Explore senior software development engineer jobs with Ladders, where you can find vetted professional opportunities paying $100,000 or more. Senior software development engineers design, build, and maintain complex software systems while helping teams deliver reliable, scalable products. Browse roles across industries, technologies, and levels of technical leadership.
These experienced engineers translate product and business needs into robust technical solutions. Their work may include designing system architecture, writing and reviewing code, improving application performance, troubleshooting production issues, and guiding engineering teams through complex projects. Many roles also involve mentoring developers and partnering with product, design, security, and operations teams.
Employers commonly look for strong software design and programming experience, expertise in relevant languages and frameworks, and a record of delivering production systems. Depending on the role, useful qualifications may include cloud infrastructure, distributed systems, databases, API design, automated testing, DevOps practices, and security. Communication, technical judgment, and the ability to lead through influence are also important at the senior level.
Senior software development engineers work in technology, financial services, healthcare, e-commerce, media, and other sectors. Opportunities may focus on backend services, mobile or web applications, data platforms, infrastructure, machine learning systems, or developer tools. With experience, engineers can grow into staff or principal engineering roles, architecture positions, or engineering management.
Use Ladders to search vetted professional openings with salaries of $100,000 or more. Compare roles by technology, industry, location, and scope, then focus on opportunities that match your experience and career goals.
Senior Software Development Engineer
$95K - $115K *
Optimize service desk operations by leading incident management and ITSM processes. Drive efficiency through collaboration and continuous improvement, ensuring high-quality support and adherence to se...
4 days ago
Lead Application Development Engineer
$165K - $248K *
Innovate AI-driven engineering solutions to enhance developer productivity and software quality. Lead the design and integration of AI agents across the SDLC, ensuring scalable and secure workflows th...
2 weeks ago
Lead Application Development Engineer
$165K - $248K *
Pioneer innovative AI-driven solutions to enhance software development workflows, integrating advanced technologies to boost productivity and quality across engineering teams. Collaborate with cross-f...
2 weeks ago
$114K - $234K *
Elevate enterprise applications by building innovative platforms and tools that streamline critical business processes. Collaborate across disciplines to deliver impactful solutions in a fast-paced, e...
3 days ago
Software Development Engineer, ADC2S
$143K - $194K *
Drive innovation by designing and operating EC2 control-plane services in secure, air-gapped environments. Collaborate with engineers to enhance cloud infrastructure for government clients, ensuring r...
5 days ago
Software Development Engineer, ADC2S
$143K - $194K *
Drive innovation by automating AWS deployment processes, collaborating with teams to enhance system architecture, and solving complex engineering challenges that impact global customers and revenue...
5 days ago
Software Development Engineer, ADC2S
$143K - $194K *
Empower your career by joining a dynamic team focused on automating AWS deployments. Collaborate with innovative engineers to solve complex challenges, enhance operational efficiency, and drive impact...
5 days ago
Software Dev Engineer II, AWS QuickSight
$143K - $194K *
Transform the future of business intelligence by developing innovative, scalable solutions that leverage AI and enhance user experiences. Collaborate with a dynamic team to drive architectural decisio...
Yesterday
$162K - $207K *
Unlock potential by joining a dynamic team focused on enhancing trust in freight. As a Senior Software Engineer, you'll develop innovative solutions to protect our carrier network from fraud while ens...
5 days ago
$121K - $218K *
Champion the development and enhancement of Akamai's custom Linux kernel, ensuring performance, reliability, and security. Collaborate with global teams to innovate and automate solutions for our Clou...
5 days ago
Sr. Software Development Engineer
$156K - $234K *
Drive impactful design decisions and lead the development of scalable, high-performance AI model serving systems. Collaborate with teams to enhance infrastructure, optimize performance, and maintain r...
Reposted 1 week ago
Sr. Software Development Engineer
$156K - $234K *
Lead the charge in designing and scaling a high-performance AI model serving platform, ensuring reliability and efficiency while fostering an inclusive team culture. Drive impactful decisions that enh...
