QA roles
What each role does and the range of its median total employer cost across published countries, USD.
| Role | What the role does | Countries | Level | Lowest median | Highest median |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manual QA engineer | Designs and executes test cases by hand, reports and verifies defects | 16 | Senior | USD 17,189Confidence B | USD 158,174Confidence B |
| Test automation engineer | Builds and maintains automated UI and API test suites in a framework such as Playwright, Cypress or Selenium | 6 | Senior | USD 81,946Confidence B | USD 171,152Confidence B |
| SDET | Writes test infrastructure and tooling as software, often embedded in a development team | 0 | no country published; city: Chicago | ||
| Performance test engineer | Designs load and stress tests, analyses bottlenecks with tools such as k6, JMeter or Gatling | 0 | not published | ||
| Mobile QA engineer | Tests iOS and Android apps by hand and with Appium or platform frameworks | 0 | not published | ||
| Security test engineer | Runs application security testing and coordinates penetration tests | 1 | Senior | USD 126,068Confidence B | |
| QA lead | Owns test strategy, planning and a team of engineers | 1 | Senior | USD 17,713Confidence A | |
| AI QA engineer | Evaluates AI features with datasets, scorers and judges, and tests AI-assisted products | 0 | not published |
The letter after each figure is its confidence grade (A, B or C, from the number and agreement of the sources); how grades work.
Sources: in the source list on this page, and next to each figure on the linked breakdown pages.
Sources
Sources of the figures in the table: salary, statutory and component sources of each record shown, and the exchange rates used for USD.
- PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries. Vietnam - Individual - Other taxes
- Rödl & Partner. Vietnam: increase of statutory base salary
- Vietnam Briefing (Dezan Shira & Associates). Vietnam Raises Statutory Basic Salary From July 2026: Implications for Employers
- Luật sư Việt Nam (journal of the Vietnam Bar Federation). Mỗi người sẽ có bao nhiêu ngày nghỉ phép năm theo quy định tại BLLĐ 2019?
- National Assembly of Vietnam (text copy hosted by Sài Gòn Giải Phóng). Nghị quyết về phát triển văn hóa Việt Nam (Resolution 28/2026/QH16 on developing Vietnamese culture)
- Apple. Buy MacBook Air
- Apple. Buy MacBook Pro
- Testing tool list price (vendor not named)
- Testing tool list price (vendor not named)
- Linear. Linear pricing
- Manatal. Recruitment fees (agency fee guide)
- Apollo Technical. What is a placement fee for engineering hiring
- HeroHunt.ai. True Cost to Hire an AI Engineer in 2026
- State Bank of Vietnam. Ty gia trung tam (central exchange rate)
- Bundesamt für Sozialversicherungen (BSV). Schweizerische Sozialversicherungen - synoptische Tabelle der anwendbaren Beitrags- und Prämiensätze, Stand 1.1.2026
- PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries. Switzerland - Individual - Other taxes
- ch.ch (Swiss Confederation, cantons and communes). Holidays and public holidays
- European Central Bank. Euro foreign exchange reference rates
- Canada Revenue Agency. CPP contribution rates, maximums and exemptions
- Employment and Social Development Canada. Maximum Benefit Amounts and Related Figures - Canada Pension Plan (2026)
- Government of Canada. Contributions to the Canada Pension Plan
- Canada Revenue Agency. EI premium rates and maximums
- Government of Ontario. Employer Health Tax (EHT)
- PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries. Canada - Corporate - Other taxes
- Association of Workers' Compensation Boards of Canada. Provisional Average Assessment Rates (last updated 13 December 2025)
- Government of Ontario. Your guide to the Employment Standards Act: Vacation
- Government of Ontario. Your guide to the Employment Standards Act: Public holidays
- Testing tool list price (vendor not named)
- Testing tool list price (vendor not named)
- Testing tool list price (vendor not named)
- Ethosia. טבלאות וסקרי שכר - אתוסיה
- Drushim (data: Jobinfo). טבלאות שכר 2026 תוכנה - SOFTWARE
- Recruiter salary guide (not named)
- National Insurance Institute of Israel (Bituach Leumi). Insurance contribution rates for salaried employees
- PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries. Israel - Individual - Other taxes
- Government of Israel (gov.il). SEC version A (When Employer is the PWD) - Hebrew - English - 2026
- National Insurance Institute of Israel (Bituach Leumi). Average Wage under article 1,2 of National Insurance Law
- WorkMotion. Israel employment guide
- Ministry of Labor (gov.il). Provisions for Severance Pay
- Barnea Jaffa Lande Law Offices. Update for Employers: Increase in Israeli Convalescence Pay Rate
- HM Revenue & Customs (GOV.UK). Rates and thresholds for employers 2026 to 2027
- PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries. United Kingdom - Individual - Other taxes
- Department for Work and Pensions (GOV.UK). Review of the Automatic Enrolment Earnings Trigger and Qualifying Earnings Band for 2026/27
- GOV.UK. Holiday entitlement
- GOV.UK. UK bank holidays
- AmbitionBox. Test Module Lead Salary in India
- Indeed. Senior test lead salary in India
- SoftwareTestPilot. QA Lead Salary 2026: Pay by Experience, Team Size & City
- Ministry of Labour & Employment, Government of India (PIB). Cabinet Approves Higher EPFO Wage Ceiling of Rs. 25,000, Expanding Mandatory Coverage (PIB release ID 2310973)
- PwC Worldwide Tax Summaries. India - Individual - Other taxes
- Indian Council of Medical Research (Government of India). Office Memorandum No. 16/29/2023/Admn: provisions relating to EPF contributions
- Employees' Provident Fund Organisation. Present rates of contribution by contribution accounts / administration accounts
- Employees' State Insurance Corporation. ESIC Contribution
- Employees' State Insurance Corporation. ESIC Coverage
- Government of Puducherry, Labour Department. The Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972 and Rules, 1984