[nvarsj]

I agree with you, although you can get near/past FAANG level TC by contracting/freelancing. Even just being a Java dev, you can make around 650+ a day which is about 150k/year. Plus you can expense almost anything IT related. If you branch out into doing trainings, or become a subject matter expert, you can charge 750, 850+ a day which is basically >= FAANG L5 levels. Probably a lot harder to be honest since you need proven experience and results, but it avoids the leetcode.

[golondon]

Yeah, I was talking for the perm roles. If you go to the contractor route, 600, 650 is quite doable. For higher as you said, it's networking, how people see you and what kind of projects you delivered. Depending on the person, it can be something even harder than the leetcode grind. But overall, I would agree.