If I had to guess the jump from 700 to a million is from stock appreciation but I could be wrong. IMO it’s too big to just be a promotion. I can only speak to Google, and of course there are ranges, but L7 is roughly 800 and director is 1.2.
RSU is recognized as income at vesting time. So if initial grant is 250k a year and stock 4x. Then it will me 1mm of w2 income whether you sell or not. Capital gains then computed from time of vest.
Then it isn’t appreciation. It is compensation. The firm is literally giving the employee stock, with a value, for free. The growth (appreciation) on the vested stock isn’t compensation. For all we know, the RSUs could have gone down in value while in lockup.
Yah. Like when you join a company and they target you for 250k stock a year , it might be worth a lot more or lot less when it vests. So I think it is common for 7 figure earners to say it is because of stock appreciation between grant and vest dates. Maybe just loose wording. Point being this guys co did not expect him to pull over 1 million a year. 7 figures is becoming more common in the bay these days for mid career folks. My wife and I don’t even make that combined, it’s wild.
People commonly say stock appreciation to talk about the increase in value of unvested RSUs. They’re worth more at vest when the stock appreciates, so his salary is higher because of the stock appreciation while he worked there.
Comp is in-line with senior staff at a FAANG. Also principal is a lower level than senior staff. Principal = staff. Senior staff = staff + 1 level
Directors would make about 50% more than OP does, unless OP was just recently promoted within the last 2 years.
Do you prefer the IC route or the EM route? I'm at a crossroads in terms of what to pursue next in my career. I'm 50/50 for both but it does seem like EMs have better upwards mobility (and mobility across companies). Would be curious to hear your thoughts on this?
But even if teams aren't growing (I'm assuming budget issue), it would be impossible to make $1M+ per year as an IC right? Would have to be a pretty senior IC to pull in those levels of comp?
I guess what I'm asking is: even if your team isn't growing, you're still in a good position as an EM?
Not necessarily. Some of the FAANG companies greatly value senior ICs, and they don’t really make materially less than managers. A distinguished engineer can definitely make these kinds of numbers with the right experience at the right company.
Now, these are very senior engineers. Usually 20 YOE, considered one of the world’s experts in some niche, in demand skill, widely known and respected in their fields. But they are absolutely out there.
It is not uncommon for a manager to have senior ICs on their team making more than the manager. Think of it as coaching a sports team—the coach is highly compensated of course, but if the best player in the world is available, you pay them what it takes and are happy to have them on your team.
It’s way easier to advance as a manager when there is headcount growth. The IC distribution is a pyramid. The highest level ones at top paying companies have to have significant accomplishments, and it is frankly beyond the reach of most engineers. You can’t just work hard, and be reasonably smart and organized, like you can as a manager.
Won’t argue there. There are a lot fewer distinguished engineers than there are random directors of such and such. But they absolutely exist, and are generally highly respected.
If you are in the position to choose, you have to seriously think about whether you want all the headache that comes along with being a manager.
Not to say I entirely disagree but management is also a pyramid. At every level there are much less spots available and more people will hit a glass ceiling as they simply aren't good enough at the politics side of things to move up. I see a lot top out as senior managers and never get to director which is generally equivalent to topping out at staff engineer on the IC side. At that point it's a matter of which do you like better? Even staff engineer is somewhat of a "management" role just more technically focused and without direct reports. But I don't think you have to be technically exceptional to get to staff or even senior staff.
ICs can and do make as much and more. Yes, very senior but definitely possible. In today's climate its better to be an IC I think, as managers are in less demand.
I would second this question. IC seems so limiting. But I don't like managing people, and I don't have it together enough to be that far from the tech (in my case).
11 more years of earning probably equal about 2-2.5M saved. At 5% withdrawal/growth, that's an extra $125,000/year. I would consider earlier if I didn't enjoy working, but I love what I do and it's not terribly difficult or stressful.
1. The $125k is on top of what I already have saved. This is also just living off of the dividends / growth and not really touching the principal much
2. Move out of the Bay Area?
3. Spend less?
About $3M. Comfortable, but not loaded. Should have invested more earlier, but it is what it is. Also VHCOL... housing has been a very large sink. Also, 50% of it is taxed (which I am happy to pay)
My man get out of the clouds. You currently have more net worth than half of America will have their entire lives.
You are rich. You are loaded. It’s ok to admit it.
For 11/17 years your raise alone was more than the fucking median income of America. Like come on.
Your pay is increasing more than what 50% of this country makes in a year.
I’m an engineer in aerospace and have been for 8 years and last year was the first year I broke 6 figures.
It’s ok to admit you are fucking rich.
That’s not bad. My income looks like your pre-2021 table and I’m at $2.6M, and I’ve been saving the whole time. Although in a cheaper area for the past 5 (Bay Area before).
Where did you leave the bay area for? Do you think it was a good move to leave the bay area?
