Salaries

Quantum Software Engineer Salary.

Across 81 U.S. cities.

$133,000

estimated national base salary

$103,000 to $169,000. Last updated September 2026.

Orbyt prices 394 titles at this same figure, including Software Engineer, Frontend Developer, and Backend Developer. Orbyt does not hold title-level wage data that would separate them.

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Government benchmark for this occupation

The US Bureau of Labor Statistics reports a median annual wage of $135,980 for Software Developers (SOC 15-1252) across the United States, based on 1,687,890 employed workers (May 2025 release).

10th percentile

$82,460

25th percentile

$105,210

Median

$135,980

75th percentile

$171,980

90th percentile

$214,670

Workers surveyed

1,687,890

What BLS published in each release

May 2024 release

$133,080

May 2025 release

$135,980

These are two separate published estimates, not a time series. The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not encourage the use of OEWS data for time-series analysis. Differences between releases reflect changes in occupational classification, survey methodology, and the three-year pooled sample as well as any change in pay, so the two figures should not be read as a rate of wage growth.

BLS publishes wages by occupation code, not by job title, so this figure covers every role mapped to Software Developers (SOC 15-1252) rather than Quantum Software Engineer specifically. The national range at the top of this page is Orbyt’s role-level estimate, which is a different thing and is labelled as such.

View the BLS source for SOC 15-1252

Highest Paying

$176,000

San Jose, CA

Best Purchasing Power

$139,000

Boston, MA

Lowest Paying

$105,000

Charleston, WV

The salary figures on this page are computed estimates, not observed wages. Each one is a national role baseline scaled by a Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parity cost-of-living multiplier (2025 index) and rounded to the nearest $1,000. No published wage percentile is consulted and no wage survey response enters the calculation, so an Orbyt estimate must not be cited as a Bureau of Labor Statistics figure or as measured pay. The published wage data Orbyt holds is Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, and Department of Labor H-1B Labor Condition Application filings, which record a filed minimum visa base wage rather than market pay. Where BLS publishes a wage for the occupation a role maps to, it is shown on that role's page as a separate benchmark, labelled with its occupation code, metro area and the number of employed workers it covers. Last updated September 2026. This role maps to BLS occupation code 15-1252. Full methodology.

Orbyt estimates the average Quantum Software Engineer salary in the United States at $133,000 in 2026, within a range of $103,000 to $169,000. These figures are Orbyt estimates, computed rather than measured, and must not be cited as Bureau of Labor Statistics figures; the published BLS wage for the occupation this role maps to is shown separately on this page. This figure is not specific to this title: Orbyt prices 394 titles at the same estimate. San Jose is the highest of the 81 cities at $176,000, while Boston offers the best purchasing power after cost-of-living adjustments. Compensation for Quantum Software Engineers is driven by depth of technical specialization, open-source or published work, and the specific technology stack.

Quantum Software Engineer salary by city.

