Microsoft’s Salary Secrets: Here Are the Pay Tiers for Tech Pros
Thanks to leaked Microsoft pay guidelines, you can now see how much professionals make working for the tech giant.
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The leaked pay guidelines, first viewed by Business Insider, show how much Microsoft pays new hires by level — complete with ranges for base pay, hiring bonuses, and annual stock rewards. According to a person with direct knowledge of the process, hiring managers use these guidelines to decide how much to offer new hires, Insider reported.
Several Microsoft employees told Insider that the guideline ranges were “skewed low based on their personal experience.” The company’s pay varies by field and location, so there’s no company-wide standard for pay per level across all units. For example, Insider noted that workers in New York City and Los Angeles typically earn more because of the higher cost of living in these areas, and some fields, like roles in engineering, will also pay more than others.
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Microsoft Pay Guidelines, Explained
In the pay guidelines, levels go from 52 to 70, with higher levels earning a larger base pay, on-hire stock rewards and annual stock reward range. Insider noted that not all roles go up to 70, but some go as high as level 80 for a “technical fellow,” which is one of the highest-ranking executives at the company.
The guidelines also don’t include cash bonuses, which can be 90% of base pay at the partner level, according to Insider.
Microsoft isn’t one of the best-paying tech companies, based on data from Blind. According to the data, Google and Meta are the best-paying tech companies for engineers. Microsoft’s average pay for entry-level engineers is $141,000, while at Google, the average entry-level pay is $184,000. However, the report noted that Microsoft’s various job levels give the company more flexibility to hand out promotions.
Here are Microsoft’s pay tiers for tech professionals.
Level 70:
Base pay: $231,700 to $361,500
On-hire stock awards: $310,000 default to $1.2 million with approval
Annual stock award range: $0 to $945,000
Level 69:
Base pay: $202,400 to $316,000
On-hire stock awards: $235,000 default to $1.1 million with approval
Annual stock award range: $0 to $750,000
Level 68:
Base pay: $186,200 to $291,000
On-hire stock awards: $177,000 default to $1 million with approval
Annual stock award range: $0 to $490,600
Level 67:
Base pay: $171,600 to $258,200
On-hire stock awards: $168,000 default to $700,000 with approval
Annual stock award range: $0 to $336,000
Level 66:
Base pay: $157,300 to $236,300
On-hire stock awards: $75,000 default to $600,000 with approval
Annual stock award range: $0 to $160,000
Level 65:
Base pay: $144,600 to $216,600
On-hire stock awards: $36,000 default to $300,000 with approval
Annual stock award range: $0 to $90,000
Level 64:
Base pay: $125,000 to $187,700
On-hire stock awards: $24,000 default to $250,000 with approval
Annual stock award range: $0 to $60,000
Level 63:
Base pay: $113,900 to $171,500
On-hire stock awards: $17,000 default to $200,000 with approval
Annual stock award range: $0 to $44,000
Level 62:
Base pay: $103,700 to $156,400
On-hire stock awards: $11,000 default to $125,000 with approval
Annual stock award range: $0 to $32,000
Level 61:
Base pay: $92,600 to $138,100
On-hire stock awards: $6,500 default to $75,000 with approval
Annual stock award range: $0 to $24,000
Level 60:
Base pay: $83,500 to $125,000
On-hire stock awards: $4,500 default to $50,000 with approval
Annual stock award range: $0 to $16,000
Level 59:
Base pay: $74,400 to $110,800
On-hire stock awards: $3,000 default to $30,000 with approval
Annual stock award range: $0 to $12,000
Level 58:
Base pay: $70,300 to $92,600
On-hire stock awards: $2,500 default to $20,000 with approval
Annual stock award range: “By career stage”
Level 57:
Base pay: $63,800 to $83,000
On-hire stock awards: $1,500 default to $10,000 with approval
Annual stock award range: “By career stage”
Level 56:
Base pay: $60,700 to $77,900
On-hire stock awards: $1,500 default to $10,000 with approval
Annual stock award range: “By career stage”
Level 55:
Base pay: $55,200 to $71,300
On-hire stock awards: N/A
Annual stock award range: “By career stage”
Level 54:
Base pay: $51,600 to $67,000
On-hire stock awards: N/A
Annual stock award range: “By career stage”
Level 53:
Base pay: $46,600 to $59,700
On-hire stock awards: N/A
Annual stock award range: “By career stage”
Level 52:
Base pay: $42,500 to $54,600
On-hire stock awards: N/A
Annual stock award range: “By career stage”
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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: Microsoft’s Salary Secrets: Here Are the Pay Tiers for Tech Pros