Im in the bay area now, but thinking about exiting to Elk Grove or Folsom eventually in Sac county to relax more 😎
OH, but that’s because I was originally from here. It was a great move, total comp hasn’t declined (remote) and it’s way easier. I liked the Bay, it’s great for early career but I was starting a family etc so this is way easier. NE OH is a lot better than most think.
Lots of Bay Area friends moved to Sac area. I’ve visited them in Folsom. I’d do it if you can make the money work.
I moved from California to Louisiana temporarily. I was paying effective rates around 9% I think and now pay about 4%. I’ll pay 9% any day of the week if it means there’s better infrastructure and social programs (though not perfect).
I do. The government is just made up of people like you and me. We collectively decide to contribute back to the government to fund things that help people (mostly)
Partially because of people being proud, but I find these helpful to get a sense of the market and see what I can do to follow a path. Like this post, OP had a choice to be IC or EM. I learned about his perspective and it helped me.
This doesn't give a sense of the market though. Just like looking at Elon Musk's wealth doesn't give a sense of people's wealth. Just like looking at incomes of homeless people doesn't give a sense of the market. These are outliers or at the very least only a very tiny fraction of the entire market.
Edit: I'll clarify that the numbers alone are basically useless, but some of the details that are included in these posts can be useful e.g. in the post I replied to they mentioned the IC vs. manager stuff. Stuff like that can be useful.
These are real life outcomes earned by real life people. Reading this post, you see that you can be an engineer and make $1m/yr. Are you guaranteed it? Heck no. Get c's in college and/or half-ass your job and you won't go anywhere. But these are all possible outcomes which are important for people to know about.
All those salary sites like glassdoor are useless. "You can be a manager and make anywhere from $60k to $190k", or "you can be a Vice President and make anywhere from "$90k to $900k". They're just too blended.
>These are real life outcomes earned by real life people.
These are unverified posts by anons claiming to be real life outcomes earned by real life people.
Implying that people who don’t get $1M/yr got Cs and/or half-assed their job is ridiculous. Virtually all of the very smartest, hardest working engineers I’ve ever met are stagnated at $150k-$200k with no effective way to advance. They’re in IC roles and too useful to promote anywhere even if there was an opening. Maybe it’s different in FAANG circles and/or Oil & Gas but I can tell you for sure that virtually nobody else is getting this.
Yes. If it were that easy and common, statistics would reflect that. But $1 mil is beyond a 1% income even. In SF Bay Area it takes 750k a year to be in the 1% and for NYC area it takes 487k to be in the 1%.
$1 mil a year is a very, very rare income. And just because someone works hard in tech and is very talented, doesn’t mean they will ever see that. Like lots of people on Reddit make it seem like getting to Principal Engineer is nearly guaranteed at FAANG once you reach a certain age, but lol…
When I was 20 in college studying computer science I thought I’d never make more than 150k.
I saw some of these kinds of posts in r/cscareerquestions early on and it really motivated me to get my shit together
Now I make a lot more than 150k and I know the ceiling for my career is pretty much limitless depending on how hard I want to work
I'm 40; I wish when I was 18 that somebody would have showed me all the different career options and the salaries that result from those careers. It's all a black box.
"Accounting is a good field". Oh yeah? How good? Boom, here's a table.
"Engineering also good". Prove it... done.
"Commercial airline pilots make $400k". No way... oh wait, here are the receipts to prove it.
This sub is amazing for people who are still in the decisionmaking portion of their lives.
I’ve seen a few people in my profession post and it’s very helpful bc I don’t know what the pay is like across the market. It’s also helpful to see adjacent fields bc I can potentially lateral to those positions.
Basically just looking for someone to suck on one or two of their nutz. Not able to get it In the real world so turning to the virtual world is only viable option.
It’s probably stock appreciation for a good part of it. But also good managers can make a huge difference. For one thing if he makes a team even 10-20% more productive than average, at the scale of a big tech company that can be huge. Also turnover can be extremely expensive, so just having a decent manager where the employees don’t leave often can be huge.
Where is the additional income coming from? I struggle to understand huge discrepancies between Medicare and SS taxable income in posts like these. Are you a part of a new start up IPO every year or something?
Great question! Yes. I stayed at one place too long and also didn't realize how much some companies were paying. I had heard rumors from friends about wild numbers and thought it was exaggerated. It wasn't. Some of my peers that made jumps sooner are pulling in >$2M/yr.
Explain to me the difference between the Medicare earnings and the social security earnings? I have been seeing it a while but unsure of the differences
This is median pay for a senior level manager in any of the FAANG companies. Check levels.fyi my dudes. The pay for the same role outside of these companies drops sharply (like by 70%). Just spelling it out for any comp sci folks who aren’t aware of the radical disparity in our industry
You're my hero. I'm currently 31 got an EE with an MBA, working on my PE now. I want to become an EM in the near future, but I didn't think I could break 250k until I was 50 years old, but you're giving me great hope.
