What are the main factors that influence a Programmer I's salary?

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

How does experience change A Programmer 's salary?

A Programmer 's salary grows with experience: an Programmer I (0-2 years)earns $72,072, an Applications Programmer II (2-4 years)earns $94,137, an Applications Programmer III (4-7 years)earns $121,118, an Applications Programmer IV (7+ years)earns $141,927, an Applications Programmer V (7-10 years)earns $164,930,

What are the highest paying states for a Programmer I?

Programmer I salary varies significantly by state. The top 3 highest paying states for Programmer I roles are District of Columbia $80,268, California $79,963, Massachusetts $78,898. These tech hubs typically pay 10-15% above the national average.

How much do different types of Programmer roles make?

Salaries for Programmer level roles vary by specialization: Enterprise Applications Programmer I: $79,843; IT Systems Programmer I: $79,490; Software Systems Programmer I: $79,486; Midrange Programmer I: $73,389; Application Programmer Analyst I: $73,000.

How do different companies affect a Programmer I's salary?

Company size, industry, and compensation structure create significant salary variations for Programmer I roles. Large, established industry leaders like C R Bard Inc ($128,509) and Henry Schein Canada ($124,697) offer base salaries 35-40% above the national average. In contrast, smaller firms or startups may offer closer to $82,041.

Programmer I Salary in the United States

How much does a Programmer I make in the United States?

As of May 01, 2026, the average salary for a Programmer I in the United States is $72,496 per year, which breaks down to an hourly rate of $35.

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

Top Earners (90th percentile): $83,512
Majority Range (25th-75th percentile): $68,489 to $78,262
Entry-Level (10th percentile): $64,840

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Programmer I Salaries by Percentile

	Annual Salary	Monthly Pay	Weekly Pay	Hourly Wage
75th Percentile	$78,262	$6,522	$1,505	$38
Average	$72,496	$6,041	$1,394	$35
25th Percentile	$68,489	$5,707	$1,317	$33

You may get higher pay by adjusting the following factors:

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Key Factors That Influence Programmer I Salaries

A Programmer I'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 Programmer I Salaries?

Experience is a primary driver of a Programmer I'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): $72,072
Early Career (1-2 years): $94,137
Mid-Level (2-4 years): $121,118
Senior-Level (5-8 years): $141,927
Expert (over 8 years): $164,930

Levels	Salary
Programme... Level Programmer I	$72,072
Applicati... Level Programmer I	$94,137
Applicati... Level Programmer I	$121,118
Applicati... Level Programmer I	$141,927
Applicati... Level Programmer I	$164,930

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What Am I Worth?

How Do Programmer I 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 Programmer Is. For example, consider the average annual salaries in these key locations:

District of Columbia: $80,268.
California: $79,963.
Massachusetts: $78,898.

District of Columbia $80,268

California $79,963

Massachusetts $78,898

Washington $78,608

New Jersey $78,579

Alaska $78,477

Connecticut $77,477

New York $77,071

Hawaii $75,773

Rhode Island $75,164

Maryland $74,751

Minnesota $74,185

Colorado $73,968

Illinois $73,895

Oregon $73,620

Delaware $73,417

New Hampshire $73,289

Virginia $73,004

Pennsylvania $72,170

Nevada $71,749

North Dakota $71,612

Michigan $71,394

Wisconsin $71,314

Vermont $71,155

Texas $70,713

Maine $70,684

Arizona $70,640

Ohio $70,589

Georgia $69,922

Indiana $69,589

Wyoming $69,524

Utah $69,422

Iowa $69,379

Kansas $69,031

Louisiana $68,929

North Carolina $68,893

Missouri $68,879

Florida $68,596

Montana $68,444

Nebraska $68,299

Kentucky $68,219

South Carolina $67,929

Tennessee $67,748

Idaho $67,675

New Mexico $67,146

Oklahoma $67,030

Alabama $66,602

South Dakota $65,884

Arkansas $65,493

West Virginia $65,283

Mississippi $64,652

Top Paying Cities for Programmer Is

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: $91,439
San Francisco: $90,438
Oakland: $88,532

