The market in San Francisco (we still have to compete with the Google/Facebook etc) demands that start-ups pay market rate. Everyone on engineering team here at

The market in San Francisco (we still have to compete with the Google/Facebook etc) demands that start-ups pay market rate. Everyone on engineering team here at Triggit makes at least six figures. VC funded companies generally build a lot of budget around hiring, and paying, top engineering talent. Depending the type of job you are looking for, and the size of the company, I'd actually encourage you not to use a recruiter. Although we use them, we don't look at resumes from recruiters nearly as closely as direct applicants - especially if you do a little bit of legwork and see if you can't find an advocate within the company. Just be direct with a company, tell them what you need to make, and they can pretty quickly tell you yes or no. I'd say target start-ups with funding, or that are profitable, and you'll find a nice salary waiting for you. Good luck!