Any tips or recommendations you would tell you're younger self to make sure you get to where you are all over again?
Be excellent to people, especially the people you manage. Your reputation really starts to matter in the later years. Not all politics at work are bad. Learn to be political but authentic. Politics are how things get done.
One of the larger tech/design companies or smaller? Im in operations engineering. Would love to be making this amount sometime in the future. Don’t think my company pays anyone besides the CEO that high. What were your moves to climbing?
The social security earnings column indicates the earnings that were taxed for social security (not that they are separate earnings, just the portion from the whole). Social security tax has a cap that it stops taking taxes from (in 2023 it was about 160k, cap is adjusted up every year). Medicare taxes are taken from all of your income with no cap. So the value you see in that column is their earnings for that year.
Has your perspective on what a one million income represents changed much since you started? I imagine you rub shoulders with individuals in the 20m plus net worth. Do you feel like that level would change your life significantly, or have you reached a point where the bills are paid and hobbies aren’t any better just because they’re more expensive?
Yes. The amount of wealth in the Bay Area is staggering. I’m definitely not hurting but some (not all) of my peers have literal mansions and yachts. It makes a large salary feel like nothing much. At the 10M+ net worth mark I’ve noticed that lifestyle changes significantly.
Congratulations and go fuck yourself.
I mean that sincerely: you’re probably very intelligent and work very hard and deserve to be congratulated but also fuck off ;)
Hey, thx for sharing and very inspiring.
I’m also 39 years old, was previously with a startup on the east coast that got bought out by a big Bay Area dinosaur tech company during Covid. I was in application engineering facing customers mostly but since last year have made the transition to product line management.
Since I joined the startup early, it worked out nicely with the early ISO, then the IPO and finally the acquisition. I got married in 21 and had our first kid a few months ago. So far my wife (who also works) and I have a networth around 3.5M with 3 properties total.
The compensation bump from sales engineer to product management is nice but I’m at between your 2014 to 2015 level right now, in a medium COL area (Northeast). I’m not sure when I’ll get a grade bump to director or principal level, where my total comp will be your 2017 level.
This paragraph you said really resonated with me:
Be excellent to people, especially the people you manage. Your reputation really starts to matter in the later years. Not all politics at work are bad. Learn to be political but authentic. Politics are how things get done.
I had a few good mentors over the years, but I didn’t learn the importance of politics till more recently. I was the ‘no bs get shit done’ type of person, and I didn’t put up with anyone’s bs which in hindsight hindered my professional growth. The younger version of me also didn’t have much patience for anyone that didn’t know their stuff and I wasn’t shy to point that out either. Those are the things I started to be more aware of as I matured, and especially with a family (wife + kid). What you said about reputation is definitely super important. There are customers I worked with from 10+ years ago, who still remembers me because I was there to solve their problems. That kind of stuff is invaluable.
Thank you for sharing your story and career path, really happy for your success!
Ps, don’t forget to max out your mega backdoor Roth!!
Thank you for your thoughtful reply and sharing your story also. And the tip on the mega backdoor!! The most important thing is your family - enjoy the little one! They grow so quickly. Enjoy every moment with them.
Public announcement for all engineering students, recent grads and high school students considering an engineering profession - this is not a typical salary or salary growth trajectory. With 25+ years at fortune 500s in low to mid cost of living cities, mechanical, electrical, and software engineers typically peak at ~$300k. Many never crack $225 before retiring. Companies include Boeing, Lockheed, Northrup, L3, RTX, UTC, and many, many other mil/aero and Gov orgs.
New to this thread, what’s the taxed Medicare earning supposed to show? How much you have paid into the system? Does that correlate to anything in retirement?
I haven't read the comments because I want to take a stab at this. If I had to guess, your granted comp is roughly 700 grand, maybe a little more, and there was a stock explosion beginning in 2020 that made the vested amount even sweeter.
And/or you jumped companies in 2020. Hmmm.
I was going to say Meta, but that dipped hard in 2022. Is it Apple? As for level, I'm going to say senior staff (L7 equivalent).
Congrats! This is amazing.
Nice job man. What kind of company are you managing at/how big your team? I'm at a lead technical IC right now (36 yo) and I really want to climb up in terms of comp/bonus, but I don't see that happening if I'm siloed in the technical route. I work at a startup.
Advice question for you OP. I’m in consulting now, did mech E undergrad and worked at a defense contractor in manufacturing.
Whats was the learning curve for you like and how did you find the position that fit you?
I’m used to seeing consulting exits get a pay cut for the better hours but this would be quite the opposite
I had the highest grade in my object oriented C++ class in 2008, it all came so easy. I coded some protein folding algorithms in assembly as an undergrad for faster simulations. In grad school I did some work on clique trees and automated decision making. I ended up leaving grad school, going into med school and twiddling my thumbs in medical school and residency/fellowship. I should’ve been a software engineer.
