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Hourly Wage for Senior Quality Assurance Engineer Salary in the United States

How much does a Senior Quality Assurance Engineer make hourly?

As of October 01, 2026, the average hourly rate for a Senior Quality Assurance Engineer in the United States is $48, which translates to an annual salary of about $100,773.

However, the hourly wage can vary significantly based on several factors. Here’s a detailed look at the typical pay range per hour:

  • Top Earners (90th percentile): $56 per hour
  • Majority Range (25th-75th percentile): $45 to $53 per hour
  • Entry-Level (10th percentile): $41 per hour
Salary Factors Salary-Boosting Skills Salary by Experience Related Job Salaries Top Paying Cities Explore Related Jobs

Key Factors That Influence Senior Quality Assurance Engineer Salaries

A Senior Quality Assurance Engineer's salary isn't a fixed number. It's shaped by several important factors. Below, we'll explore how your years of experience, geographic location, education and company size can directly affect your earning potential.

How Experience Level Affects Senior Quality Assurance Engineer Salaries?

Experience is a primary driver of a Senior Quality Assurance Engineer's salary. As you build your skills and take on more complex tasks, your compensation generally increases. Here's how the average salary grows at different career stages:

  • Entry Quality Assurance Engineer (0-2 years): $75,681
  • Intermediate Quality Assurance Engineer (2-4 years): $89,077
  • Senior Quality Assurance Engineer (4-7 years): $100,752
  • QA/Validation Engineer IV (7+ years): $125,326
  • Expert/Consultant Level Quality Assurance Engineer (7-10 years): $150,356
Job Role Years of Experience Average Salary
Entry Quality Assurance Engineer0-2 years$75,681
Intermediate Quality Assurance Engineer2-4 years$89,077
Senior Quality Assurance Engineer4-7 years$100,752
QA/Validation Engineer IV7+ years$125,326
Expert/Consultant Level Quality Assurance Engineer7-10 years$150,356
View as Graph

How Do Senior Quality Assurance Engineer Salaries Vary from State to State?

Your salary can change significantly depending on where you work. States with a higher cost of living and strong industrial sectors often pay more to attract Senior Quality Assurance Engineers. For example, consider the average annual salaries in these key locations:
  • District of Columbia: $111,573.
  • California: $111,143.
  • Massachusetts: $109,663.

Top Paying Cities for Senior Quality Assurance Engineers

Salaries can also vary between different cities. Major metropolitan areas or cities with a high demand for technicians often offer more competitive pay. Here are a few examples of average annual salaries in different U.S. cities:

  • San Jose: $127,093
  • San Francisco: $125,703
  • Oakland: $123,053

What Skills Can Increase a Senior Quality Assurance Engineer's Salary?

Demanded Skills for the Role:

  • Team Development (Mentioned in 3.93% Job Postings): Building and developing effective teams to achieve a common goal or to complete a task in the most effective and efficient way.
  • Software Development (Mentioned in 2.98% Job Postings): Software development is the process of conceiving, specifying, designing, programming, documenting, testing, and bug fixing involved in creating and maintaining applications, frameworks, or other software components. Software development is a process of writing and maintaining the source code, but in a broader sense, it includes all that is involved between the conception of the desired software through to the final manifestation of the software, sometimes in a planned and structured process. Therefore, software development may include research, new development, prototyping, modification, reuse, re-engineering, maintenance, or any other activities that result in software products. Software can be developed for a variety of purposes, the three most common being to meet specific needs of a specific client/business (the case with custom software), to meet a perceived need of some set of potential users (the case with commercial and open source software), or for personal use (e.g. a scientist may write software to automate a mundane task). Embedded software development, that is, the development of embedded software, such as used for controlling consumer products, requires the development process to be integrated with the development of the controlled physical product. System software underlies applications and the programming process itself, and is often developed separately.
  • JavaScript (Mentioned in 1.84% Job Postings): Using JavaScript in the development and maintenance of Web-based application systems.
Skills Demand Percentage
Team Development 3.93%
Software Development 2.98%
JavaScript 1.84%
See More Skills

What skills can make your compensation higher?

