New grad software engineer salary, in real numbers
Posted 2027 new grad base bands start near $122k (Stripe, and Amazon’s Nashville rate) and top out at Jane Street’s flat $300,000, with most big-tech bands between $120k and $175k. Equity and sign-on bonuses do the rest: estimated first-year total compensation runs roughly $150k–$215k at Amazon, Microsoft and Apple, $200k–$270k at Stripe, Palantir, Databricks and OpenAI, and $250k–$490k at Jane Street. Every band below comes from a posted range, levels.fyi, or a dated public source.
11 programs tracked · Last verified October 10, 2026 · See the full New Grad List →
Every posted new grad salary band
Ordered by ranking. Click through to any company for the full band, sourcing, and hiring status.
| # | Company | Base salary (posted) | Total comp (est.) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jane Street | $300k | $250k–$490k |
| 2 | Stripe | $122k–$134k | $198k–$256k |
| 3 | Palantir | $145k–$155k | $190k–$267k |
| 4 | Databricks | — | $230k–$262k |
| 5 | Amazon | $122k–$148k | $154k–$215k |
| 6 | $123k–$174k | $180k–$225k | |
| 7 | OpenAI | $180k | $245k–$270k |
| 8 | NVIDIA | $108k–$196k | $138k–$200k |
| 9 | Microsoft | $85k–$168k | $153k–$175k |
| 10 | Meta | — | $174k–$207k |
| 11 | Apple | $129k–$195k | $152k–$191k |
Posted base bands, compared
Databricks, Meta don’t post salary ranges and are omitted from the chart.
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