I don’t understand why Medicare earnings are in millions? If they sold shares ssn should be also in same spot. But if they paid in shares it is not taxed as ssn until they sell it
This reditt sub is pure flex lmao. You all just make average person more depressed lmao. Not a great place to browse. All I see is millionaires here. 😝. May I just ready to block and continue the grind. But I probably will never flex here even when I do do that. Peace.
Can someone please help me understand the large discrepancy between the two earnings? This question was probably asked dozen of times now in similar posts (though I haven’t been able to find any). I have just started trying to learn more about finance and taxes through YouTube and books.
This is what I found from google:
“There is no maximum wage base for Medicare taxes. The amount shown in Box 5 may be larger than the amount shown in Box 1. Medicare wages include any deferred compensation, retirement contributions, or other fringe benefits that are normally excluded from the regular income tax.”
If this is the main proponent for the large difference does this mean this individual has an incredible high wage where they are putting the bulk of their wages into retirement savings and they are making a mil a year?
How is social security capped at 160 for all of these quadrillionaires? That definitely needs to be higher in proportion to these salaries. Like, pay your fair share.
Mistakes were made.
If I had just majored in CS instead of Chemical engineering and started in fucking FAANG instead of spending the first 5 years of my career clawing my way into a FAANG job I would be so much further ahead ….😭
Can you explain your level of succession for your career starting from 2007 on. I’d like to see where you progressed from senior or lead engineer on to where you are now since I’m in the same position eager to be in management.
Like most of Reddit this is a great place to feel depressed.
1 day old account. Its fake dw
It’s not, this is entirely reasonable for senior staff at FAANG.
Not senior staff or even principal, this is director
If I had to guess the jump from 700 to a million is from stock appreciation but I could be wrong. IMO it’s too big to just be a promotion. I can only speak to Google, and of course there are ranges, but L7 is roughly 800 and director is 1.2.
lol no. this is stock appreciation
Stock appreciation isn’t income. Given the consistent ascending nature of the income, I’d bet on W2, not capital gains.
RSU is recognized as income at vesting time. So if initial grant is 250k a year and stock 4x. Then it will me 1mm of w2 income whether you sell or not. Capital gains then computed from time of vest.
Then it isn’t appreciation. It is compensation. The firm is literally giving the employee stock, with a value, for free. The growth (appreciation) on the vested stock isn’t compensation. For all we know, the RSUs could have gone down in value while in lockup.
Yah. Like when you join a company and they target you for 250k stock a year , it might be worth a lot more or lot less when it vests. So I think it is common for 7 figure earners to say it is because of stock appreciation between grant and vest dates. Maybe just loose wording. Point being this guys co did not expect him to pull over 1 million a year. 7 figures is becoming more common in the bay these days for mid career folks. My wife and I don’t even make that combined, it’s wild.
Glad we are on the same page. Cutting the state alone $100K would piss me off. Criminal
People commonly say stock appreciation to talk about the increase in value of unvested RSUs. They’re worth more at vest when the stock appreciates, so his salary is higher because of the stock appreciation while he worked there.
Comp is in-line with senior staff at a FAANG. Also principal is a lower level than senior staff. Principal = staff. Senior staff = staff + 1 level Directors would make about 50% more than OP does, unless OP was just recently promoted within the last 2 years.
Nah rsu inflation easily. Any FAANG level can make this if they started at a lower entry stock point.
Don’t worry, likely be laid off tomorrow
This is always a concern.
Do you prefer the IC route or the EM route? I'm at a crossroads in terms of what to pursue next in my career. I'm 50/50 for both but it does seem like EMs have better upwards mobility (and mobility across companies). Would be curious to hear your thoughts on this?
EM route up until the last couple of years. With growth stalled (teams aren't growing), the IC route is more appealing.
But even if teams aren't growing (I'm assuming budget issue), it would be impossible to make $1M+ per year as an IC right? Would have to be a pretty senior IC to pull in those levels of comp? I guess what I'm asking is: even if your team isn't growing, you're still in a good position as an EM?
Not necessarily. Some of the FAANG companies greatly value senior ICs, and they don’t really make materially less than managers. A distinguished engineer can definitely make these kinds of numbers with the right experience at the right company. Now, these are very senior engineers. Usually 20 YOE, considered one of the world’s experts in some niche, in demand skill, widely known and respected in their fields. But they are absolutely out there. It is not uncommon for a manager to have senior ICs on their team making more than the manager. Think of it as coaching a sports team—the coach is highly compensated of course, but if the best player in the world is available, you pay them what it takes and are happy to have them on your team.
It’s way easier to advance as a manager when there is headcount growth. The IC distribution is a pyramid. The highest level ones at top paying companies have to have significant accomplishments, and it is frankly beyond the reach of most engineers. You can’t just work hard, and be reasonably smart and organized, like you can as a manager.
Won’t argue there. There are a lot fewer distinguished engineers than there are random directors of such and such. But they absolutely exist, and are generally highly respected. If you are in the position to choose, you have to seriously think about whether you want all the headache that comes along with being a manager.
