According to TheRealSalaries.com analysis of official US Department of Labor filings (October 2024 - December 2025), the median H-1B prevailing wage is $107,578 across 625,219 certified filings — and actual offered salaries average 16% above that wage floor.
What Is the Prevailing Wage?
The prevailing wage is the minimum salary an employer must offer an H-1B worker, set by the US Department of Labor for each occupation and geographic area. Before filing an H-1B petition, the employer files a Labor Condition Application (LCA) certifying that the offered wage meets or exceeds the prevailing wage for that role in that location. It exists to protect both US and foreign workers from wage undercutting.
Every figure on this page is computed from the certified LCA filings themselves — not estimates. Actual offered salaries average 16% above the prevailing wage floor.
The Four H-1B Wage Levels
The Department of Labor assigns each position one of four wage levels based on experience, education, and supervisory responsibility:
| Level | Who it covers | Filings | Median Prevailing Wage | Avg. Actual Salary |
|---|
| Level I |
Entry level — workers performing routine tasks under close supervision (17th percentile of the local wage distribution). |
113,346 |
$71,677 |
$90,622 |
| Level II |
Qualified — workers applying skills independently on moderately complex tasks (34th percentile). |
238,427 |
$100,339 |
$119,320 |
| Level III |
Experienced — workers with deep expertise who may supervise others (50th percentile). |
122,474 |
$126,090 |
$149,391 |
| Level IV |
Fully competent — senior workers with sufficient experience to plan and independently manage work (67th percentile). |
100,195 |
$149,760 |
$180,521 |
Most Common Roles per Wage Level
Level I
| Job Title | Filings | Avg. Salary |
|---|
| SOFTWARE ENGINEER | 5,454 | $102,111 |
| SOFTWARE DEVELOPER | 5,316 | $91,177 |
| ASSISTANT PROFESSOR | 3,289 | $115,927 |
| SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT ENGINEER I | 1,709 | $129,783 |
| Software Dev Engineer I | 1,650 | $133,218 |
Level II
| Job Title | Filings | Avg. Salary |
|---|
| SOFTWARE ENGINEER | 15,567 | $136,714 |
| SOFTWARE DEVELOPER | 13,327 | $110,377 |
| ARCHITECT | 3,391 | $88,501 |
| SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT ENGINEER II | 3,374 | $164,389 |
| SOFTWARE ENGINEERING | 2,761 | $157,476 |
Level III
| Job Title | Filings | Avg. Salary |
|---|
| SOFTWARE ENGINEER | 4,525 | $179,770 |
| Manager JC50 - Computer Systems Engineers/Architects | 4,404 | $113,166 |
| SENIOR SOFTWARE ENGINEER | 3,311 | $157,297 |
| SOFTWARE ENGINEERING | 2,348 | $187,765 |
| SOFTWARE DEVELOPER | 1,199 | $134,504 |
Level IV
| Job Title | Filings | Avg. Salary |
|---|
| SOFTWARE ENGINEER | 3,150 | $217,740 |
| SENIOR SOFTWARE ENGINEER | 1,783 | $183,114 |
| Senior Manager JC45 - Computer Systems Engineers/Architects | 1,464 | $137,712 |
| STAFF SOFTWARE ENGINEER | 999 | $205,573 |
| SOFTWARE ENGINEERING | 758 | $224,001 |
Prevailing Wage by State
| State | Filings | Avg. Prevailing Wage | Avg. Actual Salary |
|---|
| California |
117,645 |
$145,697 |
$162,261 |
| Texas |
95,606 |
$106,000 |
$119,562 |
| New York |
51,811 |
$117,266 |
$145,145 |
| Washington |
40,018 |
$138,093 |
$159,370 |
| New Jersey |
30,812 |
$115,160 |
$127,825 |
| Illinois |
26,234 |
$101,696 |
$119,480 |
| North Carolina |
23,878 |
$107,657 |
$120,087 |
| Georgia |
23,570 |
$103,278 |
$117,952 |
| Massachusetts |
21,890 |
$109,893 |
$127,919 |
| Florida |
20,659 |
$96,737 |
$117,688 |
| Virginia |
16,524 |
$109,653 |
$123,900 |
| Pennsylvania |
16,382 |
$96,620 |
$116,299 |
| Michigan |
15,281 |
$97,726 |
$112,599 |
| Ohio |
12,759 |
$94,985 |
$112,411 |
| Arizona |
10,837 |
$103,228 |
$116,711 |
| Tennessee |
7,246 |
$92,786 |
$111,088 |
| Maryland |
7,175 |
$104,349 |
$118,543 |
| Minnesota |
6,820 |
$99,632 |
$113,794 |
| Colorado |
6,595 |
$109,699 |
$122,642 |
| Connecticut |
6,561 |
$105,271 |
$121,428 |
| Missouri |
6,546 |
$92,044 |
$111,108 |
| Indiana |
6,249 |
$89,491 |
$111,537 |
| Oregon |
4,639 |
$113,997 |
$128,764 |
| Arkansas |
4,548 |
$89,548 |
$121,451 |
| Wisconsin |
4,255 |
$92,018 |
$117,185 |
| Utah |
3,598 |
$88,615 |
$108,994 |
| South Carolina |
3,431 |
$92,446 |
$112,643 |
| District of Columbia |
2,917 |
$107,928 |
$125,885 |
| Delaware |
2,897 |
$109,188 |
$128,685 |
| Kentucky |
2,508 |
$92,170 |
$115,363 |
| Iowa |
2,463 |
$90,236 |
$115,992 |
| Kansas |
2,382 |
$87,663 |
$104,998 |
| Nevada |
2,118 |
$98,998 |
$122,520 |
| Nebraska |
1,851 |
$88,891 |
$106,187 |
| Alabama |
1,831 |
$85,557 |
$118,659 |
| Louisiana |
1,743 |
$83,920 |
$126,320 |
| New Hampshire |
1,723 |
$103,933 |
$118,760 |
| Oklahoma |
1,682 |
$82,365 |
$105,642 |
| Rhode Island |
1,488 |
$106,283 |
$123,855 |
| New Mexico |
1,275 |
$84,103 |
$108,846 |
| Idaho |
1,051 |
$92,526 |
$111,638 |
| Mississippi |
873 |
$77,385 |
$107,336 |
| Guam |
832 |
$58,004 |
$65,907 |
| West Virginia |
632 |
$93,112 |
$196,449 |
| North Dakota |
567 |
$72,501 |
$94,698 |
| South Dakota |
509 |
$80,676 |
$108,349 |
| Maine |
494 |
$104,291 |
$153,790 |
| Hawaii |
357 |
$92,039 |
$110,714 |
| Alaska |
346 |
$74,843 |
$86,385 |
| Vermont |
329 |
$94,548 |
$114,775 |
| Wyoming |
233 |
$87,261 |
$106,262 |
| Montana |
224 |
$82,145 |
$107,239 |
| Northern Mariana Islands |
146 |
$51,029 |
$56,501 |
| Puerto Rico |
136 |
$66,489 |
$93,708 |
Source: US Department of Labor LCA disclosure data (PW_WAGE_LEVEL and PREVAILING_WAGE fields), certified filings. See our
methodology.