Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH · CBSA 14460
Software Engineer Salary in Boston
VerifiedPublished metro-area wages for software engineers in Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH, from the BLS OEWS May 2024 release — with the local distribution set against Massachusetts and the national benchmark.
Software Engineers in Boston earn a median of $154,240 per year, per BLS OEWS May 2024. The middle 50% earn $127,460–$172,970; the top 10% earn $208,590. That is 16% above the national median and 2% above the Massachusetts median. BLS reports 48,200 employed locally.
Median wage
Verified$154,240
+16% vs national
Top 10% earn
$208,590
90th percentile
Employed in metro
48,200
Reliability High (2.9% RSE)
Software Engineer pay — Boston vs Massachusetts vs national
All three distributions are published BLS percentiles on a single shared scale.
| Percentile | Annual wage | vs national |
|---|---|---|
| 10th percentileentry / low | $99,840 | +25% |
| 25th percentile | $127,460 | +24% |
| Median50th percentile | $154,240 | +16% |
| 75th percentile | $172,970 | +2% |
| 90th percentiletop earners | $208,590 | -1% |
| Meanaverage | $154,840 | +7% |
How concentrated software engineers are in Boston
Location quotient compares local concentration to the national rate. Above 1.00 means this metro employs the occupation more densely than the country overall.
Location quotient
1.66
Jobs per 1,000
17.80
Metro rank (pay)
#10 of 381
All engineering roles
$137,589
At a location quotient of 1.66, Boston is a genuine hub for this discipline — the occupation is roughly 1.7× as concentrated here as nationally, which usually means deeper employer competition and more lateral options.
Frequently asked questions
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Source details
Published wage from BLS OEWS May 2024 for SOC 15-1252 (Software Developers), Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH (metro area).
Benchmarks come from published government wage data via BLS OEWS. Local and emerging-role figures are labeled estimates. Full methodology →