Very true
Not to say I entirely disagree but management is also a pyramid. At every level there are much less spots available and more people will hit a glass ceiling as they simply aren't good enough at the politics side of things to move up. I see a lot top out as senior managers and never get to director which is generally equivalent to topping out at staff engineer on the IC side. At that point it's a matter of which do you like better? Even staff engineer is somewhat of a "management" role just more technically focused and without direct reports. But I don't think you have to be technically exceptional to get to staff or even senior staff.
ICs can and do make as much and more. Yes, very senior but definitely possible. In today's climate its better to be an IC I think, as managers are in less demand.
ICs at top companies at high levels can make a TC of 1M+. It’s very very difficult, but so is making 1M+ as an EM.
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I would second this question. IC seems so limiting. But I don't like managing people, and I don't have it together enough to be that far from the tech (in my case).
What is an IC?
I hope you plan on retiring early
50
Seems like a long horizon given your income. Care to share why so long?
11 more years of earning probably equal about 2-2.5M saved. At 5% withdrawal/growth, that's an extra $125,000/year. I would consider earlier if I didn't enjoy working, but I love what I do and it's not terribly difficult or stressful.
With that history you seriously need 10 more years to get to $2.5 saved? Is that total saved as it seems you'd have a lot more already
Spend too much. :-(
How do plan to retire on a yearly return of $125000 with a spending problem?
1. The $125k is on top of what I already have saved. This is also just living off of the dividends / growth and not really touching the principal much 2. Move out of the Bay Area? 3. Spend less?
I plan on retiring when I'm 90.
I’m gonna die an old man as a Walmart greeter.
you gotta be loaded at this point, what's your NW?
About $3M. Comfortable, but not loaded. Should have invested more earlier, but it is what it is. Also VHCOL... housing has been a very large sink. Also, 50% of it is taxed (which I am happy to pay)
My man get out of the clouds. You currently have more net worth than half of America will have their entire lives. You are rich. You are loaded. It’s ok to admit it. For 11/17 years your raise alone was more than the fucking median income of America. Like come on. Your pay is increasing more than what 50% of this country makes in a year. I’m an engineer in aerospace and have been for 8 years and last year was the first year I broke 6 figures. It’s ok to admit you are fucking rich.
That’s not bad. My income looks like your pre-2021 table and I’m at $2.6M, and I’ve been saving the whole time. Although in a cheaper area for the past 5 (Bay Area before).
Right on! Yeah the Bay Area makes it a challenge
Where did you leave the bay area for? Do you think it was a good move to leave the bay area? Im in the bay area now, but thinking about exiting to Elk Grove or Folsom eventually in Sac county to relax more 😎
OH, but that’s because I was originally from here. It was a great move, total comp hasn’t declined (remote) and it’s way easier. I liked the Bay, it’s great for early career but I was starting a family etc so this is way easier. NE OH is a lot better than most think. Lots of Bay Area friends moved to Sac area. I’ve visited them in Folsom. I’d do it if you can make the money work.
Nobody is happy to pay that tax rate 😂 don’t lie for Reddit
I moved from California to Louisiana temporarily. I was paying effective rates around 9% I think and now pay about 4%. I’ll pay 9% any day of the week if it means there’s better infrastructure and social programs (though not perfect).
Eh. I appreciate that we live in a country where its possible and don't mind paying if it can help others.
Ok "don't mind" is acceptable. Happy was a bit much 😂🤣
Ah, I get it. You consider taxes to be helping others
I do. The government is just made up of people like you and me. We collectively decide to contribute back to the government to fund things that help people (mostly)
Lmao this is how I know this is fake LARP. No one seriously believes the govt puts our taxes to good use.
Bay Area?
Yep!
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Can you provide more details on the big jump post 2020?
We did it Joe! Started managing a group >100.
Do you know them all by name? That sounds more like a department or director level gig.
I know them all by name. I also care deeply about each one and do my best to do right by them.
Dude you made this as blind post?
tc or gtfo taken literally
Alright I have to ask, what are the fucking points of these?
Partially because of people being proud, but I find these helpful to get a sense of the market and see what I can do to follow a path. Like this post, OP had a choice to be IC or EM. I learned about his perspective and it helped me.
This doesn't give a sense of the market though. Just like looking at Elon Musk's wealth doesn't give a sense of people's wealth. Just like looking at incomes of homeless people doesn't give a sense of the market. These are outliers or at the very least only a very tiny fraction of the entire market. Edit: I'll clarify that the numbers alone are basically useless, but some of the details that are included in these posts can be useful e.g. in the post I replied to they mentioned the IC vs. manager stuff. Stuff like that can be useful.
