below marketmost similar roles pay hereabove market
This role pays more than
87%
of similar roles. Most pay
$165,000–$214,500
— the blue band above.
At the midpoint, this role pays about
$214k
versus about
$190k
for comparable roles.
Based on 240 similar postings.
Employer
About Walmart
Walmart Inc. is the world''s largest retailer by revenue, operating a chain of hypermarkets, discount department stores, and grocery stores, as well as a growing e-commerce presence through Walmart.com. Industry: General Merchandise & Grocery Retail
Walmart currently has
825 open roles
on FindRole.
Listed pay typically runs
$121,000–$242,000
across 473 roles with salary data.
The (USA) Principal, Software Engineer joins the team developing and scaling core platform services for high-traffic systems. This hands-on technical leadership role involves leading complex projects, translating requirements into innovative solutions, and overseeing the full software development lifecycle. You will build scalable infrastructure, reusable tooling, and cloud-native architectures, specifically focusing on microservices for critical customer transactions like cart building and checkout processes. You will also architect AI-enhanced applications, including LLM-driven automation and agentic workflows. The role requires proficiency in Java, Python, C++, Spring Boot, NoSQL databases, Kafka, and cloud platforms like Azure and GCP. You will solve technical problems by integrating AI to enhance system intelligence and engineering efficiency while ensuring system reliability and performance across distributed systems.
What does a Software Engineer earn in California?
Median $214500 from 1193 postings across 76 companies.
Lead platform engineering efforts to deliver scalable infrastructure and cloud-native architectures.
Drive full software development lifecycle activities including design, coding, testing, and deployment.
Architect and implement AI-enhanced applications and intelligent systems for millions of users.
Build AI-powered capabilities such as LLM-driven automation, agentic workflows, and anomaly detection.
Translate business needs into actionable technical requirements and measurable outcomes for stakeholders.
Provide technical leadership and mentorship to engineering teams to promote best practices.
Maintain architectural documentation to ensure transparency and alignment across the organization.
Optimize processes and integrate new technologies to foster continuous improvement.
What we're looking for
Option 1: Bachelor's degree in computer science, computer engineering, computer information systems, software engineering, or related area and 5 years’ experience in software engineering or related area.
Option 2: 7 years’ experience in software engineering or related area.
Master’s degree in computer science, computer engineering, computer information systems, software engineering, or related area and 3 years' experience in software engineering or related area (preferred).
Extensive experience in platform engineering leadership, delivering scalable, cloud-native architectures and reusable tooling.
Proven expertise in software development lifecycle management, including CI/CD, testing, observability, and incident response.
Strong proficiency in AI/ML integration and building intelligent software systems using languages such as Python, Java, and C++.
Experience with MCP or similar patterns for connecting AI agents to enterprise systems and tools.
Knowledge of implementing Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 AA standards and assistive technologies (preferred).
Cloud-native Architecture
Distributed Systems
AI/ML
CI/CD
Platform Engineering
Real-time Data Processing
Observability
Model-driven Design
AI Agents
WCAG) 2.2 AA
Python
Java
C++
AI/ML
Cloud-native Architecture
Distributed Systems
CI/CD
Platform Engineering
Software Development Lifecycle
Monitoring
Incident Management
Real-time Data Processing
WCAG) 2.2 AA