SaaS Salary Benchmarks

Data Engineer Salary Benchmarks

Compensation data for the Data Engineer role at US SaaS companies, based on 111 verified salaries.

Quartile breakdownAll SaaS roles
Base salary · US SaaS111 salaries
$49,942
Median base salary
Bottom 25% avg$19,816Top 25% avg$29,250,306
Average base salary
$7,938,645
Typical range (P25–P75)
$31,805–$114,072
Salaries analyzed
111

Hiring for this role? At the median, one Data Engineer costs $49,942 a year in base salary.

See what your revenue can fund
Overview
111 salaries

Data Engineer Salary Overview

Bottom 25% AverageAverage of the lowest-paid quarter · 28 salaries
$19,816
Middle 50% AverageAverage of the middle half · 53 salaries
$58,972
Top 25% AverageAverage of the highest-paid quarter · 30 salaries
$29,250,306

Median Data Engineer base pay by pay period

Per year
$49,942
Per month
$4,162
Every two weeks
$1,921
Per hour
$24.01
Base-pay equivalents before tax; hourly assumes 2,080 working hours a year.

Data Engineer salaries at SaaS companies average $7,938,645, with typical salaries ranging from $31,805 to $114,072. Based on 111 real salary data points from SaaS companies.

Quartile bands
Employees · annualized base

Detailed Data Engineer Compensation Breakdown

Data Engineer base salary by percentile band
Percentile BandSalary rangeAverage Base Salary# of salaries
Top 25%$114,072 and up$29,250,30630 salaries
Middle 50%$31,805–$114,072$58,97253 salaries
Bottom 25%Under $31,805$19,81628 salaries
By seniority
Employees · median base

Data Engineer Salary by Seniority Level

Median base salary for each Data Engineer level with its own benchmark, from Data Engineer to Senior Data Engineer. Step-up compares each median with the level below.

Data Engineer base salary by seniority level
LevelMedian baseStep-up
Data EngineerThis page$49,942—
Senior Data Engineer$130,000*+160%
* Fewer than 50 salaries: a small sample, so expect this level's figures to move more between data refreshes.
Hiring budget
Base salary · fully loaded

What Does a Data Engineer Cost to Hire?

Budget for Data Engineer hires at the 25th percentile, median and 75th percentile of this benchmark, as base salary and as fully loaded cost.

Pay level
Hires
1

One Data Engineer hire at the median: $49,942 a year in base salary, $62,428–$69,919 fully loaded.

Cost of one hire by pay level
Per hireP25MedianP75
Base salary / year$31,805$49,942$114,072
Base salary / month$2,650$4,162$9,506
Fully loaded / year1.25–1.4× base$39,756–$44,527$62,428–$69,919$142,590–$159,701
Fully loaded / month1.25–1.4× base$3,313–$3,711$5,202–$5,827$11,883–$13,308
Fully loaded adds employer payroll taxes, health and retirement benefits, software seats, and equipment at 1.25–1.4× base salary. That multiplier is a planning rule of thumb applied to this benchmark, not a surveyed cost figure. Commission, bonus, equity, and recruiting fees are not included.

Fund this hire from revenue: see what your ARR qualifies for.

Check your terms
Key insights

Data Engineer Pay by the Numbers

  • The middle half of Data Engineer salaries spans $31,805–$114,072: a $82,267 spread, 165% of the $49,942 median.
  • A 75th-percentile Data Engineer earns 3.6× the 25th-percentile salary.
  • The Data Engineer median is 53% below the median Engineering & Product role ($107,320 across 63 roles).

What Drives Higher Data Engineer Pay?

  • Years of experience and proven track record
  • Company stage and funding (later stage typically pays more)
  • Technical expertise and specialization
  • Location and remote work policies
FAQ
Data Engineer salary

On a median base salary of $49,942, a Data Engineer at a US SaaS company makes about $4,162 a month, $1,921 every two weeks, or $24.01 an hour over 2,080 working hours a year. The middle half of salaries (25th–75th percentile) works out to $2,650–$9,506 a month. These are base-pay equivalents before tax, and they leave out bonus, commission, and equity.

Expect the lower half of this benchmark. Across 111 verified SaaS Data Engineer salaries, the 25th percentile is $31,805 and the median is $49,942. A Data Engineer at a seed or Series A startup, or at a bootstrapped company under roughly $10M ARR, will often land between those two figures. Base pay typically moves toward and past the $114,072 75th percentile as the company adds headcount and ARR. Those stage bands are a rule of thumb applied to this benchmark, not a breakdown by company size, which the dataset does not report.

Budget for more than base salary. On a median base of $49,942, the fully loaded cost of a US Data Engineer is roughly $62,428–$69,919 per year once employer payroll taxes (~7.65% FICA plus federal and state unemployment), health and retirement benefits, software seats, and equipment are added. That 1.25–1.4x multiplier is a planning rule of thumb applied to the benchmark on this page, not a surveyed cost figure. Commission, bonuses, and equity sit on top where the role carries them. Also budget one-off hiring costs: agency recruiting fees commonly run 15–25% of first-year base, and a new hire takes weeks to months to reach full productivity.

Hiring for this role? See what your revenue qualifies you for.

Check your terms
Keep exploring
Back to All Salary Benchmarks

Similar Roles and Pay

Founderpath

Ready to benchmark your own company?

Get personalized salary insights and funding options.

Compare your compensation structure with industry benchmarks and discover funding options tailored to your SaaS business. Use our startup compensation benchmarks and SaaS salary benchmarks to make data-driven decisions about your compensation packages and hiring strategy.

Explore Founderpath

Compare your compensation structure with similar SaaS companies at your stage, size, and geography. Use our startup compensation benchmarks and SaaS salary benchmarks to ensure competitive pay that aligns with market rates. Our benchmarking tools provide real-time compensation data to help you make informed decisions.

Salary benchmarks are industry-standard compensation data that help you understand market rates for specific roles. They matter because they ensure you offer competitive compensation packages that attract top talent while maintaining healthy cash flow. Our SaaS salary benchmarks include medians, quartiles, and typical ranges (P25–P75) for accurate comparisons.

Set competitive salaries that attract top talent while maintaining healthy cash flow and runway. Access real compensation data and benchmarking best practices to make informed decisions about your compensation packages. Use compensation benchmarks to determine the right salary range for each role.

Get personalized funding recommendations based on your company metrics and growth trajectory. Our compensation benchmarking tools help you understand how your salary structure impacts your funding options. Investors want to see that your compensation aligns with industry benchmarks.

Monitor cash flow, runway, and key metrics in one dashboard that updates automatically. Use compensation benchmarks to ensure your salary data supports sustainable growth. Benchmarking compensation helps you balance competitive pay with financial sustainability.

Generate professional reports and insights that investors want to see — no manual work required. Show how your compensation benchmarking aligns with industry standards and supports your growth strategy. Demonstrate that you use compensation data to make strategic hiring decisions.