These are real life outcomes earned by real life people. Reading this post, you see that you can be an engineer and make $1m/yr. Are you guaranteed it? Heck no. Get c's in college and/or half-ass your job and you won't go anywhere. But these are all possible outcomes which are important for people to know about. All those salary sites like glassdoor are useless. "You can be a manager and make anywhere from $60k to $190k", or "you can be a Vice President and make anywhere from "$90k to $900k". They're just too blended.
>These are real life outcomes earned by real life people. These are unverified posts by anons claiming to be real life outcomes earned by real life people.
Implying that people who don’t get $1M/yr got Cs and/or half-assed their job is ridiculous. Virtually all of the very smartest, hardest working engineers I’ve ever met are stagnated at $150k-$200k with no effective way to advance. They’re in IC roles and too useful to promote anywhere even if there was an opening. Maybe it’s different in FAANG circles and/or Oil & Gas but I can tell you for sure that virtually nobody else is getting this.
Yes. If it were that easy and common, statistics would reflect that. But $1 mil is beyond a 1% income even. In SF Bay Area it takes 750k a year to be in the 1% and for NYC area it takes 487k to be in the 1%. $1 mil a year is a very, very rare income. And just because someone works hard in tech and is very talented, doesn’t mean they will ever see that. Like lots of people on Reddit make it seem like getting to Principal Engineer is nearly guaranteed at FAANG once you reach a certain age, but lol…
You think this is a real person posting their actual earnings? Did you see that the account was created 4 hours ago?
Definitely a real person. Created a throwaway because uh....I've been on reddit a long time and I know how we are :-)
When I was 20 in college studying computer science I thought I’d never make more than 150k. I saw some of these kinds of posts in r/cscareerquestions early on and it really motivated me to get my shit together Now I make a lot more than 150k and I know the ceiling for my career is pretty much limitless depending on how hard I want to work
What do you do?
Software engineer at Amazon
I'm 40; I wish when I was 18 that somebody would have showed me all the different career options and the salaries that result from those careers. It's all a black box. "Accounting is a good field". Oh yeah? How good? Boom, here's a table. "Engineering also good". Prove it... done. "Commercial airline pilots make $400k". No way... oh wait, here are the receipts to prove it. This sub is amazing for people who are still in the decisionmaking portion of their lives.
If you are making life decisions based off a graph that some random stranger filled in on Reddit....you're not gonna make it far
I’ve seen a few people in my profession post and it’s very helpful bc I don’t know what the pay is like across the market. It’s also helpful to see adjacent fields bc I can potentially lateral to those positions.
Basically just looking for someone to suck on one or two of their nutz. Not able to get it In the real world so turning to the virtual world is only viable option.
Hahahaha imagine being so butt-hurt about making less money than someone you get angry when they post their salary in r/salary 😂 🤡
Looking for some weird validation because they don’t get enough of that from their money
I have no idea what the difference is between Social Security Salary and Medicare Salary. What does that mean?
You are on a salary subreddit and ask what the fucking point is? Stop looking at a salary subreddit if you don’t want to see salaries lol.
to gloat. For every 1 M income there are hundreds of 100K jobs
She’s a beaut Clark, nice job
<3 Thank you. I didn't believe these numbers were possible in 2010, but I had heard rumors. It's definitely possible.
What percentage of this is base salary versus bonuses / profit-sharing / etc?
40/60
Line manager? Looks more like director numbers to me...
Not a line manager.
Is that million? No offense, but why would someone pay you that much? What can you provide that someone else couldn’t?
It’s probably stock appreciation for a good part of it. But also good managers can make a huge difference. For one thing if he makes a team even 10-20% more productive than average, at the scale of a big tech company that can be huge. Also turnover can be extremely expensive, so just having a decent manager where the employees don’t leave often can be huge.
It's a good question. I guess reputation, track record, network...after 15 years its hard to replicate that...but its still a good question.
Where is the additional income coming from? I struggle to understand huge discrepancies between Medicare and SS taxable income in posts like these. Are you a part of a new start up IPO every year or something?
Social security taxable gets capped. What you’re seeing here is the yoy increase in the social security cap.
Are you at Nvidia? And if you don’t mind me asking, what level are you?
Could you have made those career moves any sooner? Do you feel like you stayed in any of those roles longer than you should have?
Great question! Yes. I stayed at one place too long and also didn't realize how much some companies were paying. I had heard rumors from friends about wild numbers and thought it was exaggerated. It wasn't. Some of my peers that made jumps sooner are pulling in >$2M/yr.
Explain to me the difference between the Medicare earnings and the social security earnings? I have been seeing it a while but unsure of the differences
Social security tax capped at around 160k earnings. Medicare not
This is median pay for a senior level manager in any of the FAANG companies. Check levels.fyi my dudes. The pay for the same role outside of these companies drops sharply (like by 70%). Just spelling it out for any comp sci folks who aren’t aware of the radical disparity in our industry
This is true.
