Cloud Engineer salary

Q: How much does a cloud engineer make?

The median cloud engineer salary in the U.S. is about $128,000 per year. Most cloud engineers earn between $85,000 and $198,000, and top earners (90th percentile) make $198,000 or more. Cloud Engineer is a newer title that standard salary surveys don't track on its own, so these figures are labeled, mapped estimates benchmarked against closely related engineering work.

Q: What is the highest cloud engineer salary?

Top-earning cloud engineers (90th percentile) make about $198,000 or more nationally. In the highest-paying metros, estimated cloud engineer pay can run even higher — for example around $189,440 (median) in San Jose. Metro figures are cost-of-labor estimates, not direct BLS metro data.

Q: How much do entry-level cloud engineers make?

Entry-level cloud engineers (0–2 years) earn about $100,000 per year, rising to roughly $138,000 at mid-level and $173,000+ at the principal/staff level. These by-experience figures are modeled estimates based on typical engineering career progression.

Q: Do cloud engineers make good money?

Yes. The median cloud engineer salary of $128,000 is 10% above the roughly $116,537 median across engineering occupations, and experienced cloud engineers can earn $198,000 or more.

Q: Which cities pay cloud engineers the most?

Estimated cloud engineer pay is highest in San Jose ($189,440), San Francisco ($181,760), Seattle ($166,400). These are cost-of-labor estimates that adjust the national baseline by local wage levels — not direct BLS metro wages.

Mapped est.

Updated January 2025

Cloud engineers design, build, and operate applications and infrastructure on cloud platforms like AWS, Azure, and GCP — keeping systems scalable, secure, and cost-efficient.

Median pay

$128,000

U.S. typical

Top earners

$198,000

90th percentile

Entry level

$100,000

0–2 yrs

Senior

$173,000

15+ yrs

The median cloud engineer salary in the U.S. is about $128,000 per year. Entry-level pay starts near $85,000, while top earners (90th percentile) make $198,000 or more. Cloud Engineeris a newer title that standard salary surveys don't track on its own, so this figure is a labeled estimate benchmarked against closely related engineering work.

Median annual wage

$128,000

Mean

$134,000

10th pct · $85,00090th pct · $198,000

What cloud engineers do

Architect and provision cloud infrastructure, automate deployments with IaC, manage networking and security, and optimize cost and reliability.

Cloud engineers design, build, and operate applications and infrastructure on cloud platforms like AWS, Azure, and GCP — keeping systems scalable, secure, and cost-efficient.

What affects cloud engineer pay

▹Cloud platform depth (AWS/Azure/GCP) and certifications
▹Company type (Big Tech and cloud-native vs. enterprise)
▹Years of experience and seniority
▹Specialization (security, data platform, platform engineering)
▹Metro cost of labor

Cloud Engineer salary by experience

Pay typically climbs from about $100,000 for entry level engineers to $173,000+ at the principal / staff level.

Entry level 0–2 yrs

$100,000

Early career 3–5 yrs

$120,500

Mid level 6–9 yrs

$138,000

Senior 10–14 yrs

$156,000

Principal / Staff 15+ yrs

$173,000

Your actual offer depends on company, location, and specialization — run the calculator for a tailored range.

Highest-paying cities for cloud engineers

Estimated cloud engineer pay in the top-paying metros, vs the national median.

8results

Metro	State	Median	90th pct	vs U.S.	Data
San Jose California	CA	$189,440	$293,040	+48%	Estimate
San Francisco California	CA	$181,760	$281,160	+42%	Estimate
Seattle Washington	WA	$166,400	$257,400	+30%	Estimate
New York City New York	NY	$161,280	$249,480	+26%	Estimate
Boston Massachusetts	MA	$156,160	$241,560	+22%	Estimate
Washington, D.C. District of Columbia	DC	$153,600	$237,600	+20%	Estimate
Los Angeles California	CA	$151,040	$233,640	+18%	Estimate
San Diego California	CA	$147,200	$227,700	+15%	Estimate

Cloud Engineer salary by state

State	Est. median	Est. 90th pct
California	$158,720	$245,520
Texas	$133,120	$205,920
New York	$145,920	$225,720
Washington	$151,040	$233,640
Massachusetts	$148,480	$229,680

State figures are estimates — open a state for its full city-by-city breakdown.

Cloud Engineer salary — frequently asked questions

How much does a cloud engineer make?

The median cloud engineer salary in the U.S. is about $128,000 per year. Most cloud engineers earn between $85,000 and $198,000, and top earners (90th percentile) make $198,000 or more. Cloud Engineer is a newer title that standard salary surveys don't track on its own, so these figures are labeled, mapped estimates benchmarked against closely related engineering work.

What is the highest cloud engineer salary?

Top-earning cloud engineers (90th percentile) make about $198,000 or more nationally. In the highest-paying metros, estimated pay can run even higher — for example around $189,440 in San Jose. Metro figures are cost-of-labor estimates, not direct BLS metro data.

How much do entry-level cloud engineers make?

Entry-level cloud engineers (0–2 years) earn about $100,000 per year, rising to roughly $138,000 at mid-level and $173,000+ at the principal/staff level. These by-experience figures are modeled estimates based on typical engineering career progression.

Do cloud engineers make good money?

Yes. The median cloud engineer salary of $128,000 is 10% above the roughly $116,537 median across engineering occupations, and experienced cloud engineers can earn $198,000 or more.

Which cities pay cloud engineers the most?

Estimated cloud engineer pay is highest in San Jose ($189,440), San Francisco ($181,760), and Seattle ($166,400). These are cost-of-labor estimates that adjust the national baseline by local wage levels — not direct BLS metro wages.

How can a cloud engineer earn more?

Cloud Engineer pay rises most with cloud platform depth (aws/azure/gcp) and certifications, company type (big tech and cloud-native vs. enterprise), and years of experience and seniority. Moving to a higher-cost metro, specializing, and taking on senior or lead scope are the biggest levers — the salary calculator lets you model each one.

Source details

Cloud Engineer is not a BLS-tracked title. Mapped to BLS SOC 15-1252 Software Developers. Not a direct BLS-tracked title — treat as an estimate.

Benchmarks come from published government wage data via BLS OEWS. Local and emerging-role figures are labeled estimates. Full methodology →