Occupation salary profile

Software Quality Assurance Analysts and Testers

SOC 15-1253 BLS OEWS May 2025 H-1B LCAs, last 12 months

Develop and execute software tests to identify software problems and their causes. Test system modifications to prepare for implementation. Document software and application defects using a bug tracking system and report defects to software or web developers. Create and maintain databases of known defects. May participate in software design reviews to provide input on functional requirements, operational characteristics, product designs, and schedules.

National median · BLS
$104,300
▲ +1.65% YoY
H-1B sponsor median
$104,728
▲ +3.69% YoY · 17,981 LCAs
Average salary · BLS
$111,490
Mean annual wage
U.S. employment
186,740
Jobs (BLS)
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Enter your pay and a location to see where you stand against BLS and H-1B pay, your estimated take-home pay, and your purchasing power.

Pay range for Software Quality Assurance Analysts and Testers

Annual base pay at each percentile. BLS covers all U.S. workers in this occupation; H-1B covers 17,981 certified Labor Condition Applications filed by sponsoring employers in the last 12 months.

Percentile All U.S. workers (BLS) H-1B sponsored
10th — entry pay$61,440$80,000
25th$80,310$87,672
Median (50th)$104,300$104,728
75th$133,180$128,461
90th — top pay$167,010$154,419
H-1B sponsors pay a median of $104,728 for Software Quality Assurance Analysts and Testers — 0.4% above the BLS national median of $104,300.

Hourly ⇄ annual pay

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Projections 2025–2035

Job outlook for Software Quality Assurance Analysts and Testers

BLS projects employment of software quality assurance analysts and testers to grow 5.7% from 2025 to 2035, faster than the 3.5% average for all occupations. About 10,700 openings are projected each year, on average, from new jobs and from replacing workers who retire or move to other occupations.

Jobs 2025 → 2035
187,600 → 198,200
+10,600 jobs
Projected change
+5.7%
All occupations: +3.5%
Openings per year
10,700
Average, 2025–2035
Typical entry education
Bachelor's degree
No related experience required
Preparation needed (O*NET Job Zone 4)
Considerable Preparation Needed. Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.
Fastest-growing jobs → Best-paying jobs that need a bachelor's degree →

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025–2035 · BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook →

H-1B sponsored pay

Pay by H-1B wage level

Employers assign every H-1B filing a Department of Labor prevailing-wage level, from Level I (entry) to Level IV (fully competent). Pay rises steeply with level.

H-1B median $104,728
Change vs prior year +3.69%
After inflation (CPI-U) +0.54%
Wage level LCAs Share P25 Median P75
Level I 1,815 10.1% $70,000 $79,976 $92,962
Level II 8,608 47.9% $85,051 $92,500 $107,724
Level III 4,203 23.4% $104,728 $115,470 $134,612
Level IV 2,855 15.9% $124,800 $136,926 $162,911
H-1B job titles

Salaries by job title in Software Quality Assurance Analysts and Testers

The 50 most-filed job titles inside SOC 15-1253, from 17,981 H-1B filings. Seniority words and level numbers are grouped (“Senior Data Engineer II” counts as Data Engineer). Tap a title for its full range, wage levels and the exact titles employers used.