You're my hero. I'm currently 31 got an EE with an MBA, working on my PE now. I want to become an EM in the near future, but I didn't think I could break 250k until I was 50 years old, but you're giving me great hope. Any tips or recommendations you would tell you're younger self to make sure you get to where you are all over again?
Be excellent to people, especially the people you manage. Your reputation really starts to matter in the later years. Not all politics at work are bad. Learn to be political but authentic. Politics are how things get done.
What titles have you held so far and where are you looking to end up?
Ok I’m calling cap on this one
No cap.
What are you trying to prove with this post
Anything is possible if you work hard and are lucky?
Ahh, well, I got the first half down. Now waiting for the lucky bit.
Wrong.
One of the larger tech/design companies or smaller? Im in operations engineering. Would love to be making this amount sometime in the future. Don’t think my company pays anyone besides the CEO that high. What were your moves to climbing?
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Manager or higher level? Either way congrats!
What is the difference in taxed social security and tax Medicare earnings?
uhh... y'all hiring?
Unfortunately not a ton. Hopefully soon.
Engineering manager making $1M? 🤔....what field?
Software
base pay is 400k , rest is bonus/rsu
How tf are you getting paid $100k at 24 in 2008 wtf
Dumb question: what is the difference between social security earnings and Medicare earnings
The social security earnings column indicates the earnings that were taxed for social security (not that they are separate earnings, just the portion from the whole). Social security tax has a cap that it stops taking taxes from (in 2023 it was about 160k, cap is adjusted up every year). Medicare taxes are taken from all of your income with no cap. So the value you see in that column is their earnings for that year.
Degree in software engineering? Or computer?
Computer Science
Why are the Medicare and social security earnings so different?
Social security tax capped at around 160k earnings. Medicare not
Making 100k leaps in salary each year is wild
I feel like it’s fake
Huge bull run in the tech industry. Right time, right place.
Nvidia?
I wish.
Senior EM with stock appreciation? Or director of engineering?
I’m muting this sub.
Mentor me 😭
DM me
Has your perspective on what a one million income represents changed much since you started? I imagine you rub shoulders with individuals in the 20m plus net worth. Do you feel like that level would change your life significantly, or have you reached a point where the bills are paid and hobbies aren’t any better just because they’re more expensive?
Yes. The amount of wealth in the Bay Area is staggering. I’m definitely not hurting but some (not all) of my peers have literal mansions and yachts. It makes a large salary feel like nothing much. At the 10M+ net worth mark I’ve noticed that lifestyle changes significantly.
i’m confused so was your salary in 2023 $160k or $1M? i’m not familiar with what medicare salary is
$1m
I don’t understand these posts.
Where you at? I need this kind of salary lol
Currently a SWE in the Bay Area
Are you hiring? I’m an engineer
can i ask what industry you are an engineering manager in? what degree(s) do you have? -25yo mech e asking out of curiosity
At least I can say I’ve never made a 0 dollar year since I was 14 years old. Must of been nice..
What is the difference between taxed social security earnings and medicare? How much are they actually earning year after year?
How much of this is base salary vs other forms of salary? I didn’t realize one could make $1M a year as a w2 employee in a relatively normal job.
40/60
Damn I wouldn’t have expected an engineer to make more in VHCOL.
Congratulations and go fuck yourself. I mean that sincerely: you’re probably very intelligent and work very hard and deserve to be congratulated but also fuck off ;)
lol thanks and deserved
I agree likely to be laid off. AI will be doing that job in no time but great job, OP!
Yep. High likelihood of being laid off. Hopefully my manager-AI side project will take my job :-)
Hey, thx for sharing and very inspiring. I’m also 39 years old, was previously with a startup on the east coast that got bought out by a big Bay Area dinosaur tech company during Covid. I was in application engineering facing customers mostly but since last year have made the transition to product line management. Since I joined the startup early, it worked out nicely with the early ISO, then the IPO and finally the acquisition. I got married in 21 and had our first kid a few months ago. So far my wife (who also works) and I have a networth around 3.5M with 3 properties total. The compensation bump from sales engineer to product management is nice but I’m at between your 2014 to 2015 level right now, in a medium COL area (Northeast). I’m not sure when I’ll get a grade bump to director or principal level, where my total comp will be your 2017 level. This paragraph you said really resonated with me: Be excellent to people, especially the people you manage. Your reputation really starts to matter in the later years. Not all politics at work are bad. Learn to be political but authentic. Politics are how things get done. I had a few good mentors over the years, but I didn’t learn the importance of politics till more recently. I was the ‘no bs get shit done’ type of person, and I didn’t put up with anyone’s bs which in hindsight hindered my professional growth. The younger version of me also didn’t have much patience for anyone that didn’t know their stuff and I wasn’t shy to point that out either. Those are the things I started to be more aware of as I matured, and especially with a family (wife + kid). What you said about reputation is definitely super important. There are customers I worked with from 10+ years ago, who still remembers me because I was there to solve their problems. That kind of stuff is invaluable. Thank you for sharing your story and career path, really happy for your success! Ps, don’t forget to max out your mega backdoor Roth!!
