What are the main factors that influence a System Architect's salary?

The primary factors are: 1) Experience Level, 2) Geographic Location, 3) Education/Skills, 4) Company Size & Industry

How does experience change A System Architect's salary?

A System Architect's salary grows with experience: a Systems Architect III (4-7 years)earns $132,572, a Systems Architect IV (7+ years)earns $156,085, a System Architect (7-10 years)earns $187,126, a Systems Architecture Supervisor (10+ years)earns $150,936, a Systems Architecture Manager (10+ years)earns $169,896,

What are the highest paying cities for a System Architect?

System Architect salary varies significantly by city. The top 3 highest paying cities in California for System Architect roles are San Jose $213,084, San Francisco $210,751, Oakland $206,310.

How much do different types of System Architect roles make?

Salaries for System Architect level roles vary by specialization: Lead System Architect: $172,494; SAP Manufacturing Execution System Architect: $146,077; Software Architect IV: $145,682; Enterprise Infrastructure Architect IV: $144,393; Client/Server Architect: $143,072.

What specialized skills increase a System Architect's salary?

Skills with high demand and low supply, such as Partnering (up to 6% premium), Systems Architecture (up to 5% premium), Commitment (up to 4% premium), directly translate to higher compensation. Employers pay more for these capabilities to gain a competitive edge.

System Architect Salary in Altadena, CA

How much does a System Architect make in Altadena, CA?

As of June 01, 2026, the average salary for a System Architect in Altadena, CA is $186,190 per year, which breaks down to an hourly rate of $90.

However, a System Architect's salary can vary significantly. Here’s a look at the typical salary range:

Top Earners (90th percentile): $204,980
Majority Range (25th-75th percentile): $172,719 to $196,026
Entry-Level (10th percentile): $160,455

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System Architect Salaries by Percentile

	Annual Salary	Monthly Pay	Weekly Pay	Hourly Wage
75th Percentile	$196,026	$16,335	$3,770	$94
Average	$186,190	$15,516	$3,581	$90
25th Percentile	$172,719	$14,393	$3,322	$83

You may get higher pay by adjusting the following factors:

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Key Factors That Influence System Architect Salaries

A System Architect'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, skills and company size can directly affect your earning potential.

How Experience Level Affects System Architect Salaries?

Experience is a primary driver of a System Architect'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-Level (less than 1 year): $132,572
Early Career (1-2 years): $156,085
Mid-Level (2-4 years): $187,126
Senior-Level (5-8 years): $150,936
Expert (over 8 years): $169,896

Levels	Salary
Systems A... Level System Architect	$132,572
Systems A... Level System Architect	$156,085
System Ar... Level System Architect	$187,126
Systems A... Level System Architect	$150,936
Systems A... Level System Architect	$169,896

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What Am I Worth?

Top Paying Cities for System Architects

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: $213,084
San Francisco: $210,751
Oakland: $206,310

