Boulder, CO Senior SWE remote salary
Im expecting to be negotiating salary for a remote senior software engineer job for a startup in Boulder CO. One positive for me of COVID is that so many companies are now remote friendly and Ive been able to broaden my seach nationwide. This would be my first full remote job and I don’t know what to expect in terms of salaries. The online cost of living comparison says that Boulder has a 60% higher COL than my current location. That would take my current salary of $150k up to $235k which seems very high. Any advice on what to expect?
I don’t have a ton of experience in this domain but I’ve looked at a lot of jobs in boulder and even 200k feels high - especially for a startup. A lot of what I see in Denver boulder area is 150-170k
Thanks that range would work for me!
Not sure where you're coming in from, but yes Boulder is a HCOL area. However, if you're looking to buy and can tolerate a 10-15 minute drive, your options increase a lot. You can go as far out to the Gunbarrel area and still be in Boulder (also close to Avery so that's a plus!), or you can look around in Superior/Louisville. Yes these are more suburban of course, so that's a factor. Rents in Boulder are probably high for what you get, but they might be reasonable enough for a year or two before you decide to buy. Public transport is also pretty good, bus lines cover a lot of the major areas.
Boulder is definitely one of the highCOL areas in CO but surrounding area is comparatively cheaper so HCOL doesn’t really reflect into salaries offered in Boulder. If they are offering somewhere between 175-200, I feel you would be good in terms of rent, groceries etc.