# Apache Kafka

Skill · Software Development and Engineering Practices

Canonical page: https://career.thegoodapps.co/skills/apache-kafka

Apache Kafka is an open-source distributed event streaming platform used to publish, subscribe to, store, and process real-time data feeds at high throughput. Originally developed at LinkedIn, it's now used by data engineers and backend developers at companies like Netflix, Uber, and Airbnb to build real-time pipelines, messaging systems, and event-driven architectures. It's a core building block of modern microservices and data streaming infrastructure.

## Apache Kafka in the job market

- Open roles: 185
- Employers hiring: 86
- Median stated pay: $197,000 (middle half $172,000 – $238,000), from 153 of 185 open roles — the 83% that publish a range, annualized to USD. Only some employers state pay, and the ones that do skew to California and New York, where the law requires it.
- Last checked: September 13, 2026

## Asked for alongside Apache Kafka

Measured from the 185 open roles that name Apache Kafka, not from a curated list.

- [Python](https://career.thegoodapps.co/skills/python) — 113 roles (61.1%)
- [Kubernetes](https://career.thegoodapps.co/skills/kubernetes) — 106 roles (57.3%)
- [Amazon Web Services (AWS)](https://career.thegoodapps.co/skills/amazon-web-services-aws) — 105 roles (56.8%)
- [Java](https://career.thegoodapps.co/skills/java) — 81 roles (43.8%)
- [Docker](https://career.thegoodapps.co/skills/docker) — 58 roles (31.4%)
- [Go](https://career.thegoodapps.co/skills/go) — 55 roles (29.7%)
- [SQL](https://career.thegoodapps.co/skills/sql) — 54 roles (29.2%)
- [PostgreSQL](https://career.thegoodapps.co/skills/postgresql) — 53 roles (28.6%)

## Seniority of these roles

- Entry: 1 (1%)
- Mid: 14 (8%)
- Senior: 117 (65%)
- Lead / Staff / Principal: 42 (23%)
- Management: 4 (2%)
- Executive: 2 (1%)

From 180 roles whose posting states a level.

## Where Apache Kafka roles are

- [New York, NY](https://career.thegoodapps.co/jobs/in/new-york-ny) — 26
- [San Francisco, CA](https://career.thegoodapps.co/jobs/in/san-francisco-ca) — 24
- [Austin, TX](https://career.thegoodapps.co/jobs/in/austin-tx) — 6
- [Reston, VA](https://career.thegoodapps.co/jobs/in/reston-va) — 6
- [Sunnyvale, CA](https://career.thegoodapps.co/jobs/in/sunnyvale-ca) — 6
- [Bellevue, WA](https://career.thegoodapps.co/jobs/in/bellevue-wa) — 4

Among the 117 of 185 open roles we could place on a map.

## Roles that use Apache Kafka

- [Software Engineer](https://career.thegoodapps.co/occupations/software-engineer) — 110
- [Data Engineer](https://career.thegoodapps.co/occupations/data-engineer) — 14
- [Site Reliability Engineer](https://career.thegoodapps.co/occupations/site-reliability-engineer) — 9
- [Engineering Manager](https://career.thegoodapps.co/occupations/engineering-manager) — 8
- [Machine Learning Engineer](https://career.thegoodapps.co/occupations/machine-learning-engineer) — 8
- [Enterprise Architect](https://career.thegoodapps.co/occupations/enterprise-architect) — 4

## Employers hiring for Apache Kafka

- [CrowdStrike](https://career.thegoodapps.co/organizations/crowdstrike) — 26 open roles
- [Visa Inc.](https://career.thegoodapps.co/organizations/visa-inc) — 11 open roles
- [LSEG](https://career.thegoodapps.co/organizations/lseg) — 8 open roles
- [Intuit](https://career.thegoodapps.co/organizations/intuit) — 7 open roles
- [Comcast](https://career.thegoodapps.co/organizations/comcast) — 6 open roles
- [Reddit](https://career.thegoodapps.co/organizations/reddit) — 6 open roles

