Amazon SDE Levels Explained: SDE I to Principal Engineer, L4 to L8

Amazon gives every engineer two names for the same job. The public title is SDE, short for Software Development Engineer. The internal code is a number, like L5.

SDE I is L4, SDE II is L5, and SDE III is L6. Above those sit Principal Engineer at L7 and Senior Principal Engineer at L8.

Most confusion about Amazon levels comes from mixing the two systems. A recruiter says "SDE II" and a compensation site says "L5", and they mean the same job.

This guide maps every SDE title to its internal level. It also covers years of experience, pay, and how Amazon levels compare to Google, Meta, and Apple.

Amazon SDE Levels Mapped to Internal Levels

Here is the full mapping in one table:

Two things in that table surprise people. Both are explained below.

Why Amazon Engineers Start at L4, Not L1

Amazon uses one level system for the whole company, not just for engineers.

L1 through L3 are used for warehouse, fulfillment, and support roles. Engineering starts at L4 because the lower numbers are already taken.

So an L4 at Amazon is a new graduate, while an L4 at Google is a mid-level engineer with a few years of experience. The numbers look similar and mean different things. This is the single most common mistake when people compare offers.

The rule for comparing: subtract one from the Amazon level to get the Google level. Amazon L5 matches Google L4. Amazon L6 matches Google L5.

L4: SDE I

L4 is Amazon's entry level, for new graduates and engineers with up to two years of experience.

An SDE I writes and debugs code for defined tasks. They learn Amazon's services, its deployment tools, and its operational practices. An SDE II or Senior SDE guides their work.

On-call starts early at Amazon. Even an SDE I is expected to carry a pager for their team's services within the first year.

Most SDE I engineers are promoted to SDE II in about eighteen months to two years. Amazon expects this progression, and staying at L4 for a long time is treated as a performance concern.

L5: SDE II

L5 is the core engineering level at Amazon, and the level most engineers hold.

An SDE II owns features end to end. They design components, review code, handle their share of on-call, and mentor SDE I engineers. They work without close supervision.

The L5 band is unusually wide. It covers engineers with two years of experience and engineers with ten. An SDE II at the top of the band does work that would be called senior at a smaller company.

L5 is Amazon's terminal level. A terminal level is one where you can stay for your whole career with no promotion pressure. Nobody is managed out for remaining an SDE II. This matters, because L6 is a genuinely hard step that many strong engineers never take.

L6: SDE III, or Senior SDE

L6 is Amazon's senior engineer level. Most L6 engineers have eight or more years of experience.

An SDE III leads large projects, usually as the technical lead for a team. They design systems that serve Amazon scale traffic, and they own the architecture decisions that come with it.

The promotion from L5 to L6 is where Amazon's requirements change shape. Writing good code is no longer enough. Amazon looks for influence beyond your own team, a record of delivered projects, and written documents that changed how other teams work.

Amazon runs on written documents rather than slide decks. At L6, the ability to write a clear six-page design document becomes part of the job.

Preparing for an L6 loop means preparing for system design more than for coding. The coding rounds still happen, but the level decision usually comes from the design rounds.

L7: Principal Engineer

L7 is Principal Engineer, a very senior individual contributor role.

A Principal sets technical direction for an entire organization or product area. Some large organizations have one Principal Engineer. Some have none.

Principals resolve the hardest technical disagreements, and they design systems that several teams then build. They also act as Bar Raisers in hiring, which is an interviewer with veto power over an offer, drawn from outside the hiring team.

An external hire at L7 usually arrives with a record of leading work at that scope somewhere else. Amazon rarely levels someone into L7 from outside on potential.

L8 and Above

L8 is Senior Principal Engineer. An L8 might own the technical strategy for a whole business unit, such as all of Amazon Logistics.

Above L8, Amazon has Distinguished Engineer, which maps to L10. Amazon skips L9 for engineers. Distinguished Engineers are rare and operate at roughly the influence of a vice president.

Amazon Compensation by Level

Amazon pays less in base salary and more in stock than most of its competitors. Total compensation is what matters when you compare offers.

These are approximate and move with the stock price. Check levels.fyi for current numbers before any offer conversation.

Amazon's stock vesting is backloaded, and this catches people out. A four-year grant does not vest evenly. It vests 5 percent in year one, 15 percent in year two, then 40 percent in each of years three and four.

To cover the gap, Amazon pays cash signing bonuses across the first two years. Those bonuses stop after year two.

The result is a pay drop in year three unless the stock has grown or you have received new grants. Ask what the year-by-year total looks like, not just the first-year number.

How Amazon Levels Compare to Google, Meta, and Apple

Amazon level numbers sit one higher than Google's for the same work.

The senior row is the one that decides most offers. Amazon L6, Google L5, Meta E5, and Apple ICT4 are the same job with four different names.

For the full five-company comparison, see the FAANG software engineer levels guide.

How to Avoid Being Under-Leveled at Amazon

Amazon's wide L5 band means many candidates who could be hired at L6 get an L5 offer instead. The gap between those two offers is often more than $100K per year.

Three things protect you.

• Ask for the target level before the loop is scheduled. Recruiters will usually tell you. Amazon sets the level from the loop, so the interviewers need to be calibrated for L6 before you start.

• Name a competing offer by its level. Say: "Google is offering me L5, so I want L6." Amazon can adjust the target level before the loop. It almost never adjusts after.

• Show scope in the behavioral rounds, not just the technical ones. Amazon's Leadership Principles rounds carry real weight in the level decision. Your stories should describe work at the level you are asking for.

Internal promotion from L5 to L6 typically takes two or more years, and requires a written promotion document with evidence from other teams.

Frequently asked questions

What is SDE II at Amazon? SDE II is Amazon's mid-level engineer, internally called L5. SDE IIs own features end to end and work without close supervision. It is also Amazon's terminal level, so engineers can stay there for a full career. Typical total compensation in the United States is around 240K to 300K.

What is L6 at Amazon? L6 is Senior Software Development Engineer, publicly titled SDE III. Most L6 engineers have eight or more years of experience and lead large projects as a team's technical lead. L6 at Amazon matches Google L5, Meta E5, and Apple ICT4.

Why does Amazon start engineers at L4? Amazon uses one level system across the whole company. Levels L1 through L3 are used for warehouse, fulfillment, and support roles, so engineering starts at L4. This is why Amazon level numbers run one higher than Google's for the same job.

What is the terminal level at Amazon? SDE II, which is L5. Engineers can stay at L5 for their entire career without pressure to be promoted. The step from L5 to L6 is optional and much harder, because it requires influence beyond your own team.

Is Amazon L5 the same as Google L5? No, and confusing the two is a costly mistake. Amazon L5 is a mid-level engineer and matches Google L4. Google L5 is a senior engineer and matches Amazon L6. Subtract one from the Amazon number to get the Google number.

How does Amazon stock vesting work? A four-year grant vests 5 percent in year one, 15 percent in year two, and 40 percent in each of years three and four. Cash signing bonuses cover the first two years while the stock is still small. Those bonuses end after year two, so ask for the full four-year breakdown.

If you are heading into an offer conversation, Grokking Tech Salary Negotiations covers the scripts for level and compensation negotiation.

Related reading

• FAANG Software Engineer Levels Explained
• Google Software Engineer Levels Explained
• Apple ICT Levels Explained
• Amazon Interview Questions Guide
• System Design Interviews at Google, Meta, and Amazon