Job title LCAs Share P25 Median P75 YoY
Manager generic 988 5.49% $100,984 $109,117 $123,973 +2.44%
Associate generic 773 4.3% $82,368 $86,923 $92,310 +3.31%
Quality Assurance Engineer 534 2.97% $95,402 $119,500 $138,746 -1.47%
Software Engineer 531 2.95% $90,256 $114,897 $143,354 +0.29%
Test Engineer 508 2.83% $84,153 $101,500 $120,000 +3.57%
QA Engineer 508 2.83% $83,470 $91,377 $110,198 -2.89%
Software Test Engineer 453 2.52% $85,030 $97,157 $118,096 +4.45%
Analyst, Testing 429 2.39% $81,120 $86,819 $101,234 -0.12%
Quality Engineer 412 2.29% $92,000 $112,520 $128,648 +2.79%
QA Analyst 386 2.15% $83,533 $90,803 $102,669 +4.46%
Software Development Engineer in Test 385 2.14% $86,000 $101,235 $126,000 +7.58%
Test Consultant 364 2.02% $105,854 $120,000 $131,424 +4.33%
Software Quality Assurance Engineer 345 1.92% $86,466 $102,500 $121,968 +8.81%
Software Quality Assurance Analyst and Tester 337 1.87% $85,000 $95,000 $106,500 +0.17%
Quality Assurance Analyst 304 1.69% $85,278 $94,162 $107,824 +1.23%
QA Automation Engineer 243 1.35% $85,030 $92,000 $104,328 +5.14%
Software Quality Assurance Analyst 219 1.22% $83,533 $95,000 $108,840 +5.56%
Test Lead 218 1.21% $86,788 $99,611 $111,370 +9.49%
Software QA Engineer 211 1.17% $87,031 $108,680 $140,276 -3.22%
Software Quality Engineer 185 1.03% $92,942 $110,000 $131,925 +0.26%
Automation Engineer 154 0.86% $87,000 $93,517 $112,396 +0.54%
Quality Analyst 153 0.85% $82,347 $92,310 $103,000 +6.2%
Software Engineer in Test 124 0.69% $99,825 $119,912 $135,200 -0.89%
Test Automation Engineer 120 0.67% $83,533 $91,750 $108,680 -4.93%
QA Tester 106 0.59% $80,000 $87,336 $99,000 +2.75%
Test Specialist 103 0.57% $87,506 $99,750 $112,000 +14.76%
Software Development Engineer 102 0.57% $130,000 $159,336 $181,661 +4.87%
QA Lead 93 0.52% $88,088 $99,445 $107,000 +0.61%
QA Test Engineer 81 0.45% $90,260 $101,300 $110,000 +17.16%
Technical Support Engineer 75 0.42% $100,000 $112,986 $127,108 +8.91%
Automation Test Engineer 70 0.39% $81,890 $94,120 $108,764 +4.58%
Project Delivery Specialist 70 0.39% $83,429 $107,150 $129,875 -14.99%
Software Development Specialist 69 0.38% $106,517 $110,406 $123,026 +2.39%
Engineer generic 69 0.38% $90,000 $110,771 $133,900 +7.03%
Solution Specialist 68 0.38% $83,346 $109,750 $125,525 +0%
Assistant Vice President 67 0.37% $124,750 $130,000 $140,298 +2.43%
Software QA Analyst 61 0.34% $73,382 $83,600 $100,000 +1.83%
Technical Lead 58 0.32% $92,506 $101,234 $114,066 -2.04%
SDET 56 0.31% $88,772 $93,454 $113,277 -7.69%
Tester 56 0.31% $70,000 $86,965 $100,678 +19.59%
Product Engineer 54 0.3% $89,440 $97,136 $112,096 —
Software Quality Assurance Engineer and Tester 52 0.29% $89,812 $101,190 $107,750 +4.32%
QA Automation Tester 51 0.28% $95,880 $125,000 $130,000 +4.17%
Quality Assurance Lead 51 0.28% $88,020 $99,299 $115,966 +4.53%
Software Quality/Test Engineer 50 0.28% $87,682 $105,000 $115,000 -1.97%
Software Tester 49 0.27% $81,037 $88,088 $105,000 +3.63%
Consultant generic 48 0.27% $84,633 $94,498 $125,832 -21.25%
QA Manager 46 0.26% $104,000 $125,300 $148,274 +6.29%
Software Quality Analyst 45 0.25% $82,971 $88,200 $102,086 +6.99%
Lead, Software Testing 45 0.25% $91,374 $95,000 $110,000 +2.89%

Titles are cleaned from the employer's own LCA text (codes and typos removed, nothing invented). Rows need 10+ filings in this SOC.

Skills & tools

Skills needed for Software Quality Assurance Analysts and Testers

How important each skill and knowledge area is for this job, rated by O*NET on a 1–5 scale from surveys of workers and occupational analysts.