Reposted 1 week ago
Software Development Engineer, Network Product Development
$165K - $223K *
Join a team that's redefining cloud networking solutions to optimize performance, reliability, and scalability. Collaborate with engineers and experts to develop reliable embedded software for network...
Reposted 3 weeks ago
$130K - $155K *
Elevate software engineering solutions by architecting and integrating advanced testing platforms across diverse semiconductor environments, ensuring high-quality, reliable execution and fostering tec...
Reposted 3 weeks ago
Software Development Engineer, International Seller Growth
$143K - $194K *
Elevate innovation by architecting an AI-native platform that transforms user experiences globally. Collaborate with cross-functional teams to build intelligent solutions that drive measurable busines...
1 week ago
Staff Software Development Engineer
$150K - $180K *
Optimize the software delivery lifecycle by designing and building systems that enhance developer productivity, compliance, and the use of AI, ensuring robust support for all roles creating software a...
4 weeks ago
$187K - $253K *
Unlock potential by developing innovative solutions for advanced model serving, ensuring optimal performance and reliability while collaborating with teams to drive technical excellence and future inf...
2 weeks ago
Sr. Systems Development Engineer, Trainium Systems
$151K - $204K *
Lead the charge in building and managing software for large-scale AI infrastructure, ensuring seamless operation, monitoring, and updates. Collaborate with teams to deliver robust solutions that enhan...
Yesterday
Staff Software Development Engineer
$140K - $173K *
Innovate by solving complex problems and building cloud-native solutions. Collaborate in an agile environment, delivering impactful software while utilizing modern technologies related to AI, Java, AW...
4 weeks ago
Staff Software Development Engineer
$140K - $173K *
Build innovative cloud-native solutions with a talented engineering team, leveraging AI technologies, Java, and AWS to deliver scalable, reliable applications while driving impactful contributions to...
4 weeks ago
Staff Software Development Engineer
$140K - $173K *
Lead the charge in crafting cutting-edge, cloud-native solutions that enhance customer experiences while optimizing backend services and architecture with a collaborative engineering team of experts i...
4 weeks ago
Staff Software Development Engineer
$140K - $173K *
Unlock potential by designing innovative cloud-native solutions. Collaborate with a skilled team to leverage modern technologies like Java, AWS, and Kafka while delivering impactful software for custo...
4 weeks ago
Sr Software Development Engineer
$133K - $212K *
Optimize the performance and reliability of a live-service platform by designing scalable solutions in C#/.Net and Kubernetes, enhancing observability, and improving developer experience for internal...
6 days ago
Software Development Engineer, Selling Partner Experience Core Services
$143K - $194K *
Unlock potential by owning end-to-end software solutions that enhance seller experiences. Collaborate with cross-functional teams to design, build, and maintain systems that simplify product listings...
2 weeks ago
Sr. Software Development Engineer, DC Console
$168K - $227K *
Lead the architectural vision for a platform enabling seamless data center operations. Collaborate across teams to enhance user experiences, drive self-service onboarding, and mentor engineers while e...
1 week ago
What does a senior software development engineer do?
A senior software development engineer designs, builds, tests, and maintains software systems. They often make architecture decisions, solve complex technical problems, review code, mentor teammates, and coordinate with other departments to deliver reliable products.
What qualifications are typically required for senior software development engineer jobs?
Requirements vary, but employers generally seek substantial professional software engineering experience, proficiency in one or more programming languages, and a history of delivering production applications or systems. Familiarity with system design, cloud platforms, databases, testing, and technical leadership may also be expected.
How much do senior software development engineer jobs pay?
Compensation depends on factors such as location, industry, experience, and technical specialty. Ladders focuses on vetted professional jobs paying $100,000 or more, including senior software development engineer opportunities.
What is the difference between a senior software engineer and a senior software development engineer?
The titles often describe similar work, and employers may use them interchangeably. Responsibilities typically include designing and developing software, though the exact emphasis depends on the company and team.
What career paths can follow a senior software development engineer role?
Experienced engineers may advance to staff or principal engineer, software architect, or other technical leadership positions. Those interested in people management may move into engineering manager or director roles.