Software Developers: Career Overview
Research, design, and develop computer and network software or specialized utility programs. Analyze user needs and develop software solutions, applying principles and techniques of computer science, engineering, and mathematical analysis. Update software or enhance existing software capabilities. May work with computer hardware engineers to integrate hardware and software systems, and develop specifications and performance requirements. May maintain databases within an application area, working individually or coordinating database development as part of a team.
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What Tasks Do Software Developers Do?
The day-to-day responsibilities of software developers include:
- Analyze user needs and software requirements to determine feasibility of design within time and cost constraints.
- Develop or direct software system testing or validation procedures, programming, or documentation.
- Confer with systems analysts, engineers, programmers and others to design systems and to obtain information on project limitations and capabilities, performance requirements and interfaces.
- Modify existing software to correct errors, adapt it to new hardware, or upgrade interfaces and improve performance.
- Prepare reports or correspondence concerning project specifications, activities, or status.
- Analyze information to determine, recommend, and plan installation of a new system or modification of an existing system.
- Store, retrieve, and manipulate data for analysis of system capabilities and requirements.
- Design, develop and modify software systems, using scientific analysis and mathematical models to predict and measure outcomes and consequences of design.
Key Skills and Knowledge
Effective software developers combine a mix of skills and domain knowledge.
Top Skills
These are the skills most important for this role, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:
Top Knowledge Areas
Other Software Developers Job Titles
People in this occupation may also be known by titles such as:
- AI Specialist (Artificial Intelligence Specialist)
- Application Analyst
- Application Architect
- Application Developer
- Application Engineer
- Application Integration Engineer
- Application Integrator
- Application Programmer
Employment and Demand
There are roughly 127,793 software developers working in the United States today. Employment is projected to grow by +13.5% over the projection horizon.
How Much Do Software Developers Make?
| Statistic | Value |
|---|---|
| Annual median | $76,447 |
| Hourly median | $36.75 |
| 10th percentile | $45,951 |
| 25th percentile | $61,199 |
| 75th percentile | $91,695 |
| 90th percentile | $106,943 |
Pay can vary substantially based on experience, location, and industry.
Pay by State
| State | Annual median salary |
|---|---|
| California | $170,910 |
| Washington | $166,910 |
| Virgin Islands | $162,820 |
| New York | $161,260 |
| Massachusetts | $150,520 |
| Maryland | $137,890 |
| District of Columbia | $136,040 |
| Oregon | $135,260 |
| Delaware | $135,160 |
| Colorado | $134,540 |
| Virginia | $134,470 |
| New Hampshire | $132,420 |
| New Jersey | $132,400 |
| North Carolina | $131,000 |
| Connecticut | $130,870 |
| Vermont | $130,720 |
| Texas | $130,500 |
| Nevada | $129,030 |
| Georgia | $128,920 |
| Arizona | $128,690 |
| Rhode Island | $128,660 |
| Illinois | $127,770 |
| Utah | $127,390 |
| Florida | $126,550 |
| Minnesota | $124,540 |
| Pennsylvania | $123,740 |
| New Mexico | $120,820 |
| Hawaii | $119,880 |
| Alaska | $119,600 |
| Tennessee | $117,340 |
| Nebraska | $116,420 |
| Missouri | $114,550 |
| Maine | $113,800 |
| Alabama | $113,020 |
| Wyoming | $112,590 |
| Iowa | $109,850 |
| South Carolina | $108,690 |
| Idaho | $107,900 |
| Michigan | $107,820 |
| Ohio | $107,690 |
| Oklahoma | $107,420 |
| Kansas | $106,660 |
| Kentucky | $106,200 |
| Indiana | $103,570 |
| West Virginia | $103,550 |
| Wisconsin | $103,360 |
| Louisiana | $102,290 |
| Montana | $100,190 |
| North Dakota | $98,550 |
| Arkansas | $96,820 |
| South Dakota | $87,770 |
| Mississippi | $86,460 |
| Puerto Rico | $64,350 |
Top-Paying U.S. Regions
Pay for software developers vary by region. These regions lead on median pay:
| Region | Median annual wage | Share of U.S. jobs | Location quotient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Far Western US | $167,432 | 25.0% | 1.66 |
| Middle Atlantic | $143,527 | 15.3% | 1.02 |
| New England | $142,509 | 5.3% | 1.22 |
| Rocky Mountains | $129,503 | 5.2% | 1.48 |
