$131K–$244K/yrOnsiteSenior · Full-time
Systems Engineer salary in California
From 153 US job postings that list pay, out of 182 open Systems Engineer jobs in California. These are the amounts employers advertised, not pay reported by employees.
- Median pay
- $152ka year
- Middle half
- $130k–$178k25th to 75th percentile
- Postings with pay
- 153of 182 open jobs · 2 paid by the hour
Pay range
$111k$220k
Pay by experience level
| Level the posting asks for | Median a year | Postings |
|---|---|---|
| Entry level | $116k | 7 |
| Mid level | $128k | 42 |
| Senior | $160k | 77 |
| Lead / manager | $178k | 27 |
Top-paying companies
| Company | Median a year | Postings |
|---|---|---|
| Waymo | $257k | 3 |
| Anduril Industries | $184k | 6 |
| Northrop Grumman | $178k | 19 |
| Rocket Lab | $165k | 5 |
| Applied Materials | $164k | 3 |
| Onto | $160k | 3 |
| Boeing | $141k | 5 |
| Lockheed Martin | $137k | 22 |
| L3Harris Technologies | $132k | 9 |
| Honeywell Aerospace | $118k | 4 |
Companies with at least 3 postings that list pay.
Open Systems Engineer jobs with pay listed
$177K–$266K/yrOnsiteSenior · Full-time
$108K–$195K/yrOnsiteLead / Staff+ · Full-time
$128K–$237K/yrOnsiteSenior · Full-time
$79K–$131K/yrOnsiteSenior · Full-time
$176K–$320K/yrOnsiteLead / Staff+ · Full-time
How these numbers are made
- ApplyHour reads job postings straight from employers' own career sites (Workday, Greenhouse, Lever, iCIMS and 30 more), not job boards, and keeps the pay each posting states.
- Only open US postings for this job title count, with pay in US dollars of at least $10k a year. A range counts at its middle. Hourly pay is turned into a year at 2,080 hours (40 a week), daily pay at 260 days.
- These are advertised amounts, not what people are paid: bonuses, equity and tips aren't included. A company or place is listed once it has enough postings with pay.
- Updated November 11, 2026; the numbers move as jobs open and close.