Reminder: Software engineering is still one of the happiest careers in 2024/2025, based on data.

This subreddit has a huge FAANG obsession, and it completely distorts the perception of software engineering. Every other post seems to be about insane comp packages, grueling interviews, layoffs, or burnout stories. But if you look at the actual data, the reality for most developers is completely different. [Resume.io (2025)](https://resume.io/blog/which-professions-are-the-happiest-at-work) found that 87 percent of software developers reported being “very happy” in their jobs, the highest of any profession surveyed. [Career.io (2024)](https://career.io/career-advice/careers-that-make-americans-happiest) analyzed nearly 756,000 job ratings and found software developers among the most satisfied six figure earners, with a median salary around 130K. [Market.biz (2025)](https://market.biz/job-satisfaction-statistics/#job-satisfaction-statistics-in-different-industries) reported that 74 percent of tech professionals worldwide are satisfied with their jobs. So why does this subreddit feel so negative compared to those numbers? Because the voices dominating here are FAANG engineers or startup employees, and their experiences are extreme. Life inside FAANG is often miserable. Long hours, constant pressure to ship, endless internal politics, and the looming threat of layoffs make it feel like a treadmill you can never step off. Software is the company’s entire product, so everything you do is under constant scrutiny and pressure. Burnout is common, and that is exactly what this sub amplifies. Meanwhile, the average developer lives a completely different life, and that is what drives the high happiness statistics. Most are not in San Francisco or New York. They live in mid sized cities or suburbs where their salary goes much further. They are not chasing the next billion dollar app. They work at hospitals, insurance companies, banks, logistics firms, or government agencies. The work is steady, respected, and meaningful, even if it never makes headlines. They make 100K to 130K, comfortably above the national median. Their hours are closer to forty a week. They get PTO. Their managers are competent but not tyrannical. And because software is a support function rather than the company’s core product, the pressure to grind nonstop is low. That is why surveys consistently show high satisfaction. The quiet majority of developers who live this life rarely post here. Nobody makes a thread to say “My job is stable, I like my team, I worked normal hours, and I had a great weekend hiking.” The loud minority who post are often FAANG engineers or startup refugees talking about their misery. That is why this subreddit can make software engineering seem miserable, even though for most people it is not. The truth is that chasing FAANG is often what ruins people’s perception of software engineering. It is the exception, not the rule. The average developer is happy, balanced, and living a peaceful, stable, and well-compensated life. Even in 2024 and 2025, software engineering remains one of the happiest and most rewarding professions you can choose, as long as you understand that most developers do not live the FAANG nightmare that dominates this subreddit.