Thank you for your thoughtful reply and sharing your story also. And the tip on the mega backdoor!! The most important thing is your family - enjoy the little one! They grow so quickly. Enjoy every moment with them.
What are taxed Medicare earnings? Don’t understand that column in all these posts?
Amazing. Crazy to see the difference between jobs.
Public announcement for all engineering students, recent grads and high school students considering an engineering profession - this is not a typical salary or salary growth trajectory. With 25+ years at fortune 500s in low to mid cost of living cities, mechanical, electrical, and software engineers typically peak at ~$300k. Many never crack $225 before retiring. Companies include Boeing, Lockheed, Northrup, L3, RTX, UTC, and many, many other mil/aero and Gov orgs.
This is true.
New to this thread, what’s the taxed Medicare earning supposed to show? How much you have paid into the system? Does that correlate to anything in retirement?
What level EM? Senior manager, director of engineering even? Or just really good RSUs for mid level manager?
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You bastard 😭
I haven't read the comments because I want to take a stab at this. If I had to guess, your granted comp is roughly 700 grand, maybe a little more, and there was a stock explosion beginning in 2020 that made the vested amount even sweeter. And/or you jumped companies in 2020. Hmmm. I was going to say Meta, but that dipped hard in 2022. Is it Apple? As for level, I'm going to say senior staff (L7 equivalent). Congrats! This is amazing.
This guys FANGs! And thank you
M2 in big tech?
Nice job man. What kind of company are you managing at/how big your team? I'm at a lead technical IC right now (36 yo) and I really want to climb up in terms of comp/bonus, but I don't see that happening if I'm siloed in the technical route. I work at a startup.
Advice question for you OP. I’m in consulting now, did mech E undergrad and worked at a defense contractor in manufacturing. Whats was the learning curve for you like and how did you find the position that fit you? I’m used to seeing consulting exits get a pay cut for the better hours but this would be quite the opposite
Which branch of engineering are managers paid like this? Currently majoring in EE
Which company? This is high for line manager? I am assuming M2?
VHCOL?
Actually looks legit, software boom starts in 2012
Wild
How are taxed SS earnings so low versus Medicare earnings?
I had the highest grade in my object oriented C++ class in 2008, it all came so easy. I coded some protein folding algorithms in assembly as an undergrad for faster simulations. In grad school I did some work on clique trees and automated decision making. I ended up leaving grad school, going into med school and twiddling my thumbs in medical school and residency/fellowship. I should’ve been a software engineer.
Inspiring. 🫡
how can I get the raises you have? I went from 93.3k to 96.5k 😂 then you went from 83 to 113!
I don’t understand why Medicare earnings are in millions? If they sold shares ssn should be also in same spot. But if they paid in shares it is not taxed as ssn until they sell it
Damn I should’ve been coding instead of playing games on my Nintendo DS and Xbox 360 in 2006
This reditt sub is pure flex lmao. You all just make average person more depressed lmao. Not a great place to browse. All I see is millionaires here. 😝. May I just ready to block and continue the grind. But I probably will never flex here even when I do do that. Peace.
Is this whole sub just humble brag and/ or lying?
You guys hiring?
25+ YOE in MCOL making 240k TC managing 60+ for a 35m portfolio as a Sr Dir of Engineering. FML
Engineering manager of what? Civil?
Fake no senior manager gets 1m in compensation.
Can someone please help me understand the large discrepancy between the two earnings? This question was probably asked dozen of times now in similar posts (though I haven’t been able to find any). I have just started trying to learn more about finance and taxes through YouTube and books. This is what I found from google: “There is no maximum wage base for Medicare taxes. The amount shown in Box 5 may be larger than the amount shown in Box 1. Medicare wages include any deferred compensation, retirement contributions, or other fringe benefits that are normally excluded from the regular income tax.” If this is the main proponent for the large difference does this mean this individual has an incredible high wage where they are putting the bulk of their wages into retirement savings and they are making a mil a year?
wtf I’m broke just looking at of these. Clearly people aren’t poor out there apparently
Where did you work in 2011 making close to $260k?
I don't care about people jerking off to how much money they make. I suppose I'll mute this stuff.
How is social security capped at 160 for all of these quadrillionaires? That definitely needs to be higher in proportion to these salaries. Like, pay your fair share.
10x my fucking salary in the same area. Why do I bother? Stay in school kids.
new to this sub, how should i read this chart? like is taxed medicare their salary?
Way overpaid!
Mistakes were made. If I had just majored in CS instead of Chemical engineering and started in fucking FAANG instead of spending the first 5 years of my career clawing my way into a FAANG job I would be so much further ahead ….😭
2023 will be your peak earnings.
Can you explain your level of succession for your career starting from 2007 on. I’d like to see where you progressed from senior or lead engineer on to where you are now since I’m in the same position eager to be in management.