Site Reliability Engineer Salary Guide 2024

Site reliability engineers (SREs) typically earn a six-figure income, which generally increases with experience, advanced education and training, or working for larger corporations. Learn more about the SRE role, the salary you can earn, and the factors that typically affect pay.

What is a site reliability engineer?

Site reliability engineers use software to address IT issues and keep systems running smoothly. They remove bottlenecks, ensure software reliability, solve complex problems, and bridge the gap between development and operations in a DevOps organization.   

SREs are valuable to businesses because they keep systems operational and updated. In this line of work, you'll work on automation and minimize service interruptions. You’ll also oversee systems performance, incidents, and outages and be responsible for front-end and back-end systems.

How much does the average site reliability engineer make?

According to Glassdoor, the average annual salary for a site reliability engineer in the US is $121,293 [1]. However, many factors can affect your salary.

Level of experience 

Your years of experience can significantly impact your earning potential. Glassdoor lists the following average annual base salaries for SREs in the US by years of experience [1]:

• Up to one year of experience: $88,311

• 1–3 years of experience: $99,503

• 4–6 years of experience: $109,856

• 7–9 years of experience: $120,255

• 10–14 years of experience: $132,226

• 15-plus years of experience: $143,037

Location

An SRE’s salary can also vary by location because each city has a different cost of living. The areas that typically offer higher wages are major cities with more expensive living expenses. Large cities pay well above the average annual wage, while other cities’ salaries align with the average. The top ten highest-paying cities for SREs, along with their average annual salaries, are the following, according to ZipRecruiter [2]:

• Mountain View, CA: $168,781

• San Francisco, CA: $166,455

• Cupertino, CA: $161,902

• San Jose, CA: $160,571

• Annapolis Junction, MD: $157,691

• Oakland, CA: $157,112

• Vallejo, CA: $156,878

• Hayward, CA: $156,844

• Ashland, CA: $156,829

• Antioch, CA: $156,453

Skill set 

The skills you need for an SRE career include programming and computer languages, but you’ll also need communication and problem-solving skills. You may work as part of a team, so you must work well with others.

Technical skills include using version control and monitoring tools, distributed computing, strong operating systems knowledge, and coding. 

Payscale reports that having the following skills can increase a site reliability engineer's salary from 4 to 23 percent [3]:

• Google Cloud Platform: 23 percent

• Go: 23 percent

• Kubernetes: 8 percent

• Puppet: 8 percent

• Amazon Web Services (AWS): 4 percent

• Terraform: 4 percent

• Red Hat Enterprise Linux: 4 percent

Company

SREs can work in-house or remotely, offering you the flexibility to earn more working for a large company in a busy city from a lower-cost city. 

You can typically find SRE positions nationwide; many large corporations hire onsite and remote SREs. Glassdoor reports top SRE salary ranges from the following companies [1]:

• Cisco: $178,000–$255,000

• Google: $247,000–$386,000

• LinkedIn: $226,000–$341,000

• Microsoft: $177,000–$253,000

• IBM: $124,000–$172,000

• JPMorgan Chase & Co: &137,000–$187,000

• Target: $133,000–$195,000

• Cohesity: $148,000–$207,000

• VMware: $191,000–$273,000

• Apple: $215,000–$320,000

*Note: The above salaries reflect Glassdoor's total pay figures, which is a combination of base pay plus additional compensation, such as profit sharing and bonuses.

What type of education does a site reliability engineer need?

Most employers seek candidates with a bachelor’s degree in computer science or a related field. Knowledge of programming languages and operating systems are attractive skills to have on your resume.

While pursuing your bachelor’s degree, you may also earn an internship to help you gain experience for an entry-level position. You can enhance your education by attending boot camps and earning certificates related to SRE work. 

Career advancements as a site reliability engineer

Pursuing a graduate degree or certification is a good start when seeking to advance your SRE career. You can also transition into closely related fields, including software engineering or DevOps engineering. 

Advancement by years of experience:

• 5 years: You may be able to advance to a lead site reliability engineer with an annual income of $130,000 to $205,000 [5].

• 5-7 years: You might become a site reliability engineer manager, with a yearly salary range of $149,000 to $228,000 [5].

• 8 years: You may qualify for a principal site reliability engineer position with an annual salary range of $203,000 to $307,000 [5]. Advancement to a senior manager of site reliability engineer is also possible. The typical annual salary range is $216,000 to $333,000 [5]. 

• 10 years: The most advanced SRE positions include director of site reliability engineering, with an annual wage of $216,000 to $339,000, and senior principal site reliability engineer, with an annual salary of $233,000 to $356,000 [5].

Continue learning with Coursera. 

Site reliability engineering (SRE) is a growing field with a high demand for qualified professionals. SREs are responsible for keeping a company’s IT infrastructure running smoothly and efficiently. In this role, you address issues, automate tasks, and ensure system reliability. While the average annual salary for an SRE is $121,293 [1], your income can vary depending on various factors, including your experience level, skill set, location, and the company you work for.

To become an SRE, your next step is to earn a bachelor’s degree. Then, you can expand your knowledge with certificate programs. Consider taking Google Cloud's Site Reliability Engineering: Measuring and Managing Reliability course on Coursera, which can help you explore the field more or build upon your existing knowledge and skills. You might also explore Developing a Google SRE Culture offered by Google Cloud, which you can complete remotely in about eight hours.