Salary comparison

Data Scientists vs Software Developers

Side-by-side H-1B prevailing-wage comparison using the same DOL LCA data that drives every page on H1B Report. Quartiles, hiring geography, top sponsors and yearly wage drift.

Summary

Data Scientists (SOC 15-2051) and Software Developers (SOC 15-1252) are both high-demand tech occupations in H-1B sponsorship, but differ significantly in filing volume and competition.

Software Developers dominate H-1B filings with 1,400,940 applications compared to Data Scientists' 213,508—nearly 6.6× higher. This reflects the broader, more established demand for developer roles across all industries and company sizes. Median wages are nearly identical: Software Developers earn $116,251 vs Data Scientists' $114,941. At the 75th percentile, Software Developers edge ahead at $145,725 versus $145,000 for Data Scientists.

Wage growth across experience levels is comparable. Data Scientists range from $90,200 (25th percentile) to $145,000 (75th percentile), while Software Developers span $95,160 to $145,725. The tight salary bands suggest both occupations command similar market rates despite vastly different filing volumes, indicating that Data Scientists face less H-1B competition but in a smaller overall pool.

Data Scientists vs Software Developers H-1B
H-1B filings comparison tech
Data Scientist H-1B salary
Software Developer H-1B sponsorship

Occupation A

Data Scientists

SOC 15-2051Rank #3

Occupation B

Software Developers

SOC 15-1252Rank #1

Key metrics

Wage figures are offered annual wage; volume is total LCA count.

Metric	Data Scientists	Software Developers
Median wage	$114,941	$116,251▲
P25 wage	$90,200	$95,160▲
P75 wage	$145,000	$145,725▲
Wage spread (P75 − P25)	$54,800	$50,565
Total filings	213,508	1,400,940▲
Wage samples	213,202	1,399,063
Rank	#3	#1▲

Median wage by year

Year-over-year drift of the typical offered wage.

Data Scientists

Software Developers

Top 5 hiring states — Data Scientists

1CA43,941$142,122
2NY27,091$132,000
3TX25,149$102,690
4WA18,953$135,100
5IL10,447$100,000

Top 5 hiring states — Software Developers

1CA295,439$152,100
2TX216,424$105,997
3WA111,054$148,013
4NJ75,370$113,672
5NY60,422$130,000

Top 5 sponsors — Data Scientists

Top 5 sponsors — Software Developers

1COGNIZANT TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS US CORP18,711
2Google LLC14,090
3AMAZON.COM SERVICES LLC (WA)13,959
4Microsoft Corporation13,684
5AMAZON.COM SERVICES LLC (VA)13,329

Swap an entity

Replace either occupation above without losing the comparison. 2-way for now; 3+ comparison coming soon.

Swap A: Data Scientists

Computer Occupations, All Other Software Quality Assurance Analysts and Testers Computer Systems Analysts Computer and Information Systems Managers

Swap B: Software Developers

Computer Occupations, All Other Software Quality Assurance Analysts and Testers Computer Systems Analysts Computer and Information Systems Managers

Or browse the full occupation index.

Data Scientists Software Developers Browse all