IT Salary Ranges

Hi Everyone
Done a bit of reading looking at salary guides etc, but would like some "real" people to tell me what they know :)

What sort of salary range can senior software developer expect?

Thank you

Don't mean to rain on your parade but "Senior Software Developer" is far too generic to get any sort of usable answer.

IT like anything else is supply and demand. Unless you have something particularly niche about you, the salary ranges will vary dramatically.

I don't know what the state of things is in NZ but in the UK I have friends with that title on £25k and friends with the exact same title on £40k. It all depends on the area you live in and how many applicants of the right quality happen to be around at that point.

You would be better looking at a few job ads you are suitable for, in areas you are willing to live and see what seek.co.nz have to say.

Apologies if this sounds negative but me and hubby are in the same field and have the same questions - and have decided that the published ranges do more harm than good as they can give unrealistic expectations.

hi aziramai
completely agree with your last comment, hence why i was hoping some real people could give examples as at least then it would give a more honest picture.
understandably it does depend on area etc was just hoping to get some examples.

My OH got on offer of 90K as a senior Java developer for a government organisation. He has over 8 years of experience.

He did not take the job - became a sole trader instead and now works for a European company as a contractor.

if you don't strike it lucky or have a in need skill etc ..
generally speaking 65-75k is the norm. you got a title and doing a bit of anythign that comes to you ....

source: govt head offices.
if you do get a senior position, then maybe 80-90
120-150 is normally team leaders etc ..

I know lots of senior software engineers.

Expect a salary range of $90k min to $110k+

immigrants are cheaper, because they don't know the market, and don't understand the game, so they accept less money.

In NZ, initial salaries are offered with a view to negotiation but immigrants sometimes accept the first offer they get.

A word of warning, getting a pay rise is much harder here than it is in the UK. The UK market tends to start you low and quickly give you a raise once you have done some good work.

Here they buy a service and don't see why the price should go up, just because you've been there a year or so....

Oh and the agents are just a right pain when your looking for a job, they put fake adverts in place with the aim of collecting C.V's. They charge huge sums for little work and that comes off the bottom line of your salary. Avoid them!

You can also find job adverts as much as $40k under the market rate, don't let that dishearten you, just someone fishing for a sucker.

Hope that's helpful, Bob :D

I moved here as Sr. Architect (Executive level) with Microsoft and I also know quite a number of Sr. Dev's and it really depends on your niche. Typical dev will make between 70 to 110 as Bob had posted. Where it gets interesting is your niche. I know alot of Sharepoint devs that make 140 to 180 per annum. If there is DB experience in there it goes up even more; Sr. HP Devs (PPM, QCM, etc) typically are around 120-150; Oracle 10i/11i Sr. Devs are in the same boat too. And from there the list goes on.

Typically for each niche add 25 to 50 percent on top of the base with the higher demand paying more. Also, being able to demand what you want can also help but you really need to establish a difference between yourself and the next 5 canidates.

But overall I had been in the IT field for nearly 15 years before I retired and I learned early on that "niche is nice" because if you aren't unique what is to prevent your position and duties from being farmed out to Bangalore, Kiev or Beijing?

Hi Bob and ColeyNZ
Thanks so much for your responses.
Are those salary ranges including or excluding bonuses?

I have not seen any bonuses for the short period I worked in New Zealand so that would be just salary. I haven't seen much in the way of bonuses in New Zealand at all to be honest but anything you can always try to get one during the hiring process.

I have always asked for additional paid time off, an annual training budget and in the US no insurance co-pays & access to SIRP (Savings Incentive Retirement Program) if available. Here in NZ you have the Kiwisaver programme but I haven't used it.