Related skills: [Apache Flink](https://career.thegoodapps.co/skills/apache-flink), [RabbitMQ](https://career.thegoodapps.co/skills/rabbitmq), [IBM WebSphere MQ](https://career.thegoodapps.co/skills/ibm-websphere-mq), [Amazon MSK](https://career.thegoodapps.co/skills/amazon-msk), [Apache Cassandra](https://career.thegoodapps.co/skills/apache-cassandra), [Apache Zookeeper](https://career.thegoodapps.co/skills/apache-zookeeper), [IBM MQ](https://career.thegoodapps.co/skills/ibm-mq), [SMACK Stack](https://career.thegoodapps.co/skills/smack-stack), [Amazon Kinesis](https://career.thegoodapps.co/skills/amazon-kinesis), [Amazon SQS (Simple Queue Service)](https://career.thegoodapps.co/skills/amazon-sqs-simple-queue-service), [AWS Kinesis](https://career.thegoodapps.co/skills/aws-kinesis), [TIBCO](https://career.thegoodapps.co/skills/tibco)

## Open roles requiring Apache Kafka (185)

- [Principal Data Engineer](https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/hims-and-hers/a321e167-59ab-46cc-9b50-75154f122bdb/application) at [Hims and Hers](https://career.thegoodapps.co/organizations/hims-and-hers) — Full-time, US Remote, $220,000 – $260,000 (listed on Hims and Hers's own careers site)
- [Sr. Software Engineer, Platform](https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/helpscout/1873a140-0ab9-408e-a9dd-d3c6106c9819/application) at [Help Scout](https://career.thegoodapps.co/organizations/help-scout) — Full-time, United States · Remote, $156,000 – $182,000 (listed on Help Scout's own careers site)
- [Senior Data Engineer](https://career.thegoodapps.co/jobs/339a57c0-864d-4dfe-9fa6-e2f0b83dcd28/senior-data-engineer-at-drivetime) at [DriveTime](https://career.thegoodapps.co/organizations/drivetime) — Full-time
- [Software Engineering Advisors- Hybrid](https://career.thegoodapps.co/jobs/3a1d7884-b547-401e-a463-0d8cba35f394/software-engineering-advisors-hybrid-at-cigna) at [Cigna](https://career.thegoodapps.co/organizations/cigna) — Full-time, Plano, TX
- [Lead Software Engineer, Clearing Engineering](https://career.thegoodapps.co/jobs/85f9f7ea-4a8c-4c3b-b9e0-1dff1068be7d/lead-software-engineer-clearing-engineering-at-coindesk) at [CoinDesk](https://career.thegoodapps.co/organizations/coindesk) — Full-time, New York, NY, $235,000 – $275,000
- [GTM Architect](https://career.thegoodapps.co/jobs/b5255389-eb90-4d99-935f-dec056bf9b01/gtm-architect-at-cambria) at [Cambria](https://career.thegoodapps.co/organizations/cambria) — Eden Prairie, MN, $146,000 – $191,000
- [Solutions Architect I or II, Corporate Solutions](https://career.thegoodapps.co/jobs/e17c9bb5-3bb2-4f23-b279-f614d4faf504/solutions-architect-i-or-ii-corporate-solutions-at-cambia-health-solutions) at [Cambia Health Solutions](https://career.thegoodapps.co/organizations/cambia-health-solutions) — Full-time, $114,000 – $228,000
- [Credit Lead Developer, Investment Engineering](https://career.thegoodapps.co/jobs/801b85f4-72ea-46ec-9805-0c96473eaa65/credit-lead-developer-investment-engineering-at-apollo-management) at [Apollo Management](https://career.thegoodapps.co/organizations/apollo-management) — Full-time, New York, NY, $190,000 – $250,000
- [DevOps Engineer](https://career.thegoodapps.co/jobs/db863cc1-b9e8-41ed-914a-da2ac7784af7/devops-engineer-at-aerovironment) at [AeroVironment](https://career.thegoodapps.co/organizations/aerovironment) — Full-time, Annapolis Junction, MD, $102,000 – $255,000
- [Data Science Senior Manager](https://career.thegoodapps.co/jobs/de86c80d-5ae8-4495-96de-7d389baa4317/data-science-senior-manager-at-sap) at [SAP](https://career.thegoodapps.co/organizations/sap) — Full-time, Newport Beach, CA, $244,700 – $553,900

All 185 open roles: https://career.thegoodapps.co/jobs?skills=da9821c9-69c2-481e-9def-ab5cb67908b2