Top skills
  • Reading Comprehension4.0
  • Active Listening3.9
  • Critical Thinking3.9
  • Speaking3.9
  • Writing3.8
  • Monitoring3.6
  • Programming3.6
  • Complex Problem Solving3.4
  • Quality Control Analysis3.4
  • Systems Evaluation3.3
Top knowledge areas
  • Computers and Electronics4.4
  • English Language3.8
  • Mathematics3.3
  • Engineering and Technology3.3
  • Design3.0
  • Education and Training2.9
  • Customer and Personal Service2.7
  • Administration and Management2.5
Software and technology used
Amazon Web Services AWS softwareAtlassian JIRAC#C++GitGitHubJavaScriptJenkins CILinuxMicrosoft Azure softwareMicrosoft ExcelMicrosoft Office softwareOracle JavaPythonSeleniumStructured query language SQLApache JMeterAppium

Highlighted = in demand: frequently listed in employer job postings for this occupation (O*NET).

Source: O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.

About the job

What software quality assurance analysts and testers do

  • Identify, analyze, and document problems with program function, output, online screen, or content.
  • Document software defects, using a bug tracking system, and report defects to software developers.
  • Develop testing programs that address areas such as database impacts, software scenarios, regression testing, negative testing, error or bug retests, or usability.
  • Design test plans, scenarios, scripts, or procedures.
  • Document test procedures to ensure replicability and compliance with standards.
  • Provide feedback and recommendations to developers on software usability and functionality.
  • Install, maintain, or use software testing programs.
  • Test system modifications to prepare for implementation.
Also called
Quality Assurance Analyst (QA Analyst)Software Quality Assurance Engineer (SQA Engineer)Software Quality EngineerSoftware Test EngineerAutomation TesterInformation Technology Analyst (IT Analyst)Quality Assurance Engineer (QA Engineer)Quality EngineerSoftware Quality Assurance Analyst (SQA Analyst)Test Engineer
More job titles for this occupation (58)
Application IntegratorApplications AnalystApplications Quality Assurance Specialist (Applications QA Specialist)Applications Software Engineering Information Technology Specialist (Applications Software Engineering IT Specialist)Applications System AnalystApplications TesterAutomation SpecialistBeta TesterBug Bounty HunterComputer ConsultantData ModelerGame TesterImplementation SpecialistInformation Technology Consultant (IT Consultant)IT Performance Analyst (Information Technology Performance Analyst)Malware AnalystPerformance TesterQuality AnalystQuality Assurance Automation Engineer (QA Automation Engineer)Quality Assurance Specialist (QA Specialist)Quality Assurance Tester (QA Tester)Secure Software AssessorServer EngineerSoftware Application Quality Assurance Specialist (Software Application QA Specialist)Software Application Support SpecialistSoftware Development Test EngineerSoftware InstallerSoftware Quality Assurance Consultant (Software QA Consultant)Software Quality Assurance Specialist (SQA Specialist)Software Quality Assurance Technician (SQA Technician)Software Quality Control Specialist (Software QC Specialist)Software Quality TesterSoftware Requirements EngineerSoftware Systems EngineerSoftware Test AnalystSoftware TesterSoftware Testing SpecialistSolution ArchitectSolutions ArchitectSystem Testing and Evaluation SpecialistSystems AnalystSystems Analyst EngineerSystems CoordinatorSystems Integration EngineerSystems Software Quality Assurance Specialist (Systems Software QA Specialist)Systems Software SpecialistSystems Support EngineerSystems TesterSystems Tester AnalystTechnical Support EngineerTechnology AnalystTest Automation EngineerUsability EngineerUser Experience Designer (UX Designer)User Interface and User Experience Architect (UI/UX Architect)User Interface and User Experience Designer (UI/UX Designer)User Interface Designer (UI Designer)Validation Engineer

Source: O*NET 31.0 (USDOL/ETA, CC BY 4.0). These are general job titles, not H-1B filings; for titles employers actually filed, see “Job titles” above.