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 Principal Software Development Engineer, Consumer AI Architect
$191K - $239K *
Elevate consumer experiences by driving AI innovations and technical direction across engineering teams, enhancing high-traffic services for millions. Mentor talent, establish best practices, and deli...
Reposted 2 weeks ago
Senior Software Engineer I, Data Storage
$159K - $215K *
Optimize integration processes to empower teams in utilizing Data and ML systems. Collaborate across functions to build solutions that enhance product capabilities, reduce friction, and provide valuab...
Reposted 2 weeks ago
Sr. Software Dev Engineer, Corporate Development Finance
$168K - $227K *
Manage and optimize the Investment Management System, ensuring accuracy and timely data integration across teams. Lead a technical team to design services and applications, driving stakeholder collabo...
5 days ago
Senior Software Engineer - Mobile Development
$110K - $130K *
Drive the development of innovative mobile software solutions while mentoring junior engineers and leading complex projects. Collaborate on technical direction and enhance product capabilities through...
2 weeks ago
Senior Software Enginering - Mk8S/Control Plane
$150K - $180K *
Explore the forefront of AI infrastructure as you design and maintain scalable Kubernetes services. Collaborate across teams to enhance reliability and automation, driving innovation in GPU-accelerate...
2 weeks ago
Senior Software Enginering - Mk8S/Control Plane
$145K - $175K *
Drive the development of scalable Kubernetes infrastructure, enhancing automation and reliability for AI workloads. Collaborate across teams to build resilient systems that support mission-critical ap...
2 weeks ago
Senior Software Enginering - Mk8S/Control Plane
$150K - $180K *
Pioneer the future of AI infrastructure by designing and building scalable Kubernetes solutions. Collaborate with cross-functional teams to enhance reliability and automation, driving innovation in GP...
2 weeks ago
Senior Software Engineer - SDN
$150K - $180K *
Contribute to our network platform's evolution by designing robust software for a high-performance cloud infrastructure. Collaborate on automating SDN and developing scalable solutions to enhance our...
Reposted 2 weeks ago
Software Development Engineer III
$113K - $147K *
Elevate your career in Software Development by driving innovative solutions through the entire software lifecycle. Collaborate in an agile environment to enhance quality software for leading technolog...
2 weeks ago
Senior Manager, Software Engineering
$225K - $265K *
Partner with us to lead a high-performing engineering team, driving innovation and efficiency in our travel marketplace. You'll manage project lifecycles, enhance collaboration, and champion a custome...
1 week ago
Software Development Engineer III, AFX Planning Tools
$168K - $227K *
Champion the design and delivery of scalable software solutions, leading complex projects while mentoring engineers and collaborating across teams to drive best practices and innovation in a dynamic e...
1 week ago
System Software Development Engineer
$149K - $211K *
Lead the charge in developing and optimizing system software across multiple layers, collaborating with cross-functional teams to deliver innovative solutions for next-generation computing systems whi...
1 week ago
System Software Development Engineer
$149K - $211K *
Join a dynamic team to design and develop innovative software solutions across multiple layers of the system stack, collaborating with cross-functional teams to enhance next-gen computing systems and...
1 week ago
Software Development Manager, Infra AGE
$184K - $250K *
Join a dynamic team to lead software development initiatives, driving operational excellence and innovation for U.S. Intelligence Community agencies. Oversee product lifecycles and mentor engineers to...
5 days ago
Software Development Manager, Infra AGE
$184K - $250K *
Join a team that's driving innovative cloud solutions for U.S. Intelligence agencies. Oversee software development, manage engineering teams, and ensure operational excellence while delivering high-qu...
1 week ago
Sr Software Development Engineer (US Federal)
$163K - $245K *
Join a team that builds and maintains a cutting-edge Kubernetes platform, ensuring high availability and security while collaborating across teams. Leverage your technical expertise in cloud infrastru...
Reposted 3 weeks ago
Senior Software Development Engineer
$184K - $258K *
Transform backend services by leveraging AI to enhance architecture, quality, and operational excellence. Collaborate with cross-functional teams to deliver scalable solutions that drive value for tra...
2 weeks ago
Senior Software Development Engineer
$184K - $258K *
Join a dynamic team to design and deliver scalable software solutions that enhance traveler and partner experiences through reliable inventory data and innovative technology integration...
2 weeks ago
Software Dev Engineer, AWS Hardware Engineering
$143K - $194K *
Shape the future of cloud technology by developing innovative solutions that enhance the AWS platform's capacity and security. Collaborate with cross-functional teams to deliver high-impact projects t...
Reposted 1 month ago
Software Development Manager, Data Center Automation Services
$184K - $250K *
Join a team that's shaping the future of industrial automation software. Lead and mentor engineers to build high-performing applications for mission-critical data center operations, driving innovation...
2 weeks ago
Software Development Engineer II, TAIS - DMR
$143K - $194K *
Empower your career by developing innovative software solutions for large-scale data management. Collaborate with a skilled team to enhance network monitoring systems and deliver high-quality services...
1 week ago
Software Development Engineer, Ads Campaign Management
$158K - $213K *
Unlock potential by designing scalable architectures for high-velocity APIs, enhancing global ad experiences, and leveraging cutting-edge AI technologies to deliver strategic insights with minimal lat...
Yesterday
Software Engineer - Data Platform
$113K - $191K *
Innovate by designing and operating scalable data infrastructure for petabytes of data, enabling customer-facing features and analytics across global industries, while enhancing systems for reliabilit...
Reposted 3 weeks ago
Senior AI Software Development Engineer
$149K - $275K *
Elevate your career by leading optimization strategies for AI software solutions. Collaborate across teams to enhance performance and scalability of AI inference workloads on Intel GPU platforms, driv...
1 week ago
Senior AI Software Development Engineer
$149K - $275K *
Drive innovation in AI systems by optimizing software solutions for high-performance inference workloads. Collaborate across teams to enhance scalability and efficiency, while mentoring engineers and...
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.