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Technology Headhunters uses BLS OEWS data to answer this pay question. The median pay for Founding Engineer in Raleigh-Cary, NC is $132,770 a year, and the middle half of workers earned between $103,480 and $166,650 (BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 15-1252).
Broader occupation
BLS does not report this exact title. The figures shown are for SOC 15-1252, Software Developers. BLS reports Software Developers as a broader occupation. It does not separate Founding Engineer, technology stack, seniority, certifications or employer sector. These figures are not a title-specific offer range.
BLS publishes one set of figures for SOC 15-1252. Other titles in our taxonomy map to it and show the same numbers. Percentiles describe all workers in the occupation. They are not experience levels.
The Raleigh-Cary, NC median is $3,210 below the national median of $135,980 (2.4%).
Role median / all-occupation median2.55x$132,770 / $51,990
Location quotient (employment concentration)1.56Not a pay adjustment
Employment12,580BLS estimate
Founding Engineer, Raleigh-Cary, NC
Measure
Per year
10th percentile
$80,080
25th percentile
$103,480
Median
$132,770
75th percentile
$166,650
90th percentile
$185,110
Mean
$136,640
Founding Engineer, North Carolina
Measure
Per year
10th percentile
$83,840
25th percentile
$104,530
Median
$134,710
75th percentile
$164,750
90th percentile
$179,310
Mean
$136,940
Founding Engineer, United States
Measure
Per year
10th percentile
$82,460
25th percentile
$105,210
Median
$135,980
75th percentile
$171,980
90th percentile
$214,670
Mean
$148,100
A figure shown as "or more" is top-coded. BLS does not publish exact wages at or above $239,200 a year or $115.00 an hour.
Relative pay is the role's annual median divided by the BLS all-occupations (SOC 00-0000) annual median for Raleigh-Cary, NC. Location quotient compares this occupation's share of local jobs with its national share. It measures concentration, not pay.
What these figures leave out for technology hires
BLS OEWS wages are straight-time gross pay. They include base rate, guaranteed pay, incentive pay including commissions and production bonuses, and cost-of-living allowances. They exclude overtime, shift differentials, nonproduction bonuses, severance and employer-paid benefits.
Our interpretation, not a BLS statement: the BLS definition does not name stock or equity grants, so we treat them as outside these figures and add nothing for them. If a technology offer leans on discretionary bonus or equity, we read the published figure as describing only the cash pay inside the BLS definition.
BLS definition: Wages for the OEWS survey are straight-time, gross pay, exclusive of premium pay. Base rate; cost-of-living allowances; guaranteed pay; hazardous-duty pay; incentive pay, including commissions and production bonuses; and tips are included. Excluded are overtime pay, severance pay, shift differentials, nonproduction bonuses, employer cost for supplementary benefits, and tuition reimbursements.
May 2024 and May 2025 medians
Founding Engineer, Raleigh-Cary, NC median by BLS reference period
Period
Median
May 2024
$131,390
May 2025
$132,770
The median moved up $1,380 (+1.1%), from $131,390 in May 2024 to $132,770 in May 2025. Survey estimates carry sampling error, so small moves may not be meaningful.
These are BLS survey-based wage estimates, not observed individual offers or a modeled technology-title range. A broader occupation or proxy is not separate pay data for your job title.
What do these figures mean for Founding Engineer in Raleigh?
Technology Headhunters uses the May 2025 occupation-wide wage distribution to discuss Founding Engineer in Raleigh. The Founding Engineer comparison uses a $132,770 median for Software Developers (SOC 15-1252) in Raleigh. That $132,770 point divides the published distribution for Founding Engineer in Raleigh; it is not a quote from a candidate. Before using $132,770 for Founding Engineer in Raleigh, compare the BLS occupation with the work you need done.
For Founding Engineer in Raleigh, the published middle band runs from $103,480 at P25 to $166,650 at P75. The middle-band width in this Founding Engineer in Raleigh comparison is $63,170. The $103,480 and $166,650 markers for Founding Engineer in Raleigh describe workers across the BLS occupation, rather than the price of a junior and a senior hire. Using this Raleigh band for Founding Engineer requires checking the responsibilities first.
The lower published marker for Founding Engineer in Raleigh is $80,080 at P10, and the upper marker is $185,110 at P90. Those Founding Engineer in Raleigh values do not identify an exact percentile for an amount between them. If the $185,110 marker for Founding Engineer in Raleigh says “or more,” it is a lower bound from the May 2025 release. A suppressed Founding Engineer in Raleigh cell means BLS did not publish that estimate, not that the opening has no cash-pay cost.
