This would imply that someone making 150 CAD (for a senior top developer) would be making 450 USD. That doesn't match actual salary numbers from the field.
150 CAD at current exchange rates is 123 USD. That puts the 2-3x range at 246-369 USD. That's actually a bit low for a good senior developer in the current Bay Area market.
So some years ago, a company you'd recognize in node.js land, said at a meeting that they were trying to find a javascript expert. Nagged enroute to a bar afterwards, I explained that I wasn't one. I'd never written a full javascript implementation, only some hack bits and pieces. It had been years since I followed committee discussions. I'd not even seen the latest draft. And that I was mostly using coffeescript these days. They replied... coffeescript is ok, we can train you in javascript.
At which point I realized that they were using "javascript expert" to mean something very, very different, than I was.
Perhaps kcorbitt's "a good senior developer" means something different than glassdoor's "senior software engineer"?
I guess it depends on what your cutoff is for "good". I can say from firsthand experience that senior developers at Facebook or Google are hitting those numbers pretty easily.
Not sure where you live, or what you think the typical software dev does, but that seems extremely far off the mark in my experience, even for 10+ years ago.
Can confirm those numbers in the Toronto area. Maybe not at the absolute top end or the levels where job postings aren't even put out, but in the rank-and-file corporate and startup community, just take a look at any major job board lately.
I was making $145k as a junior rails dev at my last job in Toronto and they're hiring nonstop. Message me on keybase if you want to chat or get an intro.
If you're maintaining old-school apps in old languages, or you don't have a degree.
If you're talented, have marketable skills and an ability to promote yourself, you should be making at least 70k in most Canadian cities. Given the job market and cost of living increases in the last few years, this isn't particularly high.
Anyone settling for 40k or so (and not fresh out of school) I think should take a close look at other opportunities.
I'm a realist, but that's a tad bit too jaded for me to take as is. I don't think you're all wrong, though.
You just could have done without that first and last statement. I'll inform the UNV you won't be signing up anytime soon. I don't see taking a low salary as settling in every case. Many Canadian businesses just simply cannot pay that level for certain skills, and if you want to believe in your friends, colleagues and fellow countrymen sometimes you take a hit to what you think you're worth to help build. I wasn't complaining outright, myself. I was adding a data point. Averages can be helpful information.
It's encouraging for other reasons that you're yet another counter-point promoting that there are better-paying opportunities, though. I'd hate to paint a grim picture. Regardless I love it here (in Canada. I could move out of the city again)
When I was interviewing for mid level jobs in Montreal most of the salaries were around 45-75k CAD. At 80k I was the second-highest paid dev in our office.
Certainly there are jobs paying more, but they are far from the norm.
$150K CAD is higher than the vast majority of jobs. But it's only about $120K USD (and was a lot worse at the start of the year). Senior level salaries at the big tech companies run about $250K before factoring in stock and performance bonuses. The top guys are clearing close to half a million USD all compensation considered, and they're really the equivalent of your $150K in Canada. So 2-3x is conservative if anything.