San Jose, CA $91,439

San Francisco, CA $90,438

Oakland, CA $88,532

New York, NY $83,471

Paramus, NJ $82,456

Queens Village, NY $82,453

Passaic, NJ $82,384

Bergenfield, NJ $82,377

Stamford, CT $82,218

Huntington, NY $82,188

Newark, NJ $81,652

Bridgeport, CT $81,499

Vallejo, CA $81,355

New Brunswick, NJ $81,326

Petaluma, CA $81,283

Middlesex, NJ $81,145

Somerset, NJ $81,094

Santa Cruz, CA $81,000

Boston, MA $80,558

Monterey, CA $80,303

Seattle, WA $80,137

Santa Rosa, CA $80,123

Los Angeles, CA $80,101

Juneau, AK $79,912

Washington, DC $79,833

Orange, CA $79,575

Santa Ana, CA $79,383

Long Beach, CA $79,311

Anaheim, CA $79,296

Anchorage, AK $79,260

Santa Maria, CA $79,042

Everett, WA $79,028

Danbury, CT $78,773

Bremerton, WA $78,673

Tacoma, WA $78,412

New Suffolk, NY $78,410

Sacramento, CA $78,390

Santa Barbara, CA $78,310

Trenton, NJ $78,231

San Diego, CA $78,231

Brockton, MA $78,151

Fairbanks, AK $77,973

Lompoc, CA $77,788

Lowell, MA $77,730

Ventura, CA $77,716

Nashua, NH $77,701

Stockton, CA $77,694

Modesto, CA $77,165

Poughkeepsie, NY $77,005

Olympia, WA $76,868

Kennewick, WA $76,868

New Haven, CT $76,839

Lawrence, MA $76,578

Hartford, CT $76,505

Riverside, CA $76,491

New Bedford, MA $76,418

Richland, WA $76,418

Bakersfield, CA $76,317

San Bernardino, CA $76,288

New Britain, CT $76,280

Atlantic City, NJ $76,280

New London, CT $76,251

Norwich, CT $76,230

Portsmouth, NH $76,215

Boulder, CO $76,061

Portland, OR $75,961

Worcester, MA $75,954

Minneapolis, MN $75,729

Philadelphia, PA $75,628

Honolulu, HI $75,389

Saint Paul, MN $75,354

Vineland, NJ $75,338

Providence, RI $75,128

Chicago, IL $74,917

Bellingham, WA $74,830

Springfield, MA $74,772

Baltimore, MD $74,751

Chico, CA $74,569

Pittsfield, MA $74,374

Manchester, NH $74,236

Spokane, WA $73,917

Denver, CO $73,910

Albany, NY $73,569

Troy, NY $73,540

Nassau, NY $73,462

Schenectady, NY $73,388

Wilmington, DE $73,330

Burlington, VT $73,228

Salem, OR $73,199

Portland, ME $72,975

Yakima, WA $72,902

Rochester, MN $72,677

Reno, NV $72,641

Fresno, CA $72,641

Milwaukee, WI $72,576

Detroit, MI $72,503

Ann Arbor, MI $72,491

Allentown, PA $72,482

Colorado Springs, CO $72,358

Syracuse, NY $72,322

Carson City, NV $72,322

Houston, TX $72,221

Eugene, OR $72,184

Gary, IN $72,097

Springfield, OR $72,039

Bismarck, ND $72,025

Galveston, TX $71,974

Medford, OR $71,865

Fort Collins, CO $71,836

Concord, NH $71,800

Austin, TX $71,778

Mesa, AZ $71,626

Reading, PA $71,619

Phoenix, AZ $71,612

Dallas, TX $71,590

Saint Cloud, MN $71,520

Madison, WI $71,423

Utica, NY $71,227

Rochester, NY $71,111

Des Moines, IA $71,104

Raleigh, NC $71,097

Atlanta, GA $70,988

Battle Creek, MI $70,966

Salt Lake City, UT $70,945

Lancaster, PA $70,836

Harrisburg, PA $70,734

Kansas City, MO $70,662

Champaign, IL $70,647

Kansas City, KS $70,647

Fort Worth, TX $70,640

Columbus, OH $70,628

Boca Raton, FL $70,611

Pittsburgh, PA $70,582

Richmond, VA $70,553

Indianapolis, IN $70,539

Cleveland, OH $70,531

Las Vegas, NV $70,444

Cincinnati, OH $70,444

Petersburg, VA $70,336

Huntsville, AL $70,227

Lansing, MI $70,178

Lebanon, PA $70,169

Pueblo, CO $70,162

Appleton, WI $70,140

Buffalo, NY $70,111

Dayton, OH $70,089

Racine, WI $70,075

Charlotte, NC $70,067

Saint Louis, MO $70,046

York, PA $70,002

Elkhart, IN $70,002

Gastonia, NC $69,988

Billings, MT $69,971