Salary comparison across 81 cities
CityMedianRangeCOLAdjustedRank
San Jose, CA$176,000$136,000 to $224,0001.38x$128,000#2522 of 3445
San Francisco, CA$174,000$135,000 to $221,0001.35x$129,000#2413 of 3445
Boston, MA$169,000$131,000 to $214,0001.22x$139,000#1691 of 3445
Honolulu, HI$166,000$129,000 to $211,0001.30x$128,000#2511 of 3445
New York, NY$165,000$128,000 to $210,0001.28x$129,000#2427 of 3445
Washington DC, DC$165,000$127,000 to $209,0001.25x$132,000#2212 of 3445
San Diego, CA$159,000$123,000 to $202,0001.17x$136,000#1862 of 3445
Boulder, CO$159,000$123,000 to $202,0001.15x$138,000#1697 of 3445
Seattle, WA$158,000$123,000 to $201,0001.24x$127,000#2511 of 3445
Arlington, VA$156,000$121,000 to $198,0001.22x$128,000#2509 of 3445
Jersey City, NJ$155,000$120,000 to $197,0001.20x$129,000#2415 of 3445
Los Angeles, CA$152,000$118,000 to $193,0001.18x$129,000#2406 of 3445
Newark, NJ$151,000$117,000 to $191,0001.18x$128,000#2498 of 3445
Anchorage, AK$150,000$116,000 to $191,0001.13x$133,000#2096 of 3445
Princeton, NJ$150,000$116,000 to $190,0001.15x$130,000#2290 of 3445
Baltimore, MD$148,000$115,000 to $188,0001.08x$137,000#1795 of 3445
Sacramento, CA$148,000$114,000 to $188,0001.10x$135,000#1997 of 3445
Manchester, NH$147,000$114,000 to $186,0001.06x$139,000#1689 of 3445
Philadelphia, PA$146,000$113,000 to $186,0001.09x$134,000#2009 of 3445
Portland, OR$145,000$112,000 to $184,0001.10x$132,000#2183 of 3445
Miami, FL$144,000$112,000 to $184,0001.12x$129,000#2412 of 3445
Hartford, CT$144,000$111,000 to $183,0001.08x$133,000#2089 of 3445
Chicago, IL$142,000$110,000 to $181,0001.07x$133,000#2107 of 3445
Austin, TX$141,000$109,000 to $179,0001.03x$137,000#1786 of 3445
Portland, ME$141,000$109,000 to $179,0001.05x$134,000#2015 of 3445
Dallas, TX$140,000$108,000 to $178,0001.01x$139,000#1688 of 3445
Minneapolis, MN$140,000$108,000 to $177,0001.05x$133,000#2078 of 3445
Ann Arbor, MI$140,000$108,000 to $178,0001.02x$137,000#1794 of 3445
Denver, CO$138,000$107,000 to $175,0001.08x$128,000#2512 of 3445
Wilmington, DE$138,000$107,000 to $176,0001.02x$135,000#1903 of 3445
Richmond, VA$138,000$107,000 to $176,0001.01x$137,000#1800 of 3445
Providence, RI$137,000$106,000 to $174,0001.04x$132,000#2190 of 3445
Atlanta, GA$136,000$105,000 to $172,0001.02x$133,000#2086 of 3445
Burlington, VT$135,000$105,000 to $172,0001.06x$127,000#2513 of 3445
Phoenix, AZ$133,000$103,000 to $169,0000.96x$139,000#1682 of 3445
Salt Lake City, UT$133,000$103,000 to $169,0000.98x$136,000#1882 of 3445
Reno, NV$133,000$103,000 to $169,0000.96x$139,000#1687 of 3445
Tampa, FL$132,000$102,000 to $167,0000.96x$138,000#1781 of 3445
Virginia Beach, VA$130,000$101,000 to $166,0000.98x$133,000#2093 of 3445
Houston, TX$129,000$100,000 to $164,0000.97x$133,000#2089 of 3445
Boise, ID$129,000$100,000 to $164,0000.95x$136,000#1904 of 3445
Charleston, SC$129,000$100,000 to $164,0000.98x$132,000#2189 of 3445
Albany, NY$129,000$100,000 to $164,0000.96x$134,000#2009 of 3445
Nashville, TN$128,000$99,000 to $162,0001.00x$128,000#2492 of 3445
Orlando, FL$128,000$99,000 to $162,0000.95x$135,000#1976 of 3445
Spokane, WA$127,000$99,000 to $162,0000.92x$138,000#1703 of 3445
Charlotte, NC$126,000$98,000 to $161,0000.97x$130,000#2302 of 3445
Raleigh, NC$126,000$98,000 to $161,0000.99x$127,000#2505 of 3445
Pittsburgh, PA$126,000$98,000 to $160,0000.92x$137,000#1783 of 3445
Indianapolis, IN$126,000$97,000 to $160,0000.91x$138,000#1680 of 3445
New Orleans, LA$124,000$96,000 to $157,0000.92x$135,000#2022 of 3445
Las Vegas, NV$124,000$96,000 to $157,0000.96x$129,000#2412 of 3445
Columbia, SC$123,000$95,000 to $157,0000.90x$137,000#1804 of 3445
North Charleston, SC$123,000$95,000 to $156,0000.94x$131,000#2275 of 3445
Kansas City, MO$122,000$95,000 to $156,0000.93x$131,000#2210 of 3445
Cincinnati, OH$122,000$95,000 to $155,0000.90x$136,000#1892 of 3445
San Antonio, TX$122,000$95,000 to $155,0000.91x$134,000#2027 of 3445
Milwaukee, WI$121,000$94,000 to $154,0000.91x$133,000#2076 of 3445
Columbus, OH$121,000$94,000 to $154,0000.93x$130,000#2306 of 3445
Madison, WI$121,000$94,000 to $154,0000.95x$127,000#2506 of 3445
Columbus, OH$119,000$92,000 to $151,0000.93x$128,000#2502 of 3445
Cheyenne, WY$119,000$92,000 to $151,0000.87x$137,000#1797 of 3445
Louisville, KY$118,000$92,000 to $150,0000.88x$134,000#1994 of 3445
Baton Rouge, LA$118,000$92,000 to $150,0000.88x$134,000#1993 of 3445
Knoxville, TN$118,000$92,000 to $150,0000.89x$133,000#2111 of 3445
Lexington, KY$117,000$90,000 to $148,0000.86x$136,000#1899 of 3445
St. Louis, MO$116,000$90,000 to $148,0000.90x$129,000#2426 of 3445
Omaha, NE$116,000$90,000 to $147,0000.88x$132,000#2181 of 3445
Albuquerque, NM$116,000$90,000 to $147,0000.88x$132,000#2190 of 3445
Detroit, MI$115,000$89,000 to $146,0000.90x$128,000#2496 of 3445
Des Moines, IA$114,000$89,000 to $145,0000.86x$133,000#2101 of 3445
Des Moines, IA$114,000$89,000 to $145,0000.86x$133,000#2112 of 3445
Fargo, ND$112,000$87,000 to $142,0000.85x$132,000#2178 of 3445
Sioux Falls, SD$112,000$87,000 to $142,0000.85x$132,000#2211 of 3445
Oklahoma City, OK$109,000$85,000 to $139,0000.84x$130,000#2303 of 3445
Birmingham, AL$108,000$84,000 to $138,0000.84x$129,000#2399 of 3445
Tulsa, OK$108,000$84,000 to $137,0000.83x$130,000#2293 of 3445
Jackson, MS$107,000$83,000 to $136,0000.79x$135,000#1876 of 3445
Wichita, KS$106,000$82,000 to $134,0000.82x$129,000#2388 of 3445
Little Rock, AR$105,000$81,000 to $133,0000.82x$128,000#2501 of 3445
Charleston, WV$105,000$81,000 to $133,0000.78x$135,000#2003 of 3445

