Software Test Engineer Jobs in California
Software Test Engineer jobs in California are among the most active in the country, concentrated in the technology, defense, and enterprise software sectors across a range from entry-level QA associates through senior automation engineers and leads. The largest hiring metros are San Jose, San Diego, and Los Angeles, where companies like Apple, Qualcomm, and Salesforce maintain significant engineering workforces. The most in-demand specialties are test automation, performance testing, and embedded systems QA. Find a role that fits below and apply directly.
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The Role
What You’ll Work On
- Implement test strategy with feature teams on a major project or area of Rally, and agree up front on what must be true for high-impact changes and who proves it
- Test Rally against defined system properties and invariants, especially those pertaining to scalability, resiliency, and performance at customer scale
- Design test infrastructure and fixtures that serve both test and development, weigh their tradeoffs with peers, and see them through implementation to adoption
- Build tests that return a clear verdict on well-defined system behaviors
- Advise feature developers as they own the development-loop tests for their own changes
- Test that Rally’s failures are diagnosable, so customers and support can tell what broke and why
- Review past production incidents with Support Engineering to find gaps in how we test
- Mentor other SDETs, and improve the practices and tools the team uses
What Success Looks Like
- First 90 days. You’re shaping the test strategy for a major project, know the test infrastructure well enough to support and refine its design, and feature teams coordinate with you to ensure releases ship with confidence.
- First year. You drive test strategy for a major area of Rally and have defined and tested its system properties. Feature developers use fixtures you designed, and other SDETs come to you for guidance.
What You’ll Bring
- A track record of driving test strategy for microservice-based systems, cloud-hosted systems, or single-page web applications with minimal direction
- Experience designing test infrastructure and frameworks, and explaining their tradeoffs to peers
- Experience testing how systems behave under load and failure, beyond functional correctness
- Experience applying AI agents to test work, or driving test on an AI-forward engineering team, and a clear sense of when agent-written tests check the implementation instead of the intent
- Strong ability to read and understand Python, Javascript, or another programming language commonly used in test
- Experience applying software or system design principles in the test domain
- Curiosity about how and why systems fail, and the discipline to learn new systems and technologies in depth
- The ability to explain deeply technical topics to non-technical audiences, and to adjust how you communicate for customers, management, or peers
Nice to Have
- Experience with load, performance, or fault-injection testing tools
- Experience running automated tests in CI pipelines
- Experience with pytest or similar test frameworks
- Experience with Robot Framework
- Experience mentoring other engineers
- Familiarity with professional media formats and tools, such as codecs, container formats, media encoders, and metadata management
How We Work
- We’re small and distributed. Most of our collaboration happens over Slack and Zoom, across time zones. You’ll own what you build, and you’ll work closely with people outside your immediate team.
- Engineers stay close to customers. You’ll hear directly from the people using what you build. When something goes wrong in production, the team that owns the code helps fix it.
- We dig for root causes. When something breaks, we find out why instead of patching the symptom and moving on.
- We ship, then refine. We work in short sprints and improve things over time instead of waiting for a perfect first version.
How We Use AI
Logistics
- This is a remote role, open to candidates across the United States
- Occasional travel may be required, but is not core to this role
- Interview process: introductory call, AI proficiency interview, team technical interview, interview project, interview project presentation, and founders interview
Compensation and Benefits
You Should Be Interested in SDVI Because:
- You are looking for your next big challenge
- You are looking for a company that welcomes your talent virtually
- You want teammates you can learn from, and who will learn from you
- You want to be part of a team that respects individuals and their work
- You consider the big picture and your contribution to it
SDVI offers a comprehensive benefits package including competitive salary, medical, vision, dental, 401(k) match, and stock options in a stimulating and rewarding distributed work environment.
SDVI is committed to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusivity in our workforce. We maintain a courteous work environment that recognizes the dignity and worth of each employee. SDVI respects the individual needs of employees and is an equal-opportunity employer.
See All 183+ Software Test Engineer Jobs in California
Find roles in California that match your experience and apply in just a few clicks.
Find Software Test Engineer JobsSoftware Test Engineer Jobs by City in California
Where California roles are concentrated, by current openings.
Software Test Engineer Job Market in California
A snapshot from current California openings, updated as new roles post.
Who's Hiring
- Apple26

- Northrop Grumman12

- Sony Interactive Entertainment11

- SpaceX6

- TikTok6

Top Industries Hiring
- Technology & Software15
- Aerospace & Defense4
- Electronics & Hardware4
- Manufacturing3
- Automotive1
What California Employers Look For
The qualifications that appear most often in software test engineer jobs across California.
- Bachelor's degree in computer science, software engineering, or a closely related technical field
- Hands-on experience writing and executing automated test scripts using tools such as Selenium or Cypress
- Proficiency in at least one programming or scripting language, commonly Python, Java, or JavaScript
- Familiarity with Agile and Scrum development environments and CI/CD pipeline testing practices
- Experience using defect-tracking and test-management tools such as Jira, TestRail, or Zephyr
- Strong written and verbal communication skills for documenting test plans and reporting defects clearly
Software Test Engineer Jobs in California: Frequently Asked Questions
How do you become a software test engineer in California?
A bachelor's degree in computer science, software engineering, or information systems is the standard entry point for software test engineer roles in California. The field has no state-issued license, so employers focus on demonstrable skills: hands-on experience with test automation frameworks, a portfolio of real or project-based testing work, and certifications such as ISTQB are widely recognized by California technology and defense employers as evidence of foundational competency.
How much do software test engineers make in California?
Software test engineers in California earn a median of about $128,740 a year, based on May 2025 Bureau of Labor Statistics wage data, ranging from around $65,890 for the lowest 10% to over $201,070 for the top 10%. Pay rises with experience, specialty, and employer.
Which companies hire software test engineers in California?
Employers hiring software test engineers in California right now include Apple, Northrop Grumman, and Sony Interactive Entertainment, based on current listings on Migrate Mate as of November 2026. California's concentration of enterprise software, semiconductor, and aerospace companies means demand is spread across both large public companies and well-funded mid-stage technology firms.
Which California cities have the most software test engineer jobs?
San Diego, Sunnyvale, and San Jose have the most software test engineer openings in California. The San Jose and greater Bay Area concentration reflects the region's density of enterprise software and semiconductor companies, while San Diego's hiring is driven by its large defense technology and wireless communications industry base anchored by employers like Qualcomm and major defense contractors.
Are there remote software test engineer jobs in California?
Yes, and more than most fields. About 54% of software test engineer openings tied to California are remote or hybrid as of November 2026, reflecting how naturally the work suits distributed teams. Test automation, code review, and defect triage are the tasks most commonly performed fully remote, while hardware-in-the-loop or embedded systems testing roles are more likely to require on-site access.
How can I get hired as a software test engineer in California with little or no experience?
The most realistic entry path is applying for QA analyst or junior QA engineer roles at California technology companies that run structured new-graduate hiring programs, including several large Bay Area and Los Angeles-based enterprise software firms. Building a portfolio of automated test scripts on open-source projects and earning the ISTQB Foundation certification gives candidates a concrete edge. Adjacent roles such as technical support specialist or junior developer are also common lateral moves into testing at California employers.
Where can I find and apply to software test engineer jobs in California?
You can find and apply to software test engineer jobs in California on Migrate Mate, which lists current openings from employers actively hiring across the state. Find the roles that fit your experience and location and apply directly.
See All 183+ Software Test Engineer Jobs in California
Find roles in California that match your experience and apply in just a few clicks.
Find Software Test Engineer Jobs