| Southwest | $129,113 | 12.1% | 0.99 |
| Southeast | $125,921 | 20.7% | 1.07 |
| Plains States | $116,213 | 5.7% | 0.95 |
| Great Lakes | $113,122 | 10.6% | 0.78 |
Highest-Paying Metro Areas for Software Developers
| Metro area | State | Median annual wage | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | CA | $208,270 | 90,280 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | CA | $174,910 | 76,900 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | WA | $169,340 | 72,730 |
| Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA | CA | $163,020 | 2,030 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ | NY | $161,970 | 119,610 |
| Boulder, CO | CO | $159,670 | 7,790 |
| San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA | CA | $159,240 | 21,080 |
| Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT | CT | $157,540 | 3,800 |
Industry Breakdown
The bulk of software developers are found across these industries:
| Industry | Employment | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services | 690,860 | $130,250 |
| Information | 330,980 | $161,640 |
| Finance and Insurance | 160,000 | $132,880 |
| Manufacturing | 141,300 | $134,910 |
| Management of Companies and Enterprises | 99,720 | $133,650 |
| Wholesale Trade | 63,860 | $131,640 |
| Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services | 63,100 | $133,040 |
| Educational Services | 21,840 | $104,110 |
The table below shows some of the most common industries where those employed in this career field work.
Tools and Technology
- Document management software: Adobe Acrobat (hot technology)
- Video creation and editing software: Adobe After Effects (hot technology)
- Graphics or photo imaging software: Adobe Creative Cloud software (hot technology)
- Graphics or photo imaging software: Adobe Illustrator (hot technology)
- Desktop publishing software: Adobe InDesign (hot technology)
- Graphics or photo imaging software: Adobe Photoshop (hot technology)
- Web platform development software: AJAX (hot technology)
- Business intelligence and data analysis software: Alteryx software (hot technology)
- Data base management system software: Amazon DynamoDB (hot technology)
- Data base user interface and query software: Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud EC2 (hot technology)
- Data base user interface and query software: Amazon Redshift (hot technology)
- Cloud-based management software: Amazon Web Services AWS CloudFormation (hot technology)
Work Environment
The on-the-job environment of software developers is shaped by the following characteristics:
- Spend Time Sitting
- Work With or Contribute to a Work Group or Team
- Freedom to Make Decisions
- Importance of Being Exact or Accurate
How to Become Software Developers
Typical software developers positions require a bachelor’s degree as the typical entry-level education. This occupation sits in Considerable Preparation Needed (Job Zone 4), indicating the level of preparation typically expected.
Other Careers to Consider
Similar Occupations
- Computer and Information Systems Managers (Supplemental)
- Project Management Specialists (Supplemental)
- Computer Systems Analysts (Primary-Short)
- Computer Network Architects (Primary-Long)
- Database Administrators (Primary-Short)
- Database Architects (Primary-Long)
- Data Warehousing Specialists (Supplemental)
- Network and Computer Systems Administrators (Supplemental)
Degree Programs
Students preparing for software developers often complete programs in:
Computer and Information Sciences and Support Services
12 programs across 6 majors
- Computer Science
- Computer Information Systems
- Information Science
- Computer Programming
- Computer Systems Networking
- Computer Software Applications
Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies
5 programs across 5 majors
- Data Science
- Mathematics & Computer Science
- Economics and Computer Science
- Accounting & Computer Science
- Linguistics and Computer Science
Engineering
2 programs across 1 majors
Engineering Technologies and Engineering-Related Fields
1 programs across 1 majors
References
Data on this page comes from the following authoritative sources:
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) for employment and wage data by state and industry.
- BLS Employment Projections for total employment and growth forecasts.
- O*NET (Occupational Information Network) for skills, knowledge, tasks, work activities, work context, technology, and education-zone data.
SOC code: 15-1252.00 (Software Developers).
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