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Top Paying Tech Companies by SWE Level

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Re: Top Paying Tech Companies by SWE Level

#461

Post by hodder »

twblalock wrote: post #179
Waterluvian wrote: post #3

I do the job of a senior engineer and yet am paid a bit less than what's listed for an entry level engineer. And I live an incredibly comfy life. What's the catch? Are these for more than 40 hours a week? Is silicon valley really that expensive? Or are they literally giving college grads enough money to retire by 35?

Go on Zillow or Redfin and look at Bay Area housing prices near major tech companies (Cupertino, Mountain View, Palo Alto, San Francisco) and you'll see that 1 million dollars is entry level for a single-family home, and ~700k is entry-level for a condo that has HOA payments ~400-500 per month. That's the bottom line -- cost of living is so high the salaries need to be high too, or people won't accept them.

You're implying high housing prices cause higher salaries when it is almost certainly the other way around. High salaries and limited supply seem to be the key causal factors in high housing prices.

Re: Top Paying Tech Companies by SWE Level

#462

Post by senordevnyc »

rolltiide wrote: post #425
textfoo wrote: post #295

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Some FAANGs have caps on 401k matches. Some don't. Federal contributing limits at 19.5, no?

No. 401K limits are separated into 2 limits, the second being a bit more obscure. There is the employee limit of ~19,500 which is reviewed by the IRS every year, and there is the employer limit which is an additional number where the total of both is reviewed by IRS every year. It is currently ~$56,000 or so Many employers only barely flirt with this number, offering a few thousands here and there in various schemes.…

To be fair, the max you can put into a solo 401k on the employer side is limited to 20% of your net annual profit (business income minus half of self-employment tax). So in order to put in $30,000, you need to have net income of around $160k, which is doable, but more than a little contracting.

For most people here, the mega backdoor Roth is probably more doable, assuming your employer offers the option.

Re: Top Paying Tech Companies by SWE Level

#463

Post by anon73044 »

throwaway713 wrote: post #236

Now imagine having one of these incomes but having a spouse who is hellbent on moving back to the southeastern U.S. in a year. It’s driving me nuts; I can’t find any company in the south that pays anywhere near my current compensation, and a rough calculation indicates that leaving FANG will bump my retirement age from 38 to 65 (never mind the amazing health insurance I’ll be giving up too). It’s like throwing a winn…

How many years to go to hit 38? And what do you plan on doing from ~38~58? Do you plan on sending your kids to a big name school that's going to charge 5-6 figures per semester?

As someone who's bearing down on my mid to late 30's, my recommendation is to work you ass off while you're still young and full of energy.

Re: Top Paying Tech Companies by SWE Level

#464

Post by throwawaymath »

nostrademons wrote: post #452
throwawaymath wrote: post #381

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You mean like downleveling? Sure, that happens a lot. The top paying companies mostly only consider engineers from similarly high paying companies to be known quantities. So if you are a staff engineer at a smaller tech company or a startup, you'll probably end up being "only" senior at Google or Facebook.

Does up-leveling happen too? If you were senior or staff at Google, can you get a Principal job at a smaller growth company?

Yes. That's really common when someone very senior at a FAANG wants to achieve a greater level of autonomy and "impact". Once you hit L5/L6 at Google/Facebook (or equivalent elsewhere), the promotion rate slows down quite a lot. So one option to continue career growth is to jump ship for a smaller (but promising) tech company in exchange for more responsibility and a title increase.

Re: Top Paying Tech Companies by SWE Level

#465

Post by burfog »

patall wrote: post #293
burfog wrote: post #126

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm willing to relocate for better pay so that I can afford nice things. I want to have a place where I have room for a chicken coop (30 chickens) and a 1-acre fish pond. I'm willing to commute by car for a maximum of 15 minutes. A slightly longer commute might be OK if I can afford to commute by horse and the employer doesn't mind. Which tech hub should I move to?

In Berlin (not exactly a techhub so about 100k for a good engineer), they are currently selling a plot of about 2 acres (8500sqm) for 1.5M (plus cost of a good new house ~= 300k). About 30min by public transport to city center. 40min to the new Tesla factory by car... (in german) https://www.immobilienscout24.de/expose/108629168 (Though even if serious, I would not do that as you can get more land further out much ch…

I am serious, aside from minor personal details being changed. (different animal, etc.)

