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QA Senior Manager Salary in the United States

How much does a QA Senior Manager make in the United States?

As of May 01, 2026, the average salary for a QA Senior Manager in the United States is $162,590 per year, which breaks down to an hourly rate of $78.

However, a QA Senior Manager's salary can vary significantly. Here’s a look at the typical salary range:

  • Top Earners (90th percentile): $181,694
  • Majority Range (25th-75th percentile): $149,490 to $172,590
  • Entry-Level (10th percentile): $137,563
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View as table View as graph 25% $149,490 10% $137,563 90% $181,694 75% $172,590 $162,590 50%(Median) Didn’t find job title? Click

QA Senior Manager Salaries by Percentile

Annual
Salary
Monthly
Pay
Weekly
Pay
Hourly
Wage
75th Percentile $172,590 $14,383 $3,319 $83
Average $162,590 $13,549 $3,127 $78
25th Percentile $149,490 $12,458 $2,875 $72
Check out QA Senior Manager Job Openings in the United States
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Key Factors That Influence QA Senior Manager Salaries

A QA Senior Manager'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 and company size can directly affect your earning potential.

How Experience Level Affects QA Senior Manager Salaries?

Experience is a primary driver of a QA Senior Manager'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:

  • QA Analyst V (7-10 years): $152,328
  • Manager of Quality Assurance (10+ years): $128,368
  • QA Senior Manager (10+ years): $162,564
  • Director of Quality Assurance (10+ years): $198,163
  • Vice President of Quality Assurance (10+ years): $244,477
Job Role Years of Experience Average Salary
QA Analyst V7-10 years$152,328
Manager of Quality Assurance10+ years$128,368
QA Senior Manager10+ years$162,564
Director of Quality Assurance10+ years$198,163
Vice President of Quality Assurance10+ years$244,477
$152,328 QA Analys...
$128,368 Manager o...
$162,564 QA Senior...
$198,163 Director ...
$244,477 Vice Pres...
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What Am I Worth?

Top Paying Cities for QA Senior Managers

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: $205,090
  • San Francisco: $202,790
  • Oakland: $198,590

What Skills Can Increase a QA Senior Manager's Salary?

Demanded Skills for the Role:

  • Leadership (Mentioned in 4.77% Job Postings): Knowledge of and ability to employ effective strategies that motivate and guide other members within our business to achieve optimum results.
  • Continuous Improvement (Mentioned in 2.23% Job Postings): A continual improvement process, also often called a continuous improvement process (abbreviated as CIP or CI), is an ongoing effort to improve products, services, or processes. These efforts can seek "incremental" improvement over time or "breakthrough" improvement all at once. Delivery (customer valued) processes are constantly evaluated and improved in the light of their efficiency, effectiveness and flexibility. Some see CIPs as a meta-process for most management systems (such as business process management, quality management, project management, and program management). W. Edwards Deming, a pioneer of the field, saw it as part of the 'system' whereby feedback from the process and customer were evaluated against organisational goals. The fact that it can be called a management process does not mean that it needs to be executed by 'management'; but rather merely that it makes decisions about the implementation of the delivery process and the design of the delivery process itself.
  • Auditing (Mentioned in 1.46% Job Postings): Auditing refers to the independent examination of financial information of any entity whether profit oriented or not. It is a safeguard measure that prevents corruption.
See More Skills
Skills Demand Percentage
Leadership 4.77%
Continuous Improvement 2.23%
Auditing 1.46%
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 QA Senior Manager's salary.
  • Clinical Research: Can increase your salary by up to 11%.
  • Oncology: Can increase your salary by up to 10%.
  • Clinical Trial: Can increase your salary by up to 10%.
Skill Salary Salary % Increase
Clinical Research
$180,475
11%
Oncology
$178,849
10%
Clinical Trial
$178,849
10%
Quality Management System
$170,720
5%
Regulatory Affairs
$170,720
5%
Continuous Improvement
$170,720
5%
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QA Senior Manager Salary: Hourly Rate, Weekly Pay, and Monthly Pay

Understanding how a QA Senior Manager'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 May 01, 2026

QA Senior Manager Salary Growth & Career Path

For a QA Senior Manager, the most direct path to higher earnings is advancing to the Director of Quality Assurance role. This promotion typically comes with a significant pay increase, bringing the average annual salary to $198,200 - a projected growth of 22% over your current level.

Salary Trends for QA Senior Manager

Salaries for a QA Senior Manager can change over time, reflecting shifts in market demand and the overall economy. The median salary decreased from $137,473 in 2023 to around $133,589 in 2025, reflecting changes in demand, location, experience, and the wider economy. For a detailed analysis of QA Senior Manager salary trends, .

Average Annual Salary of QA Senior Manager Over Time

2022
$???
2023
$137,473
2024
$135,282
2025
$133,589
2026
$???
2027
$???
Year Average Annual Salary
2022
View More
2023 $137,473
2024 $135,282
2025 $133,589
2026
View More
2027
View More

Most common benefits for QA Senior Manager

Social Security
401(k)
Disability
Healthcare
Pension
Time Off (days)
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Common company salaries for QA Senior Manager

Here are companies hiring for QA Senior Manager and their salaries, click below for more details.

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Where Does Our Salary Data Come From?

Salary.com provides salary estimates, histograms, trends, and comparisons using data from employer job postings and third-party sources.

We offer detailed salary information across multiple percentiles for your reference. (Click here to learn Why the Salary Midpoint Formula Is Crucial for Achieving Pay Equity.)

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