Security Engineering Manager

💰 $125K–$199K salary range

Median: $160K  ·  Based on 121 public job postings  ·  Updated August 30, 2026

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Overseeing the security posture of rapidly evolving AI platforms, Security Engineering Managers at high-growth companies focus on integrating robust security controls directly into AI model development lifecycles, data pipelines, and inference environments. Based on 23 recent job postings, the salary range for this position typically falls between $195,000 and $274,000, with a median compensation of $247,000. Candidates commanding top-tier compensation demonstrate deep expertise in AI/ML threat modeling, securing large language models (LLMs), and implementing confidential computing solutions. This demanding role requires a proactive approach to safeguard innovative AI technologies from emergent threats while enabling rapid product development.

📊 Salary breakdown

Security Engineering Manager salary by location

• All locations: $160K median ($125K–$199K typical range)
• New York: $181K median, $149K–$216K range (+13% vs. national)
• San Francisco: $234K median, $207K–$328K range (+46% vs. national)
• Los Angeles: $170K median, $150K–$171K range (+6% vs. national)
• Boston: $145K median, $124K–$153K range (-9% vs. national)
• Seattle: $115K median, $111K–$173K range (-28% vs. national)

Highest paying companies

San Francisco

• Anthropic: $386K median

Based on companies with 3+ active postings. Median of publicly advertised salary range.

What's typically included

• Health insurance: 50% of postings
• Equity (RSU/options): 76% of postings
• Flexible PTO: 40% of postings
• Parental leave: 31% of postings
• Learning/education budget: 13% of postings
• Visa sponsorship: 7% of postings

Typical experience required: 6–7 years.

Security salaries by seniority

• Security Engineer: $150K
• Security Engineering Manager: $160K
• Hardware Engineer: $175K
• Senior Security Engineer: $175K
• Security Lead: $180K
• Staff Security Engineer: $216K
• Head of Security / CISO: $252K

What does a Security Engineering Manager do?

Security Engineering Managers are security engineers and analysts who protect infrastructure, data, and applications. This benchmark reflects Manager-level base compensation at high-growth and AI-native companies.

Government wage data

For corroboration, U.S. Department of Labor certified wage filings (FY2025) show a median of $185K for Security Engineering Manager roles, ranging $160K–$229K, across 53 filings. This is reported separately from — never blended with — the job-posting median above.

Common questions

What is the average Security Engineering Manager salary at an AI startup?
The median pay is $160K, with a typical range of $125K–$199K, based on 121 public job postings collected in 2025–2026.

Where does this salary data come from?
It is aggregated from public job postings on company career pages — no private placement or client data. We require a minimum of 15 postings per role.

Methodology

Figures are the midpoint of each posting's advertised USD salary range, aggregated from 121 public job postings (2025–2026). The range shown is the 25th–75th percentile; the median is the 50th percentile. Equity is separate and not included; where a posting's range reflects on-target earnings (OTE) for commission roles, that is included in the midpoint. Roles require at least 15 postings to be published. Last refreshed August 30, 2026.

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