Titlesby GlyphStaff Engineer job title trend since Apr 2011
Leadership · Established · in 8.0% of HN hiring posts · 1,178 open roles at 170 companies · median $255k
The senior individual-contributor track: technical leadership without managing people.
first seen Jul 2011, Hacker Newstook off Dec 2020
Why it exists
Written by rule from our own data
First seen in our data in July 2011, in a Hacker News Who is hiring post from Brightcove. It took off in December 2020, when its share of Who is hiring posts first reached a quarter of its best year. Today 1178 open roles use the title at 170 companies, most of them in data platforms. Closest tracked titles: Engineering Manager, Founding Engineer.
- PostingAsk HN: Who is hiring? (July 2011)Hacker News, Jul 2011 · backs: first sighting
- PostingStaff Software Engineer, Chainguard HarnessChainguard, Nov 2026 · backs: an open posting with the title
Where it is posted
Sectors
- Data platform213
- Robotics and autonomy194
- Fintech113
- Consumer95
- Security58
- AI infrastructure49
- AI application47
- Developer tools46
Cities
- San Francisco199
- Palo Alto176
- Seattle145
- New York126
- Bengaluru, India72
- Washington36
- Toronto, Canada31
- London, United Kingdom24
- Dallas22
- San Diego16
Countries and remote
- United States797
- India93
- Canada77
- United Kingdom44
- Australia16
- Ireland16
- Spain12
- Poland12
- Netherlands12
- Germany10
Remote option28%
Posted pay
Middle half $224k to $286k, median $255k from 729 postings that state a base range (USD a year).
Who is hiring for it
Open postings on their own job boards, read 5h ago| # | Company | Open roles | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 152 | ||
| 2 | 87 | ||
| 3 | 57 | ||
| 4 | 48 | ||
| 5 | 34 | ||
| 6 | 29 | ||
| 7 | 27 | ||
| 8 | 25 | ||
| 9 | 24 | ||
| 10 | Anduril IndustriesA company hiring most for Systems Engineer and Test Engineer. | 22 | |
| 11 | 22 | ||
| 12 | 21 |
Open roles
8 of 1,178; company pages list the restSenior Principal Engineer - FW/SW Development
San Jose, California, United States
| Role | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Staff Software Engineer, Chainguard Harness | United States - Remote | $205k to $231k | |
| Staff Software Engineer - Backend (Consumer - Agentic Trading) | Remote - USA | $218k to $257k | |
| Principal Software Engineer - Observability | US-CA-Menlo Park | $264k to $380k | |
| Staff Backend Engineer, Agent Infrastructure | San Francisco | $196k to $235k | |
| Senior Principal Engineer - FW/SW Development | San Jose, California, United States | $180k to $250k | |
| Principal Software Engineer, Languages & Compilers | San Mateo, CA, United States | $295k to $345k | |
| Staff Software Engineer, Mobile (P4) | Remote - Canada | $160k to $200k | |
| Staff Software EngineerHike MedicalSan Francisco, CA$250k to $300k | Hike Medical | San Francisco, CA | $250k to $300k |
Share of Hacker News hiring posts
2,317 posts since Apr 2011 · -15% in 6 monthsNovember 2026 17 of 207 postings, 8.2%
Related titles
Engineering ManagerManages a team of engineers: hiring, delivery and careers.3.7% of HN posts, 12 mo · 512 open · $262k median · since Nov 2011Founding EngineerOne of a startup's first engineers, usually with equity and a wide remit.5.9% of HN posts, 12 mo · 25 open · $194k median · since Jul 2011Head of AILeads the AI or ML group below the C-suite: VP, director or head.0.44% of HN posts, 12 mo · 23 open · $290k median · since Jul 2017Head of DataLeads a company's data team: analytics, data science and data engineering.0.36% of HN posts, 12 mo · 18 open · $284k median · since Dec 2011Chief AI OfficerThe executive who owns AI strategy across a company; common since 2024.0.03% of HN posts, 12 mo · since Jul 2026Chief Data OfficerThe executive who owns data governance, quality and analytics.0% of HN posts, 12 mo · since Feb 2016
About this title
The senior individual-contributor track: technical leadership without managing people.
Also counted: principal engineer, staff software engineer
First sighting
...openings for: * DevOps Systems Engineer * Front End (UI) Principal Software Engineer/ Architect * Principal Software Engineer - Reporting &...
Median posted salary $255k from 729 postings that state a base pay range (the median of their midpoints, USD a year). Not a survey of what people earn.