Beaumont, TX $69,951

Lorain, OH $69,937

Benton Harbor, MI $69,922

Toledo, OH $69,908

Binghamton, NY $69,872

Rock Hill, SC $69,864

Rockford, IL $69,828

Springfield, IL $69,799

Elyria, OH $69,792

Fargo, ND $69,792

Flagstaff, AZ $69,741

Fort Lauderdale, FL $69,698

Duluth, MN $69,654

Miami, FL $69,654

Cheyenne, WY $69,604

Grand Forks, ND $69,604

Bangor, ME $69,444

Cedar Rapids, IA $69,364

Durham, NC $69,334

Louisville, KY $69,328

Grand Rapids, MI $69,314

Hialeah, FL $69,306

Casper, WY $69,205

Scranton, PA $69,118

New Orleans, LA $69,096

Virginia Beach, VA $69,089

Akron, OH $69,053

Peoria, IL $68,958

Sarasota, FL $68,944

Nashville, TN $68,893

Omaha, NE $68,893

Green Bay, WI $68,893

Baton Rouge, LA $68,857

Charleston, SC $68,842

Jamestown, NY $68,806

Davenport, IA $68,806

Tucson, AZ $68,770

Saint Petersburg, FL $68,726

Tampa, FL $68,712

Evansville, IN $68,668

Port Arthur, TX $68,668

Bradenton, FL $68,639

Santa Fe, NM $68,509

Orlando, FL $68,378

Clearwater, FL $68,357

Canton, OH $68,204

La Crosse, WI $68,204

Albuquerque, NM $68,161

Newport News, VA $68,154

High Point, NC $68,132

Ogden, UT $68,103

Corpus Christi, TX $68,045

Norfolk, VA $68,001

Laramie, WY $68,001

Rock Island, IL $67,958

Saginaw, MI $67,943

Jacksonville, FL $67,936

Salisbury, NC $67,922

Boise, ID $67,907

Moline, IL $67,871

Fort Myers, FL $67,849

Memphis, TN $67,835

Tulsa, OK $67,798

Waterloo, IA $67,755

Spartanburg, SC $67,682

Lincoln, NE $67,646

Fort Wayne, IN $67,632

Provo, UT $67,624

Cedar Falls, IA $67,537

San Antonio, TX $67,508

Greensboro, NC $67,479

South Bend, IN $67,472

Savannah, GA $67,392

Muskegon, MI $67,363

Birmingham, AL $67,356

Winston Salem, NC $67,321

Lake Charles, LA $67,146

Anderson, IN $67,131

Lexington, KY $67,110

Augusta, GA $67,088

Greenville, SC $67,088

Lima, OH $67,030

Wichita, KS $67,023

Tuscaloosa, AL $67,023

Columbia, SC $66,957

Springfield, OH $66,943

Asheville, NC $66,827

Bloomington, IN $66,776

Knoxville, TN $66,515

Shreveport, LA $66,508

Wilmington, NC $66,414

Roanoke, VA $66,414

Topeka, KS $66,283

Frankfort, KY $66,275

Oklahoma City, OK $66,225

Chillicothe, OH $66,196

Longview, TX $66,189

Melbourne, FL $66,182

Sioux Falls, SD $66,066

Mobile, AL $66,058

Terre Haute, IN $66,029

Altoona, PA $65,986

Amarillo, TX $65,935

Killeen, TX $65,913

Fayetteville, AR $65,855

Chattanooga, TN $65,834

Sioux City, IA $65,768

Idaho Falls, ID $65,754

Lynchburg, VA $65,696

Gainesville, FL $65,602

Portsmouth, OH $65,565

Little Rock, AR $65,551

Lafayette, LA $65,522

Youngstown, OH $65,522

Daytona Beach, FL $65,478

Clarksville, TN $65,471

Pensacola, FL $65,464

Temple, TX $65,459

Hopkinsville, KY $65,246

Erie, PA $65,232

Florence, SC $65,203

Charleston, WV $65,087

Great Falls, MT $65,051

Macon, GA $64,949

Tallahassee, FL $64,942

Fayetteville, NC $64,928

Waco, TX $64,913

Helena, MT $64,862

Pine Bluff, AR $64,835

Vincennes, IN $64,746

Lubbock, TX $64,717

Alamogordo, NM $64,674

Twin Falls, ID $64,609

Rapid City, SD $64,587

Jackson, MS $64,456

Huntington, WV $64,451

Greenville, MS $64,449

Parkersburg, WV $64,375

Montgomery, AL $64,362

Wichita Falls, TX $64,290

Springfield, MO $64,290

Biloxi, MS $64,253

Monroe, LA $64,181

Johnstown, PA $64,130

Sumter, SC $64,101

Columbus, GA $64,094

Pascagoula, MS $63,956

Abilene, TX $63,956

Kingsport, TN $63,768

Albany, GA $63,768

Gulfport, MS $63,746

