Based on the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS data — updated September 10, 2026.
| Massachusetts | National | Difference | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median annual salary | $165,210 | $142,991 | +16% |
| Median hourly wage | $79.43 | $68.75 | +16% |
Adjusted for local price levels (100 = national average), the cost-adjusted median is $156,153.
| City | Median | Entry Level | Experienced | Cost of Living |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boston | $171,951 | $123,500 | $227,500 | 162 |
The median annual salary for a Software Engineer in Massachusetts is $165,210, or about $79.43 per hour, according to BLS OEWS data.
The national median for Software Engineers is $142,991. Massachusetts is +16% above the national median.
Entry-level software engineers in Massachusetts typically earn from $123,500 depending on the city and employer.
With 48,190 software engineer jobs on record and a median salary of $165,210, Massachusetts offers above-average pay compared to the rest of the country.
By median annual wage, software engineers rank 30 of the 717 occupations reported in Massachusetts — higher than 96% of them.
Among occupations in the same job family, Computer and Information Research Scientists at $170,510, Database Architects at $161,650, Computer Network Architects at $155,060 — all figures are median annual wages for Massachusetts.
No. Every figure on this page is a gross (pre-tax) wage. Massachusetts levies a state income tax, so take-home pay is lower than the gross figures shown here. The state's cost of living index is 130.0 (100 = national average).
By median annual wage, software engineers rank 30 of the 717 occupations reported in Massachusetts — higher than 96% of them.
| Occupation in the same job family | Median in Massachusetts | Jobs |
|---|---|---|
| Computer and Information Research Scientists | $170,510 | $1,760 |
| Database Architects | $161,650 | $2,690 |
| Computer Network Architects | $155,060 | $6,270 |
| Information Security Analysts | $136,550 | $6,100 |
| Data Scientists | $131,750 | $9,420 |
| Database Administrators | $129,300 | $2,310 |
Massachusetts levies a state income tax, so take-home pay is lower than the gross figures shown here. The state's cost of living index is 130.0 (100 = national average).
Ranking and comparison figures come from the same BLS OEWS release as the rest of this page, which covers 717 occupations in Massachusetts.