The pond is so that the kids can go fishing out in the back yard. They don't need transportation, they can be watched from the house, they can have friends over, and there is no performance pressure to catch fish before it is time to go home. They can float on the pond with a canoe or a makeshift raft.

Having a little creek is fine too. Kids can build damns, dig for crawfish, catch frogs, pan for gold, make waterwheels, and so on.

The kids can camp in the backyard, complete with a campfire. The larger back yards have room for shooting.

The point really is personal land to enjoy.

Re: Top Paying Tech Companies by SWE Level

#466

Post by djohnston »

mvc wrote: post #431
corporateslave5 wrote: post #4

For everyone who doesn’t know, you’re getting shafted at that medium size startup/company. Most of these FAANG engineers are not geniuses, they just studied for the interviews

Worst thing is when one of these average fuckers from FAANG decides they want a change and is now your director of engineering at $medium_startup despite knowing fuck all.

As an average fucker from FAANG, this comment hurts my feelings :(

Re: Top Paying Tech Companies by SWE Level

#467

Post by librish »

cletus wrote: post #171

As a FAANG engineer going on 9 years now, let me address the usual rebuttals: - There is a selection bias. Nope, this is pretty much accurate. - These aren't real. Yes, yes they are. - Self-reporters are lying. Maybe some do but these numbers are pretty accurate. If anything, I question Lyft and Airbnb as such outliers. I wonder if this factored in Lyft's post-IPO stock performance and makes unrealistic valuations of…

I agree with your overall point but as a small nit: usually founders hold common stock, so they will get paid at the same rate as employees (bar "acquisition bonuses" and other similar things).

Re: Top Paying Tech Companies by SWE Level

#468

Post by lordnacho »

rolltiide wrote: post #436
SirHound wrote: post #215

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Also we don't get free heathcare, we pay for it through taxation. I believe this is morally right, but that's beside the point: These well-paid American employees are also probably getting a great healthcare package as part of their contract, so they don't even have to pay for it.

The Swiss offices have much lower tax rates than their bay area counterparts, a tax rate which includes health insurance (correct me if its a separate tax)

Health isn't a tax as such, but an insurance service that everyone is obliged to buy from one of several providers. Importantly, it doesn't depend on your income, rather your age and health stuff like whether you smoke.

Re: Top Paying Tech Companies by SWE Level

#469

Post by senordevnyc »

diehunde wrote: post #457

What I would like to know is how much is your take home pay when working for a FAANG after taxes and rent. Not including equity. If you make 130k base in TX, you see around 8k monthly assuming you put close to 10% in your 401k. For a two bedroom relatively close to Downtown you pay about 2k so that would leave 6k monthly after taxes, rent and 401k savings. What would be the realistic equivalent in a FAANG in the Bay…

I'll use myself as an example. I live in NYC, my rent is $4300 / month (2 bedroom apartment in nice doorman building on Upper West Side), and I just accepted an offer at a public tech company. My first 12 months should pay me $420,000, assuming the stock price is stable. I'll ignore the possibility of any raises, promotions, bonuses, stock price increase, and refreshers. I'll also ignore the 401k match (max is about $5k / year) and the ESPP.

I'm married with a kid, so here are my numbers:

  Gross: $420,000
  401k: $19,500 (max for 2020)
  Taxes: $143,485 (federal, state, local, and FICA)
  Rent: $51,600
  Net: $205,415
I'm already really happy with that number, but my wife has her own income, I have a profitable side business, I'll do a mega backdoor Roth and the ESPP, and I expect refreshers, stock price increase, and a promotion over the next few years.

It's a very good time to be a software engineer in a tech hub.

Re: Top Paying Tech Companies by SWE Level

#470

Post by savrajsingh »

auiya wrote: post #301
throwaway713 wrote: post #236

Now imagine having one of these incomes but having a spouse who is hellbent on moving back to the southeastern U.S. in a year. It’s driving me nuts; I can’t find any company in the south that pays anywhere near my current compensation, and a rough calculation indicates that leaving FANG will bump my retirement age from 38 to 65 (never mind the amazing health insurance I’ll be giving up too). It’s like throwing a winn…

As someone who worked for a remote FAANG office IN the southeast US, I feel your pain. Rates in this part of the country aren't anywhere near what they are in the bay area sadly. I took a job with fedgov for twice what I was making at FAANG.

You mean half?
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