San Jose, CA $213,084

San Francisco, CA $210,751

Oakland, CA $206,310

New York, NY $194,516

Paramus, NJ $192,151

Queens Village, NY $192,142

Passaic, NJ $191,982

Bergenfield, NJ $191,967

Stamford, CT $191,595

Huntington, NY $191,526

Newark, NJ $190,277

Bridgeport, CT $189,921

Vallejo, CA $189,584

New Brunswick, NJ $189,517

Petaluma, CA $189,416

Middlesex, NJ $189,095

Somerset, NJ $188,976

Santa Cruz, CA $188,757

Boston, MA $187,726

Monterey, CA $187,133

Seattle, WA $186,746

Santa Rosa, CA $186,712

Los Angeles, CA $186,662

Juneau, AK $186,223

Washington, DC $186,037

Orange, CA $185,435

Santa Ana, CA $184,989

Long Beach, CA $184,820

Anaheim, CA $184,787

Anchorage, AK $184,702

Santa Maria, CA $184,195

Everett, WA $184,161

Danbury, CT $183,567

Bremerton, WA $183,334

Tacoma, WA $182,726

New Suffolk, NY $182,722

Sacramento, CA $182,675

Santa Barbara, CA $182,489

Trenton, NJ $182,303

San Diego, CA $182,303

Brockton, MA $182,117

Fairbanks, AK $181,703

Lompoc, CA $181,273

Lowell, MA $181,136

Ventura, CA $181,104

Nashua, NH $181,070

Stockton, CA $181,053

Modesto, CA $179,820

Poughkeepsie, NY $179,448

Olympia, WA $179,127

Kennewick, WA $179,127

New Haven, CT $179,060

Lawrence, MA $178,451

Hartford, CT $178,282

Riverside, CA $178,249

New Bedford, MA $178,080

Richland, WA $178,080

Bakersfield, CA $177,843

San Bernardino, CA $177,776

New Britain, CT $177,759

Atlantic City, NJ $177,759

New London, CT $177,691

Norwich, CT $177,640

Portsmouth, NH $177,607

Boulder, CO $177,248

Portland, OR $177,015

Worcester, MA $176,998

Minneapolis, MN $176,475

Philadelphia, PA $176,238

Honolulu, HI $175,681

Saint Paul, MN $175,600

Vineland, NJ $175,562

Providence, RI $175,073

Chicago, IL $174,583

Bellingham, WA $174,380

Springfield, MA $174,245

Baltimore, MD $174,194

Chico, CA $173,772

Pittsfield, MA $173,316

Manchester, NH $172,995

Spokane, WA $172,251

Denver, CO $172,234

Albany, NY $171,440

Troy, NY $171,373

Nassau, NY $171,192

Schenectady, NY $171,018

Wilmington, DE $170,883

Burlington, VT $170,646

Salem, OR $170,579

Portland, ME $170,055

Yakima, WA $169,886

Rochester, MN $169,362

Reno, NV $169,278

Fresno, CA $169,278

Milwaukee, WI $169,126

Detroit, MI $168,957

Ann Arbor, MI $168,928

Allentown, PA $168,906

Colorado Springs, CO $168,619

Syracuse, NY $168,535

Carson City, NV $168,535

Houston, TX $168,298

Eugene, OR $168,214

Gary, IN $168,011

Springfield, OR $167,876

Bismarck, ND $167,842

Galveston, TX $167,724

Medford, OR $167,470

Fort Collins, CO $167,403

Concord, NH $167,318

Austin, TX $167,267

Mesa, AZ $166,913

Reading, PA $166,896

Phoenix, AZ $166,879

Dallas, TX $166,828

Saint Cloud, MN $166,666

Madison, WI $166,440

Utica, NY $165,984

Rochester, NY $165,713

Des Moines, IA $165,696

Raleigh, NC $165,679

Atlanta, GA $165,426

Battle Creek, MI $165,375

Salt Lake City, UT $165,325

Lancaster, PA $165,071

Harrisburg, PA $164,835

Kansas City, MO $164,666

Champaign, IL $164,632

Kansas City, KS $164,632

Fort Worth, TX $164,615

Columbus, OH $164,586

Boca Raton, FL $164,548

Pittsburgh, PA $164,480

Richmond, VA $164,412

Indianapolis, IN $164,379

Cleveland, OH $164,362

Las Vegas, NV $164,159

Cincinnati, OH $164,159

Petersburg, VA $163,906

Huntsville, AL $163,652

Lansing, MI $163,539

Lebanon, PA $163,517

Pueblo, CO $163,500

Appleton, WI $163,449

Buffalo, NY $163,382

Dayton, OH $163,331

Racine, WI $163,297

Charlotte, NC $163,281

Saint Louis, MO $163,230

York, PA $163,128

Elkhart, IN $163,128

Gastonia, NC $163,096

Billings, MT $163,056

Beaumont, TX $163,010

Lorain, OH $162,976

Benton Harbor, MI $162,943

Toledo, OH $162,909

Binghamton, NY $162,824

Rock Hill, SC $162,807

Rockford, IL $162,723

Springfield, IL $162,655

Elyria, OH $162,639

Fargo, ND $162,639

Flagstaff, AZ $162,520

Fort Lauderdale, FL $162,419

Duluth, MN $162,318

Miami, FL $162,318

Cheyenne, WY $162,199

Grand Forks, ND $162,199

Bangor, ME $161,828

Cedar Rapids, IA $161,642

Durham, NC $161,571

Louisville, KY $161,557

Grand Rapids, MI $161,524

Hialeah, FL $161,507

Casper, WY $161,270

Scranton, PA $161,067

New Orleans, LA $161,017

Virginia Beach, VA $161,000

Akron, OH $160,915

Peoria, IL $160,696

Sarasota, FL $160,662

Nashville, TN $160,544

Omaha, NE $160,544

Green Bay, WI $160,544

Baton Rouge, LA $160,459

Charleston, SC $160,425

Jamestown, NY $160,341

Davenport, IA $160,341

Tucson, AZ $160,256

Saint Petersburg, FL $160,155

Tampa, FL $160,121

Evansville, IN $160,020

Port Arthur, TX $160,020

Bradenton, FL $159,952

