What staff software engineer roles require at tech companies · 273 roles · 90 days to Oct 16, 2026
Updated
273 staff software engineer roles counted in the window. Browse 4,677 open software postings.
In short
Distributed Systems is required most often, in 110 of 271 (41%) staff software engineer roles at tech companies whose requirements we read in the 90 days to Oct 16, 2026, then Python (94) and AWS (71). Among roles that state years, 139 of 212 (66%) ask for at least 8 years. We counted 273 roles, each at a different employer.
- Distributed Systems
- 110 of 271 (41%)
- Required most often, of the roles we could read
- 8+ years
- 139 of 212 (66%)
- Of roles stating years
- Median stated pay
- $226k a year
- 160 of 273 (59%) state pay
What the postings ask for
Out of the 271 roles whose requirements we could read, of 273 in all. At most 10 per list, those asked for most. Under each required skill, the same skill in senior roles, out of the 875 whose requirements we could read.
| Skill | Roles asking |
|---|---|
| Distributed Systems | 110 of 271 (41%) Senior: 179 of 875 (20%) |
| Python | 94 of 271 (35%) Senior: 271 of 875 (31%) |
| AWS | 71 of 271 (26%) Senior: 230 of 875 (26%) |
| Kubernetes | 67 of 271 (25%) Senior: not in its top 15 |
| Go | 64 of 271 (24%) Senior: not in its top 15 |
| Observability | 64 of 271 (24%) Senior: not in its top 15 |
| TypeScript | 64 of 271 (24%) Senior: 238 of 875 (27%) |
| CI/CD | 60 of 271 (22%) Senior: 231 of 875 (26%) |
| AI | 55 of 271 (20%) Senior: not in its top 15 |
| System Design | 52 of 271 (19%) Senior: not in its top 15 |
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| Skill | Roles asking |
|---|---|
| AWS | 35 of 271 (13%) |
| Open Source | 24 of 271 (9%) |
| TypeScript | 24 of 271 (9%) |
| CI/CD | 23 of 271 (8%) |
| Python | 23 of 271 (8%) |
| React | 23 of 271 (8%) |
| AI | 21 of 271 (8%) |
| LLMs | 21 of 271 (8%) |
| Machine Learning | 21 of 271 (8%) |
| Observability | 21 of 271 (8%) |
Experience
Asked most often: 8–9 years, 86 of 212 (41%).
Of the 212 roles that state years
- Under 3 years
- 0 of 212 (0%)
- 3–4 years
- 4 of 212 (2%)
- 5–7 years
- 69 of 212 (33%)
- 8–9 years
- 86 of 212 (41%)
- 10+ years
- 53 of 212 (25%)
Degree
28 of 267 (10%) require a degree, and 44 more accept experience instead.
Of the 267 roles we could read for it
- Required
- 28 of 267 (10%)
- Required, or experience instead
- 44 of 267 (16%)
- Preferred
- 10 of 267 (4%)
- Not mentioned
- 185 of 267 (69%)
Pay and remote work
Of the 273 roles we could read for it
- Median stated pay
- $226k a year
- Roles stating pay
- 160 of 273 (59%)
- Remote roles
- 121 of 273 (44%)
Questions about staff software engineer roles
Do you need a degree to be a staff software engineer?
How many years of experience do staff software engineer roles ask for?
What skills do staff software engineer roles require most often?
How much do staff software engineer roles pay?
Can staff software engineer roles be remote?
What does "preferred" mean in a posting?
Companies with the most software engineer roles
- Anduril Industries8 roles
- Cohere7 roles
- DoorDash USA7 roles
- Nuro7 roles
- OpenAI7 roles
- Replit7 roles
- Airwallex6 roles
- Cloudflare6 roles
- CoreWeave6 roles
- Databricks6 roles
How we count: 273 roles in the 90 days to Oct 16, 2026, each role counted once however many boards post it. Methodology