For Founding Engineer in Raleigh, the $132,770 area median compares with $135,980 for the same national occupation. The published difference in this Founding Engineer in Raleigh comparison is -$3,210. Both Founding Engineer in Raleigh comparison cells use SOC 15-1252, so the contrast does not change the occupation definition. That Raleigh-national difference for Founding Engineer is not a cost-of-living adjustment or a premium that every local candidate receives.
The nearby published metro comparisons for Founding Engineer in Raleigh are Goldsboro, NC, with a $96,140 median for SOC 15-1252; Rocky Mount, NC, with a $130,600 median for SOC 15-1252. These Founding Engineer in Raleigh neighbors are selected by distance between Census geographic reference points, not by commuting time. Read each neighboring Founding Engineer row with its own area label; a nearby metro is not a substitute estimate for an unpublished Raleigh cell.
A comparable May 2024 median is not available for this Founding Engineer in Raleigh selection, so no release-to-release difference is calculated. The $132,770 May 2025 median for Founding Engineer in Raleigh stands on its own reference period. A missing prior Founding Engineer in Raleigh cell does not establish growth, decline or unchanged pay. Keep the Raleigh area and SOC 15-1252 labels attached when sharing this Founding Engineer in Raleigh result.
The published mean for Founding Engineer in Raleigh is $136,640, alongside the $132,770 median. The mean-minus-median difference for Founding Engineer in Raleigh is $3,870. The mean and median for Founding Engineer in Raleigh summarize the same occupation differently; neither is a recommended starting salary. Do not choose the higher Founding Engineer in Raleigh summary simply to describe a stronger candidate, since the May 2025 table does not tie either summary to interview quality.
A complete Founding Engineer in Raleigh offer needs terms the Software Developers (SOC 15-1252) wage cell cannot price. Keep equity and RSUs separate from the $132,770 Founding Engineer in Raleigh comparison. Check the BLS include-and-exclude definition when discussing on-call terms or shift differential for Founding Engineer in Raleigh; a job-specific arrangement is not another published percentile. For Founding Engineer in Raleigh, spell out the reporting line and work-location expectations alongside cash pay rather than presenting $132,770 as the complete package.
The BLS employment estimate attached to Founding Engineer in Raleigh is 12,580 for Software Developers (SOC 15-1252). That Founding Engineer in Raleigh estimate describes employment in the surveyed occupation, not candidates available for your opening. Workers counted in the Raleigh estimate for Founding Engineer are not a ready-made shortlist. Use the May 2025 Founding Engineer in Raleigh employment row to understand the occupation's reported presence, while keeping the search for an individual hire separate.
Which national industries report pay for Founding Engineer in Raleigh?
The table below gives released national industry medians for Software Developers (SOC 15-1252), selected for this Founding Engineer in Raleigh discussion. These Founding Engineer industry rows are national cuts, not industry-specific wages for Raleigh.
National industry rows for Founding Engineer in Raleigh, BLS May 2025
BLS industry
NAICS
Published median
Employment
Offices of Mental Health Practitioners (except Physicians)
621330
$241,610
100
Offices of Other Health Practitioners
621300
$166,710
630
Offices of Physical, Occupational and Speech Therapists, and Audiologists
621340
$166,670
Not published by BLS
Software Publishers
513200
$164,550
173,080
Offices of All Other Health Practitioners
621390
$163,630
Not published by BLS
Securities, Commodity Contracts, and Other Financial Investments and Related Activities
523000
$163,290
34,940
Questions about Founding Engineer in Raleigh
Which occupation prices Founding Engineer in Raleigh?
The Founding Engineer in Raleigh figures use Software Developers, SOC 15-1252. BLS does not release an exact rate for an employer's particular Founding Engineer opening in Raleigh.
Does the Founding Engineer in Raleigh band price seniority?
The $103,480 to $166,650 band describes the published occupation distribution for Founding Engineer in Raleigh. It is not a junior-to-senior ladder for Founding Engineer in Raleigh.
Can I treat the May 2025 Founding Engineer in Raleigh median as a complete offer?
The $132,770 wage cell for Founding Engineer in Raleigh starts a cash-pay comparison. Benefits and equity for Founding Engineer in Raleigh need a separate discussion from this BLS cell.