This role pays more than
88%
of similar roles. Most pay
$172,987–$220,800
— the shaded band above.
At the midpoint, this role pays about
$242k
versus about
$197k
for comparable roles.
Based on 240 similar postings.
Employer
About SpaceX
SpaceX designs, manufactures, and launches advanced rockets and spacecraft with the mission of enabling humans to become a multi-planetary species. It operates the Falcon 9, Falcon Heavy, and Starship launch vehicles, as well as the Starlink satellite internet constellation.
SpaceX currently has
680 open roles
on FindRole.
Listed pay typically runs
$130,000–$165,000
across 442 roles with salary data.
As a Principal Software Engineer on the Platform Team, you will define the technical vision and architecture for foundational tooling and security infrastructure designed to empower the organization with AI capabilities. You will lead high-impact initiatives including onboarding frontier models, scaling massive compute capacity, and optimizing proxy systems for logging, control, and security. Your daily work involves building secure gateways, developing risk-mitigation tools like intelligent code reviews and PR assistants, and creating reusable assets to drive AI-first workflows. The role requires expertise in Python, Docker, Kubernetes, MLOps, infrastructure-as-code, and zero-trust security models. You will solve complex problems regarding reliable data storage and automated systems while managing multi-cloud integrations. This position focuses on building the scalable infrastructure necessary to convert engineering knowledge into production software and trusted AI capabilities across the entire company.
What does a Software Engineer earn in Washington?
Median $202800 from 326 postings across 28 companies.