Do Sales Engineers make more than Account Executives?
Updated October 17, 2026 · Based on 1,187 job postings · Methodology
Posted pay is close: Sales Engineers have a median of $180k vs $148k for Account Executives across current US postings, but SE pay is mostly base salary while AE pay is about half commission, so SEs carry less risk.
Pay by sales role, US
| Role | Postings | Median pay | Median OTE | Remote share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Account Executive | 845 | $148k | $210k | 34% |
| SDR / BDR | 111 | $76k | $81k | 12% |
| Sales Engineer | 342 | $180k | $180k | 44% |
| Sales Manager | 96 | $178k | $190k | 19% |
| VP / Director of Sales | 153 | $241k | $265k | 35% |
Related: Sales Engineer pay · Account Executive pay
FAQ
Why do SE roles have less variable pay?
Sales Engineers support many deals, so their plans are usually 70/30 or 80/20 base/variable versus 50/50 for AEs.
Which pays better at the top end?
The 90th percentile is $238k for SEs and $325k for AEs.
Cite this: “According to OTE Jobs data, posted pay is close: Sales Engineers have a median of $180k vs $148k for Account Executives across current US postings, but SE pay is mostly base salary while AE pay is about half commission, so SEs carry less risk.” Source: OTE Jobs (otejobs.com), October 17, 2026. Free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 with a link to this page.