Candidate salary asks from engineers who booked a call with us, compared with US job postings with disclosed pay at seed to Series B startups. Updated October 2026.
Quick answer: Engineers ask for more than startups post, but less than most founders fear. Software engineers asked for a median base of $220K against a typical posted midpoint of $200K at seed to Series B startups. Staff engineers asked for $250K against $235K. Senior engineers asked for $200K, the same as the posted midpoint, and forward deployed engineers asked for slightly less than startups post. In every role we measured, the median ask falls inside the typical posted band.
> Setting a band for an engineering role? We work with seed to Series C startups hiring software, AI/ML and forward deployed engineers. https://calendly.com/kiran-recruitingfromscratch/intro?utm_source=blog&utm_medium=content&utm_campaign=book_a_call&utm_content=what-engineers-ask-for-vs-what-startups-post-2026
| Role | Median candidate ask | Posted midpoint | Typical posted band | Asks / postings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Software engineer (all levels) | $220K | $200K | $175K–$235K | 654 / 671 |
| Senior software engineer | $200K | $200K | $175K–$225K | 370 / 416 |
| Staff software engineer | $250K | $235K | $200K–$270K | 78 / 179 |
| Forward deployed engineer | $190K | $195K | $150K–$220K | 78 / 130 |
| Founding engineer (small sample) | $220K | $205K | $160K–$250K | 49 / 35 |
The founding engineer row rests on 35 postings with pay and 49 asks, so treat it as a rough guide.
Read this as two related numbers, not one gap. Asks come from candidates who booked a call with us in the last 180 days, regardless of company stage. Posted pay comes from seed to Series B startups over the last 12 months. The comparison tells you where candidates anchor against what early-stage startups post. It is not a like-for-like measure of how far apart a candidate and a company are on one role.
The middle half of asks (25th to 75th percentile) for each role:
| Role | Middle half of asks |
|---|---|
| Software engineer (all levels) | $180K–$275K |
| Senior software engineer | $175K–$250K |
| Staff software engineer | $190K–$300K |
| Forward deployed engineer | $175K–$225K |
| Founding engineer | $180K–$270K |
Staff asks are the widest: about a quarter of staff candidates asked for $300K or more. Forward deployed engineer asks are the tightest.
For the full stage-by-stage pay data, see our seed-stage, Series A and Series B salary guides.
For software engineers overall, the median ask is $220K against a typical posted midpoint of $200K at seed to Series B startups, about $20K more. For senior engineers the ask and the midpoint are the same, at $200K.
A median base of $250K, against a typical posted midpoint of $235K at seed to Series B startups. About a quarter of staff candidates asked for $300K or more.
Usually not. In every role we measured, the median ask falls inside the typical posted band. Candidates tend to ask for the upper half of the band rather than above it.
A median base of $190K, slightly below the typical posted midpoint of $195K at seed to Series B startups.
From the base salary ranges engineers gave when booking a call with Recruiting from Scratch in the last 180 days. Each person is counted once, using the midpoint of the range they gave, and total-compensation answers are excluded.
We work on contingency, with no upfront cost, and send a shortlist of 3–5 vetted candidates instead of a pile of resumes. https://www.recruitingfromscratch.com/employer-form?src=ef&pg=what-engineers-ask-for-vs-what-startups-post-2026
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