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Software Developers salary in Lancaster, PA

Median pay for software developers in Lancaster, PA: $98,720/yr

Typical range (10th–90th percentile): $63,920 – $159,300 · about 650 employed locally

Below the typical metro median ($111,055) by −$12,335 (-11%).

What it's really worth in Lancaster

With Lancaster's cost of living at 97 (US=100), that $98,720 has the buying power of about $102,032 in an average-cost US metro.

Local context: median household income $81,458 · median home $388,207 · median rent $1,526/mo.

Full Lancaster cost of living & taxes →

How Lancaster ranks for this job

On raw pay, Lancaster, PA is 163rd of the 186 metros we hold software developers wages for. Once Lancaster's cost of living is applied, it ranks 173rd.

Pay and living costs are roughly in step here, so Lancaster sits in much the same place whether you look at raw salary or spending power.

What that salary buys in Lancaster

A median home in Lancaster, PA costs $388,207 — about 3.9× this salary, against a typical US metro figure of 4.7×. Buying is more attainable here than in the average metro on this income.

Median rent of $1,526/mo works out at 19% of gross pay — inside the conventional 30% affordability ceiling.

Where software developers earn more

Pay on its own is only half the picture, so each row shows what rent costs there relative to Lancaster.

MetroMedian payvs LancasterRent vs Lancaster
San Jose, CA $199,100 +102% 2.4×
San Francisco, CA $172,340 +75% 2.1×
Seattle, WA $167,030 +69% 1.5×
Santa Maria, CA $154,200 +56% 2.2×

Same job elsewhere in PA

MetroMedian payvs LancasterRent vs Lancaster
Philadelphia, PA $127,150 +29% 1.3×
Pittsburgh, PA $107,110 +8%
Allentown, PA $104,480 +6% 1.2×
Reading, PA $104,330 +6%

Staying in PA keeps state income tax and licensing the same, which makes these the most directly comparable moves.

Other jobs in Lancaster

Source: US BLS OEWS (May 2023) median annual wage; cost of living from BEA; home price and rent from Zillow; household income from US Census ACS. Rankings are across the 186 metros we hold wage data for in this occupation. Estimates for guidance only. See methodology.