Is $100K a Good Salary in the US? (2026)

$100K/yr is a typical starting salary in United States in 2026. That's -23% vs the country median of $129,867/yr.

Last updated

How $100K compares

Junior median

$88,567

0–2 yrs

Mid-level median

$129,867

3–5 yrs

Senior median

$191,333

6+ yrs

Your salary

$100,000

$100K

Annual USD · 30+ roles tracked in United States.

Roles in United States earning around $100K

Jobs whose mid-level median is closest to $100K/yr.

#RoleMedian (USD)
1Software Engineer$145,000
2Petroleum Engineer$145,000
3Data Scientist$158,000
4Product Manager$158,000
5Cloud Architect$172,000
6Machine Learning Engineer$180,000
7Lawyer$185,000
8Dentist$215,000

Frequently Asked Questions

$100K/yr is a typical starting salary — -23% vs the country median of $129,867.

Data sources: aggregated public salary surveys, official labor statistics and crowdsourced reports. See our methodology. Canonical URL: https://salarybyrole.com/questions/is-100k-a-good-salary-in-the-us