macnn
06/18/2008, 12:00pm, EDT
Wednesday, June 18th
Apple restraining engineer salaries?
The salaries of Apple engineers are comparatively restrained next to those for other Silicon Valley companies, data from the survey site Glassdoor suggests. Apple's engineers are said to make approximately $89,000 per year, whereas similar jobs at Microsoft and Yahoo are believed to pay about $105,000. Some of the most extravagant salaries are present at Google, where an engineer can make as much as $112,573.
Based on Apple financial reports it is believed that the salaries may be a relic from earlier in the decade, before the advent of PC-compatible iPods that helped rapidly inflate Apple profits. In 2003, had the company had paid its engineers the same amount received by Google workers today, Apple could have entered into a net loss. By comparison, Apple might have saved only 6 percent through lower salaries in 2007. These figures do not account for material R&D expenses, however, or possible tax write-offs.
Filed under: industry, Apple
Other story tags: Microsoft, Google, Yahoo, jobs
, 
, 13
, 
, 
, 
, 
, 
, 
Top
subscribe to comments
for this article
ummm hello
Constrained by what? Shackles???
If you think you can get more elsewhere, I'm sure they know where the door is.
Run for it
If I worked there for that much, I'd run for the door. All of Apple's engineers, as far as I know, work in California. Even here in Utah, $89,000 is not very impressive for a software engineer. In California, it's peanuts.
hard to leave
Well, Apple's been around for what, 30 years now? They're not a newbie anymore and may have a more mature work force. More mature workers are less likely to switch jobs as often so Apple can keep raises low and not lose many of these experienced people.
Google is relatively young so they have to draw in good talent. While Microsoft is not young, they MUST draw in better talent because everyone is gunning for them and they need to get some decent innovation or they could go the way of the IBM PC.
In any case, I'm guessing 89K is not a super high salary in CA. Add in $5/gallon gas, crazy rent/house prices and what could be a fortune in North Dakota, might be lower middle class in CA. Any Californian's out there to comment on the cost of living around Cupertino?
Fully Agree, Start Lookin
That number at Apple is way to low for this industry. I'm in the North East (MA, CT, NY, PA) and I'm at triple that number, and I don't consider that to be an "Extravagant" income. If your good, then you can command 6 figures. Plus that scale for California is pretty low with the living cost out there. I'm very surprised at how low that really is.
I wouldn't stay at Apple for that chump change, that's a slap in the face from the employer. I'd say, time to move on.
What about their options?
What about stock options and other parts of the benefits package? I know a couple people that work for Apple and they don't make much, but are very happy. The options they received just a few years ago have tremendous value now that the stock is getting close to $200 / share.
confusing
Article lumps all engineers into one generic category, but Glassdoor has them specifically broken down - Software Engineer, Senior Software Engineer, QA Engineer, etc. And the numbers vary significantly (as they should) for each. Even then, most seem to average over $100K. Who did the research for this article?
Really??
89K is a lot of money for a low level engineer. Frankly I get 19K less than that. It is different matter that my contractor gets the cream (charges about 120 per hour) while I sweat it out.
Even my friend with MS in Seattle gets about the same I do as we work for the same contractor.
So the rates that you hear are the contractors sucking on engineering blood.
Working in LA now
And I can say that if you don't make 150k a year, you don't eat very well.... For 89k in California, I wouldn't even get out of bed.
Meh
Apple has different salary "grades" (even for employees who cannot legally be salaried under California law) and which grade an engineer gets classified as depends upon both job function and schmoozing ability.
They also instituted a wage freeze in 2001, claiming that the events of 9/11 had affected it somehow. In reality they were simply piping a ton of money out to Moby and the fat guy from Smashmouth to promote the then new iPod. If today's numbers are indeed declining as this research suggests I imagine they're simply doing more of the same with the iPhone. The fact that 10.5.3 is qualitatively similar to 10.1 would certainly corroborate such a claim if one were to make it.
I certainly wish I'd hung on to my pre-iPod stock options.
Nothing new from Oz
This is typical Apple (well Steve Jobs to be accurate) he has a long history of underpaying staff (the original mac engineers were paid less than other engineers in the ealry days) relying on the rose colored tint of his rhetoric. I saw it all the time it was soo like the wizard of Oz good engineers taking lower pay JUST to work for Apple woo hoo. Then eventually it dawns that they are being smucks for selling themselves short for an Apple ID badge!! there own fault. The problem is that this same principle is applied to areas where folks are more practical finance sales legal etc etc and so turnover is high all because these type people don't really get caught up in how cool apple products are (first to admit they are very cool). I am not a basher of Apple and love the products they produce but unless you are one of the chosen few don't expect it all to be a bed of roses