Mastering certain specialized skills can lead to a significant increase in pay. Here are examples of skills and the potential impact they can have on a Senior Quality Assurance Engineer's salary.

  • Python: Can increase your salary by up to 6%.
  • Android: Can increase your salary by up to 5%.
  • Linux: Can increase your salary by up to 5%.
Skill Salary Salary % Increase
Python $106,819
6%
Android $105,812
5%
Linux $105,812
5%
Get Latest Data

Senior Quality Assurance Engineer Salary by Company Size: Startups vs. Enterprise

Senior Quality Assurance Engineer salary potential scales significantly with company size. Data shows that Enterprise companies (5,000+ employees) pay the highest average salary at around $112,503. While startup companies pay approximate $95,261.

Senior Quality Assurance Engineer Salary by Company Size

Company Size Employees Average Salary
Startup 1~50 $95,261
Growth Stage 51~500 $100,727
Established 501~5000 $108,630
Enterprise 5000+ $112,503

Senior Quality Assurance Engineer Salary by Industry: Top Paying Sectors

For Senior Quality Assurance Engineer roles, the industry you choose can affect earning potential by as much as 100% (the gap between the highest and lowest paying industries). Data shows that the Aerospace & Defense and Biotechnology sectors offer the strongest compensation, at 50% above the average. In contrast, Senior Quality Assurance Engineer positions in Transportation or Telecom typically offer lower base pay, as these industries often view Senior Quality Assurance Engineer as a support function rather than a direct revenue driver.

The top paying industry for a Senior Quality Assurance Engineer

Industry Sector Average Annual Salary Average Hourly Rate Pay vs.Avg
Aerospace & Defense$151,160$73.050%

How Education impacts a Senior Quality Assurance Engineer's Salary?

Your level of education can impact your salary potential. While many Senior Quality Assurance Engineers enter the field with a Bachelor's Degree degree, higher education can lead to more specialized and higher-paying roles.

According to our 100% employer-reported salary data, the median salary for a Senior Quality Assurance Engineer with a Bachelor's Degree is between $101,679 and $106,316).

Senior Quality Assurance Engineer Salaries by Degree Level

Typical Education for Senior Quality Assurance Engineer
Degree Level % of user with this level of education
No Diploma 0.6%
High School 2.8%
Associates 6.1%
Bachelors 52.6%
Masters 36.4%
Doctorate 1.4%
View as Graph

Senior Quality Assurance Engineer Salary: Hourly Rate, Weekly Pay, and Monthly Pay

Understanding how a Senior Quality Assurance Engineer's annual salary breaks down can help with budgeting. Below, you can see the average hourly rate, weekly pay, and monthly pay for this role. Use the buttons to switch between different pay periods.

Last Updated on October 01, 2026
$93,193
Average $100,773/year
$109,423
$7,766
Average $8,398/month
$9,119
$1,792
Average $1,938/week
$2,104
$45
Average $48/hour
$53
Annual Salary Monthly Pay Weekly Pay Hourly Wage
75th Percentile $109,423 $9,119 $2,104 $53
Average $100,773 $8,398 $1,938 $48
25th Percentile $93,193 $7,766 $1,792 $45

Most common benefits for Senior Quality Assurance Engineer

  • Social Security
  • 401 (k)
  • Disability
  • Healthcare
  • Pension
  • Time Off (days)

Common company salaries for Senior Quality Assurance Engineer

Here are companies hiring for Senior Quality Assurance Engineer and their salaries, click below for more details.

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FAQ about Senior Quality Assurance Engineer

1. What industry pays the highest salary for Senior Quality Assurance Engineer?

The Aerospace & Defense industry offers the highest average compensation for Senior Quality Assurance Engineer roles, with salaries approximately 50% above the market median.

Where Does Our Salary Data Come From?

Salary.com salary estimates, histograms, trends, and comparisons are derived from both employer job postings and third-party data sources. We also provide multiple percentiles of salary information for your reference, click here to know Why the Salary Midpoint Formula Is Crucial to Getting Pay Equity Right. With more online, real-time compensation data than any other website, Salary.com helps you determine your exact pay target.

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