NOC 21231 — Software engineers and designers in Canada
Duties, TEER level, employment requirements and example job titles for NOC 21231, plus Job Bank wages by province — from the NOC 2021 classification.
What NOC 21231 means in plain English
Software engineers and designers research, design, evaluate, integrate and maintain software applications, technical environments, operating systems, embedded software, information warehouses and telecommunications software. In NOC 2021, the first digit of the code (2) places this unit group in the broad category Natural and applied sciences and related occupations, and the second digit (1) is its TEER level.
What TEER 1 means
TEER stands for Training, Education, Experience and Responsibilities. TEER 1 usually means:
- Completion of a university degree (bachelor's, master's or doctorate), or
- Previous experience and expertise in subject-matter knowledge from a related TEER 2 occupation (when applicable).
Express Entry: Work experience in TEER 0, 1, 2 and 3 occupations is the 'skilled' experience that the Federal Skilled Worker Program and the Canadian Experience Class under Express Entry look for. Program rules, minimum hours and category-based draws change, so confirm current requirements on IRCC's website before you apply. See all TEER 1 occupations.
Main duties
- Collect and document user requirements
- Design and develop software architecture
- Develop software requirements
- Implement testing strategies
- Use Java, Python, C++, JavaScript, TypeScript, React, Node.js, AWS, Docker, Kubernetes, Git, Agile, CI/CD
Employment requirements
- Bachelor's degree in computer science, computer engineering, software engineering, math or related discipline
- Master's degree may be required
Example job titles under NOC 21231
If your job title is one of these, NOC 21231 is a likely match — confirm it by comparing your actual duties with the list above, since NOC is matched on duties, not titles.
- Software engineer
- Software architect
- Application architect
- Software designer
- Embedded software engineer
Wages for NOC 21231 (hourly)
Job Bank Canada wage data, refreshed April 2026. Wages vary by city and employer.
| Region | Low | Median | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| Canada (national) | $32.00/hr | $51.00/hr | $76.92/hr |
| Ontario | $33.50/hr | $53.85/hr | $80.77/hr |
| British Columbia | $32.00/hr | $52.88/hr | $80.77/hr |
| Alberta | $32.21/hr | $50.00/hr | $75.00/hr |
| Quebec | $28.85/hr | $45.00/hr | $67.31/hr |
| Nova Scotia | $26.00/hr | $42.31/hr | $62.50/hr |
| Manitoba | $26.44/hr | $41.00/hr | $62.50/hr |
| Saskatchewan | $28.00/hr | $42.50/hr | $60.10/hr |
| New Brunswick | $24.00/hr | $38.46/hr | $56.25/hr |
See annual equivalents and the highest-paying province on the software engineer salary page.
How to use NOC 21231 on your resume
Recruiters and applicant tracking systems search for Canadian job titles and duty keywords. Use the example title that matches your work, mirror the duty wording above in your bullets, and check your draft with the free ATS checker. If you studied outside Canada, read our Educational Credential Assessment (ECA) guide.
Related occupations
Other natural and applied sciences and related occupations we cover:
- NOC 20010 — Engineering managers (TEER 0)
- NOC 20012 — Computer and Information Systems Managers (TEER 0)
- NOC 21100 — Physicists and astronomers (TEER 1)
- NOC 21210 — Mathematicians, statisticians and actuaries (TEER 1)
- NOC 21211 — Data scientists (TEER 1)
- NOC 21220 — Cybersecurity specialists (TEER 1)
- NOC 21221 — Business Systems Analysts (TEER 1)
- NOC 21222 — Information systems specialists (TEER 1)
Sources: National Occupational Classification (NOC) 2021, Statistics Canada / ESDC (duties and requirements summarized). Wages: Job Bank Canada, refreshed April 2026, Open Government Licence – Canada. Always confirm your code on the official NOC site before using it on an application.