Housing
Housing dominates monthly expenses at $2,033, with downtown apartments averaging $1,667 for a one-bedroom. Utilities add $239 for basics and internet runs $73 monthly, making housing roughly 84% of total living costs in this Dallas suburb.
Backend Software Engineer Salary in Plano
Market ranges & how to evaluate your offer
$96k – $284k/yr
Most offers in Plano fall between $152k–$290k depending on seniority, location, and role scope.
Last updated: March 2026Self-reported salaries + labor statisticsPlanoConfidence: High
10th
percentile$100.750
percentile$100.750
Median$163.000
90th
percentile$198.400
percentile$198.400
Local vs National
Plano$163k
National Average$207k
Plano pays 21.4% less than the national typical
Salary data is self-reported and varies by scope, company, and location. Use ranges, not single numbers.
Offer sanity-check
Compare your total comp for Backend Software Engineer — pick seniority, enter an offer, and preview the layout. Percentiles use your selected seniority when market data is available.
Salary Range for Backend Software Engineer
Seniority-level breakdown for this market.
Cost of Living in Plano, TX
Cost of living breakdown for Plano, TX market.
99avg = 100
Estimated monthly costs for this basket are about 99% of our comparable national baseline—day-to-day spending tends to go further here.
Overall COL Index
HOUSING+45%
National avg (100)
FOOD-48%
National avg (100)
TRANSPORT-77%
National avg (100)
LIFESTYLE-67%
National avg (100)
Monthly cost breakdown
How the estimated monthly cost bundle splits across categories for a typical Backend Software Engineer earner.
$2,421.70/ mo
HOUSING
$2,033.32 USD (84.0% of est. monthly costs)
FOOD
$217.28 USD (9.0% of est. monthly costs)
TRANSPORT
$80.00 USD (3.3% of est. monthly costs)
LIFESTYLE
$91.10 USD (3.8% of est. monthly costs)
+45%
Food & dining
Food costs remain reasonable at $217 monthly, with restaurant meals around $15 and grocery staples like milk ($0.92/liter) and eggs ($3.56/dozen) tracking below typical major metro prices. Dining and grocery spending combined represents less than 10% of total monthly expenses.
Transportation
Public transit costs $80 monthly for a regular pass, though many Plano professionals likely rely on cars given the suburban layout and commuting patterns to Dallas-area employment centers.
Lifestyle & leisure
Discretionary spending stays modest at $91 monthly, with gym memberships at $20 and movie tickets at $12. Coffee runs about $4.71 for a cappuccino, keeping entertainment and fitness costs well under other major expense categories.
Earning what you're worth starts with your resume
Salary data only matters if you land the interview. Get a free AI-powered resume review and see how yours stacks up.
Top-Paying Cities for Backend Software Engineer
Location-specific ranges with optional cost-of-living adjustment.
Top Employers in Plano
Median compensation, hiring momentum, and pay mix for Backend Software Engineers in this market.
JPMorgan Chase
+100% YoY Hiring$155k
CashStock
Mostly hires: Senior Associate
Capital One
+100% YoY Hiring$231k
CashStock
Mostly hires: Senior Lead Software Eng
AT&T
+100% YoY Hiring$167k
CashStock
Mostly hires: L2, Step 5
Intuit
+100% YoY Hiring$157k
CashStock
Mostly hires: Senior Software Engineer
Bank of America
+100% YoY Hiring$146k
CashStock
Mostly hires: Software Engineer 1
Boeing
-100% YoY Hiring$96k
CashStock
Mostly hires: L1
Remote Pay Bands Explained
Backend Software Engineer salaries vary significantly between location-adjusted and national pay bands. Companies like GitLab and Buffer offer location-independent compensation ranging from $120K-180K, while others adjust based on cost of living. Engineers in San Francisco typically earn $160K-220K base salary, compared to $110K-160K in Austin or $95K-140K in smaller tech hubs, reflecting 30-40% geographic differentials.
Hybrid work models are creating new compensation tiers for Backend Software Engineers, with many companies offering 90-95% of on-site pay for remote positions. Negotiate by emphasizing your ability to work across time zones, contribute to distributed teams, and maintain system reliability regardless of location. Highlight experience with remote collaboration tools, asynchronous communication, and infrastructure monitoring that demonstrates your remote effectiveness.
Moving from expensive metros like Seattle ($180K average) to lower-cost areas while maintaining remote salary can increase purchasing power by 40-60%. A Backend Software Engineer earning $170K remotely in Nashville has equivalent buying power to $280K in San Francisco, while accessing the same career opportunities and maintaining relationships with top-tier tech companies and their compensation packages.
Career Recovery Toolkit
Get everything you need to bounce back
Resume scans, interview prep, layoff explanations — one toolkit, one payment, lifetime access.
- Resume review
- Interview preparation
- ATS resume scan
- Layoff explanations
- Interview practice
- Cover letter help
Related Roles
How adjacent roles compare in pay and scope.
Software Engineer
$120k-$495k
High overlap in software-engineer roles
DetailsFull Stack Software Engineer
$112k-$432k
High overlap in software-engineer roles
DetailsQuality Assurance (qa) Software Engineer
$102k-$316k
High overlap in software-engineer roles
DetailsNetworking Engineer
$123k-$420k
High overlap in software-engineer roles
DetailsProduction Software Engineer
$105k-$420k
High overlap in software-engineer roles
DetailsMachine Learning Engineer
$165k-$539k
High overlap in software-engineer roles
DetailsHow to Negotiate Your Offer
Practical steps that move the number without damaging the relationship.
Start your ask above the median. You'll rarely be offered more than you ask, so anchor high and let the employer negotiate you down.
Stronger approach:
- Start your ask above the median
- You'll rarely be offered more than you ask, so anchor high and let the employer negotiate you down
Say 'market data puts this role at $X–$Y' — not 'I was hoping for more'. External benchmarks are harder to argue against than personal expectations.
Stronger approach:
- Say 'market data puts this role at $X–$Y' — not 'I was hoping for more'
- External benchmarks are harder to argue against than personal expectations
When base is stuck, negotiate equity vesting schedule, signing bonus, or accelerated refresh grants. Total comp has more levers than base alone.
Stronger approach:
- When base is stuck, negotiate equity vesting schedule, signing bonus, or accelerated refresh grants
- Total comp has more levers than base alone
Ask for 48 hours to review. This creates time to counter and signals that you take offers seriously — not that you are uncertain.
Stronger approach:
- Ask for 48 hours to review
- This creates time to counter and signals that you take offers seriously — not that you are uncertain
Negotiate Salary
Generate an aware negotiation email using Google market positioning data.
Practice Interviews
Mock interviews tailored to Google's process and evaluation criteria.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Backend Software Engineer compensation.
Backend Software Engineers earn $95K-140K early career, $130K-180K mid-level, and $170K-250K+ at senior levels. Total compensation including equity can reach $300K-400K at major tech companies.
Your next move starts here
Tools built for professionals evaluating offers and preparing for interviews.
Negotiate SalaryGenerate a data negotiation emailPractice InterviewsAI-powered mock interview sessionsReview ResumeATS scan & optimization feedbackSmart Prep PlanPersonalized interview preparation
Start for freeLand the salary you just looked up
Our AI Interview Copilot listens to your live interview and feeds you real-time answers, so you walk in confident and walk out with the offer.
"I used the salary data to benchmark my offer, then generated a negotiation email. Got a 12% bump without a single awkward conversation."
Sarah KProduct Manager
100k+Users
92%Success rate
Freeto Start