This role pays more than
60%
of similar roles. Most pay
$174,600–$231,000
— the shaded band above.
At the midpoint, this role pays about
$209k
versus about
$203k
for comparable roles.
Based on 240 similar postings.
Employer
About Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is a global technology leader producing software, hardware, and cloud services including Windows, Office 365, Azure cloud platform, Xbox gaming, and Surface devices. Industry: Software & Cloud Computing
Microsoft currently has
598 open roles
on FindRole.
Listed pay typically runs
$119,800–$234,700
across 586 roles with salary data.
Principal Software Engineer - GitHub Platform & Enterprise
As a Principal Software Engineer on the GitHub Platform & Enterprise team, you will architect and deliver high-performance systems that power collaboration for millions of developers. You will drive technical execution from design through production, leading initiatives across distributed teams to build core infrastructure for GitHub Actions, Enterprise AI platforms, identity services, billing systems, Git systems, and database infrastructure. Your daily work involves designing and implementing APIs, developing comprehensive testing strategies, and ensuring operational excellence through monitoring and alert management. You will utilize a variety of programming languages including C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, Python, Go, and Ruby, along with scripting tools like Bash. The role focuses on solving complex problems in distributed systems, container orchestration, security, and large-scale infrastructure to support the next generation of AI-driven software development and enterprise-grade automation.
What does a Software Engineer earn?
Median $197500 from 2196 postings across 133 companies.
Design, develop, test, and ship high-quality technical solutions that scale across multiple GitHub services.
Provide technical leadership, mentorship, and code reviews to ensure team members produce maintainable code.
Own the health of systems by participating in on-call rotations and responding to live incidents.
Design and implement APIs to facilitate seamless integration between various software components.
Champion security by designing isolation mechanisms for untrusted code and ensuring compliance with enterprise requirements.
Drive operational excellence by improving system reliability, monitoring, alerting, and incident response times.
Develop technical roadmaps that align engineering efforts with product goals and strategic priorities.
What we're looking for
Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field and 6+ years of experience coding in languages like C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python.
Ability to pass the Microsoft Cloud background check every two years.
Master's Degree in Computer Science or related field and 8+ years of engineering experience (preferred).
Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related field and 12+ years of engineering experience (preferred).
At least 2 years of technical leadership experience (preferred).
At least 3 years of experience using general purpose programming languages like Go or Ruby (preferred).
At least 3 years of experience in scripting languages such as Bash or Python (preferred).
Experience building large-scale services, CI/CD systems, and participating in on-call rotations (preferred).