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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Forward Deployed Engineer (Principal)
$132K - $211K *
Unlock potential by serving as a key technical leader, bridging engineering and enterprise architecture to eliminate adoption friction and enhance cloud-native infrastructure and AI platform deploymen...
Reposted 2 weeks ago
Senior Software Engineer - Agent Team
$140K - $190K *
Empower your career by developing innovative solutions for a cloud-native platform, enhancing endpoint management for global clients. Collaborate with a dynamic team to drive impactful features and en...
Yesterday
$135K - $190K *
Join a dynamic team to shape the future of cybersecurity solutions across the Americas. As a Senior Solution Engineer, you'll engage deeply with clients, deliver tailored demonstrations, and lead tech...
Reposted 3 weeks ago
$162K - $178K *
Drive strategic product development to meet growth goals, prioritizing user impact and results while collaborating with cross-functional teams to deliver innovative solutions that resonate with both B...
4 weeks ago
Senior Engineer– ERCOT Modeling Team
$110K - $130K *
Champion the future of energy by leading a team of power system engineers. Oversee client projects, drive business development, and enhance capabilities within the organization while ensuring high-qua...
4 weeks ago
$145K - $175K *
Transform your career by architecting secure, scalable Azure solutions that drive modern application delivery. Collaborate with diverse teams to develop automation and enhance cloud services while lev...
3 weeks ago
Lead Infrastructure Engineer - Hybrid Cloud & Automation Solutions
$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...
2 weeks ago
Lead Infrastructure Engineer - Hybrid Cloud & Automation Solutions
$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...
2 weeks ago
Senior Manager, Solutions Architecture
$120K - $145K *
Unlock potential by leading architecture in sales and implementations. Collaborate with clients and teams to drive technical excellence, enhance projects, and innovate solutions across multiple platfo...
Reposted 3 weeks ago
Senior Murex Integration Specialist
$80K - $135K *
Lead the implementation and integration of Murex solutions, contributing to project success by leveraging expertise in Murex technologies and capital markets, ensuring seamless data flow and optimizin...
Reposted 2 weeks ago
$125K - $150K *
Advance your career by driving the development of innovative features and scalable technology. Collaborate with cross-functional teams to enhance our core platform, ensuring impactful solutions that t...
2 weeks ago
$125K - $150K *
Explore an impactful role as a Senior Full Stack Engineer, driving innovation at the intersection of technology and healthcare. Collaborate cross-functionally to build and enhance our core platform, s...
Reposted 3 weeks ago
Engineering Manager, Customer Trust - Canada
$125K - $150K *
Join a team that's redefining customer trust through innovative engineering. Lead squads to automate security assessments, driving strategic roadmaps while fostering a high-accountability culture and...
2 weeks ago
Director Analytics Engineering
$204K - $306K *
Reimagine data foundations with us as you lead our analytics engineering team, guiding data modeling, governance, and AI initiatives. Influence cross-functional collaboration and empower business insi...
Reposted 3 weeks ago
Software Engineer, Ingestion Platform
$164K - $229K *
Unlock potential by creating scalable, fault-tolerant data systems to support ML and analytics workflows, enabling efficient data processing for critical teams at a leading tech company. Collaborate a...
Reposted 2 days ago
$175K - $270K *
Oversee the strategy and development of data products, driving market execution and collaboration across teams to enhance audience targeting and measurement capabilities for agencies and brands...
3 weeks ago
Director of Customer Experience Operations
$110K - $130K *
Partner with us to transform customer experience operations into a seamless, data-driven journey. Your leadership will unify departments for consistency, enabling effective strategies that enhance cus...
Reposted 1 week ago
Software Engineer/Senior Software Engineer (Full Stack)
$110K - $130K *
Join a dynamic team as a Full Stack Software Engineer, where you'll design, build, and enhance tools for public agencies. Collaborate across the tech stack to solve real-world problems and drive impac...
2 weeks ago
Senior DevOps Engineer (Active Secret Clearance)
$185K - $230K *
Lead the charge in optimizing cloud and on-prem environments, ensuring seamless software deployments and enhancements. Collaborate with cross-functional teams to drive innovative solutions and support...
Reposted 4 weeks ago
Principal Cloud Engineer Azure
$100K - $220K *
Empower your career by engineering scalable Azure cloud infrastructure and services. Collaborate cross-functionally in agile teams to deliver innovative solutions while ensuring best practices in secu...
Reposted today
$100K - $120K *
Unlock potential by leveraging your expertise in data analysis and psychometrics to drive innovative assessment solutions. Collaborate with a dynamic team to enhance educational outcomes through advan...
2 weeks ago
Business Development Leader - Software & PLC Solutions
$105K - $160K *
Unlock potential by driving growth in industrial software and PLC solutions. Shape market strategies, build customer relationships, and collaborate with sales teams to enhance market penetration and a...
1 week ago
Senior Project Manager, Marketing PMO
$110K - $130K *
Lead complex, cross-functional marketing initiatives from planning to execution, driving accountability and collaboration across teams while enhancing project management processes and methodologies fo...
1 week ago
Senior Product Manager, Integrations
$135K - $160K *
Elevate customer experiences by driving the integrations roadmap, enhancing capabilities, and collaborating across teams to deliver impactful solutions that meet compliance needs and improve product o...
2 weeks ago
$95K - $114K *
Join a dynamic team to design and optimize data systems for AI/ML applications, enhancing Navy IT operations. Collaborate with engineers to ensure reliable data processing and support mission-critical...
1 week ago
What does a Principal Software Engineer do?
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?
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?
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?
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?
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.