Skills that increase Quantum Software Engineer pay.

The premiums below are Orbyt's modelled scenarios for Quantum Software Engineers, not effects measured from job postings: each is a fixed percentage applied to the estimated base. At the top premium that works out to $14,630 a year.

Kubernetes+11%

≈ +$14,630 per year

Rust+10%

≈ +$13,300 per year

Vector Databases+10%

≈ +$13,300 per year

Apache Spark+9%

≈ +$11,970 per year

C+++8%

≈ +$10,640 per year

GCP+8%

≈ +$10,640 per year

Terraform+8%

≈ +$10,640 per year

Kafka+8%

≈ +$10,640 per year

What you should know.

Compensation for Quantum Software Engineers is driven by depth of technical specialization, open-source or published work, and the specific technology stack. Base salary carries most of the total compensation, with bonuses adding roughly 10% in a typical year. Within tech-sector Quantum Software Engineers specifically, employer tier (FAANG and frontier-AI labs vs mid-stage startups vs traditional enterprise) drives 66%+ variance across the compensation band.

Quantum Software Engineers typically progress Junior → Mid → Senior → Staff → Principal over 8 to 12 years, with the Staff+ levels carrying significant technical scope and cross-team influence. The director/VP track diverges around year 8 for those who choose management; IC staff-plus roles keep building technical depth.

Total compensation for Quantum Software Engineers runs roughly $187K at median when factoring base + typical bonus (~10% of base). Base salary carries most of the compensation; benefits (healthcare, 401(k) match, PTO) add an estimated 15–25% in imputed value on top. At tech companies specifically, equity and sign-on are often the largest delta between offers — two roles with matching base can differ by $100K+ at total when equity is included.

Total compensation breakdown.

Base Salary
$133,000
Equity / Year
$26,000
Annual Bonus
10%
$13,000
Signing Bonus
$9,000
Total Comp
$172,000

Salary by company size

Startup
< 50 employees
$113,000
Growth
50-500 employees
$124,000
Scale-up
500-5K employees
$133,000
Public
5K+ employees
$157,000

Remote salary adjustment

Remote Quantum Software Engineers typically earn $120,000 (10% less than on-site). This reflects location-adjusted pay policies at companies using geographic salary bands. Some companies pay flat national rates regardless of location.

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Related.

Common questions about Quantum Software Engineer pay.

Orbyt estimates the national median Quantum Software Engineer salary at $133,000 in 2026, within a range of $103,000 to $169,000. This is a computed estimate, not a measured wage. Where you land depends on your experience, skills, the company's size, and your location.

Entry level Quantum Software Engineers (0 to 2 years) typically earn $86,000 to $106,000. Mid level (3 to 5 years) run $113,000 to $140,000. Senior (6 to 9 years) reach $146,000 to $173,000, and lead level (10 plus years) $166,000 to $206,000.

Anchor your ask near the top of the range at $169,000 so you have room to settle around the $133,000 median. Bring specific data about your impact, and never accept the first number without a conversation.

Quantum Software Engineers typically progress Junior → Mid → Senior → Staff → Principal over 8 to 12 years, with the Staff+ levels carrying significant technical scope and cross-team influence. The director/VP track diverges around year 8 for those who choose management; IC staff-plus roles keep building technical depth.

Compensation for Quantum Software Engineers is driven by depth of technical specialization, open-source or published work, and the specific technology stack. Base salary carries most of the total compensation, with bonuses adding roughly 10% in a typical year. Within tech-sector Quantum Software Engineers specifically, employer tier (FAANG and frontier-AI labs vs mid-stage startups vs traditional enterprise) drives 66%+ variance across the compensation band.

Total compensation for Quantum Software Engineers runs roughly $187K at median when factoring base + typical bonus (~10% of base). Base salary carries most of the compensation; benefits (healthcare, 401(k) match, PTO) add an estimated 15, 25% in imputed value on top. At tech companies specifically, equity and sign-on are often the largest delta between offers, two roles with matching base can differ by $100K+ at total when equity is included.

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