Principal Engineer Salary in San Diego, CA

5 certified H-1B filings

According to TheRealSalaries.com analysis of official US Department of Labor filings (October 2024 - December 2025), the average H-1B salary for Principal Engineer in San Diego is $183,607 — 51% above the national median of $121,514.

Section 1
$183,607
Average
$110,164
Min Est.
$330,492
Max Est.
5
Filings

Top Employers for Principal Engineer in San Diego

CompanyAvg. SalaryFilings
Arm, Inc. $170,345 3
MediaTek USA Inc. $203,500 2
Section 2

Principal Engineer in Other Cities

San Jose, CA
$194,397
37 filings
Santa Clara, CA
$226,338
29 filings
Austin, TX
$156,547
25 filings
Plano, TX
$183,673
17 filings
Seattle, WA
$213,066
12 filings
New York, NY
$155,301
11 filings
Irving, TX
$169,089
9 filings
Palo Alto, CA
$215,238
9 filings

Other Roles in San Diego

Software Engineer ($131,320) Senior Software Engineer ($135,837) Staff Software Engineer ($171,398) Software Engineering Systems ($161,342) Software Development Engineer - Firmware ($164,449) Asics Engineer ($119,566) Senior Asics Engineer ($120,905) Software Development Engineer - Test ($159,760)
Section 3
Source: US Department of Labor LCA Disclosure Data. Updated: Q1 FY2025.