •   Information Technology

$140K - $190K *

Drive innovation in healthcare analytics as a Senior Lead Software Engineer, leading product development, designing ETL processes, and mentoring a collaborative team to enhance patient outcomes throug...

Chicago, ILRemote

1 week ago

  •   5 - 7 years exp.  •   Business Services

$89K - $166K *

Drive strategic financial support for US Higher Education teams, blending FP&A ownership with commercial analysis. Collaborate across functions to enhance investment decisions and optimize financial m...

Hoboken, NJRemote

2 days ago

  •   5 - 7 years exp.  •   Education, Government & Non-Profit

$165K - $185K *

Accelerate progress at the forefront of test automation, driving quality and performance through innovative strategies and frameworks. Collaborate within an agile team to enhance product scalability a...

United StatesRemote

Reposted 2 days ago

  •   8 - 10 years exp.  •   Consumer Technology

$108K - $130K *

Build and maintain scalable backend services in a microservices architecture, leveraging modern programming languages and technologies to enhance critical banking domains and support product developme...

United StatesRemote

2 weeks ago

  •   Less than 5 years exp.  •   Enterprise Technology

$115K - $164K *

Elevate your software engineering career as you lead projects, enhance CI/CD workflows, and mentor team members, ensuring high quality and reliability in our autonomous driving technology initiatives...

RemoteRemote

Reposted 1 week ago

  •   Less than 5 years exp.  •   Manufacturing & Automotive

$110K - $130K *

Support our mission by enhancing our Atlassian ecosystem, optimizing user experience across Jira, JSM, and Confluence while ensuring robust integrations and maintaining system performance across the N...

United StatesRemote

3 weeks ago

  •   Less than 5 years exp.  •   Enterprise Technology

$115K - $150K *

Join a team that's shaping innovative mechanical solutions for prefabricated platforms. Leverage your expertise in HVAC to lead the development and ensure alignment with customer and operational goals...

United StatesRemote

Reposted 2 weeks ago

  •   5 - 7 years exp.  •   Enterprise Technology

$120K - $150K *

Drive your career with a dynamic team focused on building innovative products that delight users. As a Product Manager, you'll lead impactful projects, collaborate closely with engineers, and shape th...

RemoteRemote

Yesterday

  •   Less than 5 years exp.  •   Information Technology

$260K - $310K *

Transform the engineering landscape by leading dual teams in the Clinical Division, driving technical excellence and career growth, while effectively managing product delivery and leveraging AI capabi...

United StatesRemote

3 weeks ago

  •   5 - 7 years exp.  •   Healthcare

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

  • What does a Principal Software Engineer do?question toggle

    A Principal Software Engineer leads technical direction across significant systems or teams, making architecture decisions, solving complex engineering problems, and helping establish standards. The role is often an individual-contributor position, though responsibilities differ by company.

  • What qualifications are needed for Principal Software Engineer jobs?question toggle

    Employers typically look for extensive software engineering experience, advanced system design skills, proficiency in relevant technologies, and a record of delivering reliable, scalable systems. Communication, mentoring, and cross-functional influence are also commonly important.

  • How much do Principal Software Engineers earn?question toggle

    Pay varies based on location, industry, employer, specialization, and role scope. Ladders focuses on vetted professional jobs paying $100,000 or more; check individual listings for compensation details.

  • Are Principal Software Engineer roles management positions?question toggle

    Not necessarily. Many Principal Software Engineers are senior individual contributors who influence technical strategy and mentor colleagues without managing direct reports. Some companies combine technical leadership with management duties.

  • Where can I find Principal Software Engineer jobs paying $100,000 or more?question toggle

    Browse Principal Software Engineer listings on Ladders to explore vetted opportunities with salaries of $100,000 or more and compare roles by their requirements, responsibilities, and location.