Alexandria, LA $63,507

Fort Smith, AR $63,325

El Paso, TX $63,130

Las Cruces, NM $62,803

Harlingen, TX $62,619

Pocatello, ID $62,608

Florence, AL $62,513

Brownsville, TX $62,499

Mcallen, TX $62,347

Dothan, AL $62,245

Columbus, MS $61,815

Altus, OK $61,477

Lawton, OK $61,339

Pierre, SD $61,078

What Skills Can Increase a Programmer I's Salary?

Demanded Skills for the Role:

Analysis (Mentioned in 6.43% Job Postings): Analysis is the process of considering something carefully or using statistical methods in order to understand it or explain it.
Application Development (Mentioned in 2.53% Job Postings): Application development may refer to: Mobile application development ("app development") or the process of developing desktop application software. Mobile app development is the act or process by which a mobile app is developed for mobile devices, such as personal digital assistants, enterprise digital assistants or mobile phones. These applications can be pre-installed on phones during manufacturing platforms, or delivered as web applications using server-side or client-side processing (e.g., JavaScript) to provide an "application-like" experience within a Web browser.
CSS (Mentioned in 1.7% Job Postings): Cascading Style Sheets is a style sheet language used for describing the presentation of a document written in a markup language such as HTML or XML. CSS is a cornerstone technology of the World Wide Web, alongside HTML and JavaScript.

See More Skills

Skills	Demand Percentage
Analysis	6.43%
Application Development	2.53%
CSS	1.7%

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 Programmer I's salary.

Python: Can increase your salary by up to 9%.
Products and Services: Can increase your salary by up to 7%.
Java: Can increase your salary by up to 7%.

Skill	Salary	Salary % Increase
Python	$79,021	9%
Products and Services	$77,571	7%
Java	$77,571	7%
Collaboration	$76,846	6%
Leadership	$76,846	6%
Agile	$76,846	6%

Get Latest Data

Programmer I Salary: Hourly Rate, Weekly Pay, and Monthly Pay

Understanding how a Programmer I'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

$68,489

Average $72,496/year

$78,262

$5,707

Average $6,041/month

$6,522

$1,317

Average $1,394/week

$1,505

$33

Average $35/hour

$38

	Annual Salary	Monthly Pay	Weekly Pay	Hourly Wage
75th Percentile	$78,262	$6,522	$1,505	$38
Average	$72,496	$6,041	$1,394	$35
25th Percentile	$68,489	$5,707	$1,317	$33

Salaries of jobs related to Programmer I

Salary Trends for Programmer I

Salaries for a Programmer I can change over time, reflecting shifts in market demand and the overall economy. The median salary decreased from $77,347 in 2023 to around $76,674 in 2025, reflecting changes in demand, location, experience, and the wider economy. For a detailed analysis of Programmer I salary trends, .

Average Annual Salary of Programmer I Over Time

2022

$???

2023

$77,347

2024

$77,146

2025

$76,674

2026

$???

2027

$???

Year	Average Annual Salary
2022	View More
2023	$77,347
2024	$77,146
2025	$76,674
2026	View More
2027	View More

Most common benefits for Programmer I

Social Security

401(k)

Disability

Healthcare

Pension

Time Off (days)

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Where Does Our Salary Data Come From?

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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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