Santa Fe, NM $159,648

Orlando, FL $159,344

Clearwater, FL $159,294

Canton, OH $158,939

La Crosse, WI $158,939

Albuquerque, NM $158,837

Newport News, VA $158,820

High Point, NC $158,770

Ogden, UT $158,702

Corpus Christi, TX $158,567

Norfolk, VA $158,466

Laramie, WY $158,466

Rock Island, IL $158,364

Saginaw, MI $158,331

Jacksonville, FL $158,314

Salisbury, NC $158,280

Boise, ID $158,246

Moline, IL $158,162

Fort Myers, FL $158,111

Memphis, TN $158,077

Tulsa, OK $157,993

Waterloo, IA $157,891

Spartanburg, SC $157,722

Lincoln, NE $157,638

Fort Wayne, IN $157,604

Provo, UT $157,587

Cedar Falls, IA $157,385

San Antonio, TX $157,317

Greensboro, NC $157,249

South Bend, IN $157,232

Savannah, GA $157,047

Muskegon, MI $156,979

Birmingham, AL $156,962

Winston Salem, NC $156,879

Lake Charles, LA $156,472

Anderson, IN $156,438

Lexington, KY $156,388

Augusta, GA $156,337

Greenville, SC $156,337

Lima, OH $156,202

Wichita, KS $156,185

Tuscaloosa, AL $156,185

Columbia, SC $156,033

Springfield, OH $155,999

Asheville, NC $155,729

Bloomington, IN $155,611

Knoxville, TN $155,002

Shreveport, LA $154,986

Wilmington, NC $154,766

Roanoke, VA $154,766

Topeka, KS $154,462

Frankfort, KY $154,443

Oklahoma City, OK $154,327

Chillicothe, OH $154,259

Longview, TX $154,242

Melbourne, FL $154,225

Sioux Falls, SD $153,955

Mobile, AL $153,938

Terre Haute, IN $153,871

Altoona, PA $153,769

Amarillo, TX $153,651

Killeen, TX $153,600

Fayetteville, AR $153,465

Chattanooga, TN $153,414

Sioux City, IA $153,262

Idaho Falls, ID $153,229

Lynchburg, VA $153,093

Gainesville, FL $152,874

Portsmouth, OH $152,789

Little Rock, AR $152,756

Lafayette, LA $152,688

Youngstown, OH $152,688

Daytona Beach, FL $152,587

Clarksville, TN $152,570

Pensacola, FL $152,553

Temple, TX $152,541

Hopkinsville, KY $152,046

Erie, PA $152,012

Florence, SC $151,945

Charleston, WV $151,674

Great Falls, MT $151,590

Macon, GA $151,353

Tallahassee, FL $151,336

Fayetteville, NC $151,303

Waco, TX $151,269

Helena, MT $151,151

Pine Bluff, AR $151,086

Vincennes, IN $150,880

Lubbock, TX $150,813

Alamogordo, NM $150,711

Twin Falls, ID $150,559

Rapid City, SD $150,509

Jackson, MS $150,205

Huntington, WV $150,193

Greenville, MS $150,188

Parkersburg, WV $150,015

Montgomery, AL $149,985

Wichita Falls, TX $149,816

Springfield, MO $149,816

Biloxi, MS $149,732

Monroe, LA $149,563

Johnstown, PA $149,444

Sumter, SC $149,377

Columbus, GA $149,360

Pascagoula, MS $149,039

Abilene, TX $149,039

Kingsport, TN $148,600

Albany, GA $148,600

Gulfport, MS $148,549

Alexandria, LA $147,991

Fort Smith, AR $147,569

El Paso, TX $147,113

Las Cruces, NM $146,353

Harlingen, TX $145,924

Pocatello, ID $145,897

Florence, AL $145,677

Brownsville, TX $145,643

Mcallen, TX $145,288

Dothan, AL $145,052

Columbus, MS $144,048

Altus, OK $143,261

Lawton, OK $142,940

Pierre, SD $142,332

What Skills Can Increase a System Architect's Salary?

Demanded Skills for the Role:

Leadership (Mentioned in 5.34% Job Postings): Knowledge of and ability to employ effective strategies that motivate and guide other members within our business to achieve optimum results.
Software Development (Mentioned in 2.75% 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.
Python (Mentioned in 1.44% Job Postings): Applying the concepts and algorithms of Python to design, develop and maintain software applications to comply with business requirements.

See More Skills

Skills	Demand Percentage
Leadership	5.34%
Software Development	2.75%
Python	1.44%

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 System Architect's salary.

Partnering: Can increase your salary by up to 6%.
Systems Architecture: Can increase your salary by up to 5%.
Commitment: Can increase your salary by up to 4%.

Skill	Salary	Salary % Increase
Partnering	$197,362	6%
Systems Architecture	$195,500	5%
Commitment	$193,638	4%
Microservices	$191,776	3%
Enterprise Architecture	$191,776	3%
AWS	$191,776	3%

Get Latest Data

System Architect Salary: Hourly Rate, Weekly Pay, and Monthly Pay

Understanding how a System Architect'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 June 01, 2026

$172,719

Average $186,190/year

$196,026

$14,393

Average $15,516/month

$16,335

$3,322

Average $3,581/week

$3,770

$83

Average $90/hour

$94

	Annual Salary	Monthly Pay	Weekly Pay	Hourly Wage
75th Percentile	$196,026	$16,335	$3,770	$94
Average	$186,190	$15,516	$3,581	$90
25th Percentile	$172,719	$14,393	$3,322	$83

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