7 Remote Jobs That Pay $100K+ (No, Really)

Let me tell you something most people don't realize: there are thousands of remote jobs paying over $100k. Not at Google or Facebook. Not requiring 10 years of experience. Regular companies, hiring right now, for roles you might actually be qualified for.

I'm a tech recruiter. I've placed 200+ people in remote roles over the last 3 years. Here are 7 positions that consistently pay $100k+ and don't require you to be a senior engineer.

1. Solutions Architect ($110k-$165k)

What you actually do: Help customers implement complex software. You're half technical expert, half business consultant.

What you need:

5+ years in software development or infrastructure
Ability to explain technical concepts to non-technical people
Experience with cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, GCP)
Strong customer-facing skills

Why it pays well: You're directly tied to revenue. Companies need you to close deals and keep customers happy. Plus, there's a shortage of people who are both technical AND good at communication.

How to break in: Start as a customer success engineer or technical account manager. Build expertise in one platform (AWS is easiest). Get AWS Solutions Architect certification ($150, totally worth it).

2. Product Manager ($105k-$175k)

What you actually do: Decide what features to build. You're the CEO of your product, working with designers, engineers, and stakeholders to ship stuff people want.

What you need:

3-5 years in tech (not necessarily as a PM)
Understanding of software development process
Data-driven decision making skills
Ability to say "no" diplomatically

Why it pays well: Good PMs are rare. Bad PMs waste millions building the wrong things. Companies pay top dollar for people who can ship the right product.

How to break in: Don't wait for a PM title. Start PM'ing your current work. Write product specs. Talk to customers. Build a portfolio of "PM thinking" even if it's not your official job.

3. DevOps Engineer ($115k-$180k)

What you actually do: Make sure code gets from developers' laptops to production smoothly. You build pipelines, manage infrastructure, and keep everything running.

What you need:

Strong Linux/Unix skills
Experience with CI/CD tools (Jenkins, GitLab, GitHub Actions)
Infrastructure as Code (Terraform, Ansible)
Cloud platform expertise
Scripting skills (Python, Bash)

Why it pays well: Every company needs DevOps but few people want to do it. It's the unglamorous work that keeps businesses running. High demand, low supply = big salaries.

How to break in: Start as a sysadmin or developer. Learn Docker and Kubernetes. Build your own CI/CD pipeline for a side project. Contribute to infrastructure repos on GitHub.

4. Senior Data Analyst ($100k-$150k)

What you actually do: Turn data into decisions. You build dashboards, run experiments, and tell executives what's actually happening in their business.

What you need:

SQL (you'll write 1000 queries per year)
One visualization tool (Tableau, Looker, Power BI)
Statistical knowledge (A/B testing, regression)
Business sense (numbers mean nothing without context)
Python or R (bonus, but increasingly required)

Why it pays well: Companies are drowning in data but starving for insights. A good analyst can save millions by catching problems early or identifying growth opportunities.

How to break in: Start with free SQL courses (Mode Analytics has great ones). Build a portfolio analyzing public datasets. Kaggle competitions look great on resumes. Focus on storytelling, not just queries.

5. Technical Writer ($90k-$130k)

What you actually do: Write documentation that developers actually read. API docs, tutorials, technical guides. You make complex things understandable.

What you need:

Ability to understand technical concepts quickly
Excellent writing skills (obvious but important)
Basic coding knowledge (you'll need to test examples)
Patience to explain the same thing 10 different ways

Why it pays well: Good technical writers are unicorns. Most technical people can't write clearly. Most writers don't understand technical content. If you can do both, you're valuable.

How to break in: Start a technical blog. Contribute to open source documentation. Rewrite bad docs and send them to companies (seriously, this works). Build a portfolio showing you can make complex topics simple.

6. Customer Success Manager (Enterprise) ($95k-$145k)

What you actually do: Keep big customers happy and paying. You're their advocate internally and you help them get value from the product.

What you need:

3-5 years in customer-facing roles
Understanding of SaaS business models
Project management skills
Ability to have difficult conversations
Some technical knowledge (depends on product)

Why it pays well: Losing a $500k/year customer costs way more than a CSM's salary. Companies invest heavily in keeping enterprise clients happy.

How to break in: Start in customer support or account management. Focus on enterprise clients. Learn to read financial statements (shows business acumen). Get really good at one industry.

7. Security Engineer ($120k-$190k)

What you actually do: Find and fix security vulnerabilities before bad actors do. Pen testing, security audits, incident response.

What you need:

Deep understanding of how systems work (and break)
Knowledge of common vulnerabilities (OWASP Top 10)
Scripting skills for automation
Certifications help (CISSP, CEH, OSCP)
Hacker mindset (think like an attacker)

Why it pays well: One breach can cost millions. Companies are terrified of security incidents. Qualified security people are rare because it requires broad, deep knowledge.

How to break in: Start with network/sysadmin work. Do HackTheBox and TryHackMe. Get Security+ certification ($370). Bug bounties are great portfolio pieces. Join cybersecurity communities.

The Pattern You Need to See

Notice what all these jobs have in common:

They require expertise, not just years of experience
They solve expensive problems for companies
They're hard to hire for (supply/demand imbalance)
They can be done remotely without loss of productivity

What Nobody Tells You

These salaries are for mid-to-senior level. But "senior" doesn't mean 10 years. It means you're competent, independent, and can deliver results.

I've placed people with 3 years of experience into $120k roles because they had the right skills and could prove their value. I've also seen people with 10 years of experience struggle to break $80k because they couldn't demonstrate impact.

How to Actually Get There

Pick ONE of these paths. Don't try to do all of them.
Build demonstrable skills. Portfolio beats resume.
Network in that specific community (Twitter/X, Discord, conferences)
Apply to companies that are remote-first, not remote-tolerant
Be patient. It might take 6-12 months to transition

These jobs exist. The money is real. You just have to build the skills companies actually pay for.