.NET Developer Salary in Santa Rosa: $95,000-$155,000 (2026)

Santa Rosa sits above the national average on cost of living (index ~140), with housing the dominant factor. For a mid-level .

NET developer earning around $120k, median 1‑bedroom rents in 2025 commonly range $1,800–$2,400; a modest 3‑bedroom home purchase often lists in the $700k–$900k range depending on neighborhood. Commute costs are moderate—many developers drive locally or use regional transit to nearby tech centers; fuel and car insurance are above national norms.

Groceries and services are slightly elevated versus the U. S.

average but not as extreme as Bay Area urban cores. Practically, a Santa Rosa .

NET developer will have higher nominal wages than in Sacramento but reduced discretionary income compared with comparable Bay Area roles because of housing. Budgeting for housing (30–40% of gross income for many) and occasional travel to Bay Area clients or team hubs is essential to maintain the expected lifestyle.

Local salary levels for . NET developers in Santa Rosa reflect a mix of industry demand and regional cost structure.

Major regional employers—health systems like Kaiser Permanente and Sutter Health and county government—require robust . NET backends, integration with EHRs, and secure APIs, creating steady demand for experienced C# developers.

The wine industry and associated supply‑chain businesses increasingly use SaaS platforms and custom enterprise integrations, favoring full‑stack . NET skills for ERP and inventory systems.

While Santa Rosa lacks the density of Silicon Valley startups that push top-end salaries higher, it benefits from steady budgets in healthcare and government and frequent contracting opportunities with Bay Area firms. Market constraints—smaller company sizes and fewer deep-pocketed tech unicorns—keep the top of the range below San Francisco, but competition among local hospitals, consultancies, and industrial firms keeps mid-level compensation attractive and the market hiring moderately.

Compared with San Francisco and Oakland, Santa Rosa offers slightly lower nominal . NET salaries (average ~125k vs SF ~160k) but also much lower day‑to‑day expenses than SF’s extreme COL.

Versus Sacramento, Santa Rosa pays higher average wages but has significantly higher housing costs. Commuting to Bay Area employers is common: developers willing to commute or work hybrid/onsite occasionally can capture Bay Area pay premiums while living in Sonoma County, but travel time and costs often offset some salary gains.

For relocation decisions: move to SF/Oakland if maximizing nominal pay and rapid career growth in high-scale startups; choose Santa Rosa for better balance of outdoor lifestyle, shorter local commutes, and steady healthcare/government contracts. Remote work is widely accepted for many .

NET roles—well-suited to retaining Santa Rosa residency while working for Bay Area or national employers.

Typical progression: 0–2 years (entry) focus on C#, . NET Core/.

NET 6+, SQL Server, and version control; expect individual contributor roles and maintenance tasks. 3–7 years (mid) transition to owning services, designing APIs, mentoring juniors, and full‑stack responsibilities including Angular/React frontends or cloud deployments (Azure is common), with salary moving toward the local midpoint.

8+ years (senior) take on system architecture, cross‑team integrations (especially healthcare EHR integrations), and tech leadership; opportunities include principal engineer or engineering manager roles at health systems or independent consultancies. Acceleration factors locally: gaining healthcare interoperability experience (HL7/FHIR), Azure certifications, cloud-native microservices experience, and demonstrable full-lifecycle delivery on enterprise projects.

Contractors with specialized healthcare or manufacturing automation experience can command premium day rates and faster upward earnings.

When negotiating, anchor with local data: for a mid-level . NET developer in Santa Rosa ask in the $110k–$130k range; senior candidates target $140k–$155k depending on healthcare or integration expertise.

Emphasize certifications and domain experience that local employers value—Azure, FHIR/HL7, SQL Server performance tuning, or experience with Epic/Cerner integrations. Because many Santa Rosa employers are healthcare or government-oriented, highlight security, compliance, and documentation experience.

Negotiate total compensation: employers often trade base salary for stronger benefits—PTO, hybrid schedules, healthcare premium coverage, retirement contributions, and training budgets. If relocating from a lower-cost region, request a cost-of-living adjustment or a relocation stipend tied to documented housing costs.

For remote roles, clarify expectations on on-site days; ask for a hybrid stipend if regular travel to Bay Area client sites is required.