Is Microsoft a good company to work for as a Principal Software Development Lead?

Principal Software Development Lead professionals working at Microsoft have rated their employer with 3.8 out of 5 stars in 415 Glassdoor reviews. This is a lower than average score with the overall rating of Microsoft employees being 4.0 out of 5 stars. Search open Principal Software Development Lead Jobs at Microsoft now and start preparing for your job interview by browsing frequently asked Principal Software Development Lead interview questions at Microsoft .

Does Microsoft pay Principal Software Development Lead employees well?

Principal Software Development Lead professionals rate their compensation and benefits at Microsoft with 3.4 out of 5 stars based on 415 anonymously submitted employee reviews. This is 13.7% worse than the company average rating for salary and benefits. Find out more about Principal Software Development Lead salaries at Microsoft.

What are the top reviewed jobs at Microsoft?

Software Engineer (6664) , Senior Software Engineer (1760) , Program Manager (1400) , Software Engineer II (1052) , Software Development Engineer (888) , Senior Program Manager (861) , Product Manager (727) , Intern (689) , Technical Support Engineer (688) , Software Developer (669) , Software Development Engineer (SDE) (631) , Consultant (548) , Software Engineer(Internship) (535) , Director (533) , Project Manager (480)

What are the pros of working at Microsoft according to real employee reviews?

"They provide great benefits and you get a lot of exposure if interested in full time corporate role" ((in 6289 reviews)); "Work/Life balance is good and entirely up to you make it what you want it to be" ((in 5394 reviews)); "Some really great people working in the Inside sales teams and the building is fantastic." ((in 4338 reviews)); "Office had a lot of talented folks when I left in 2023 and a great culture." ((in 4078 reviews)); "A lot of the work is driven by individual performance within a team environment and the pay is good." ((in 2136 reviews))

What are the cons of working at Microsoft according to real employee reviews?

"Bad managers abound and there is not much remedy for that except for leaving the job." ((in 1454 reviews)); "life balance in hardware due to frequent unplanned work travel and evening calls; bloated meetings; some poor management" ((in 1195 reviews)); "Frequent layoffs and zero job security regardless of your performance" ((in 791 reviews)); "Long hours you have to wait till the last customer leave it’s energy consuming some of the customers are unrespectful" ((in 470 reviews)); "Too much politics and exchange of favors rather then meritocracy seriously affect the possibilities to grow and develop inside the company." ((in 314 reviews))

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Microsoft

Microsoft Principal Software Development Lead reviews

3.8

69% would recommend to a friend

(415 total reviews)

Satya Nadella

79% approve of CEO

67% positive business outlook

Ratings by category

3.9

Diversity & inclusion

3.7

Culture & values

3.7

Work/Life balance

3.6

Career opportunities

3.4

Compensation and benefits

3.2

Senior management

Principal Software Development Lead employees have rated Microsoft with 3.8 out of 5 stars, based on 415 company reviews on Glassdoor. This indicates that most Principal Software Development Lead professionals have a good working experience there. Microsoft is rated in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) by Principal Software Development Lead professionals compared to other employers within the Information Technology industry (3.9 stars).

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

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Reviews by job title

415 reviews

5.0

Jul 18, 2026

Great work-life balance, but pay could be better

Principal software engineer

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Great work life balance in my team

Cons

Possibly slightly lower compensation than other big tech

3.0

Jul 11, 2026

Good work-life balance but teams feel isolated

Principal software engineer

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

good work/life balanc Good team work ethics ..

Cons

isolated teams , long hours, unclear directiosn

2.0

Jul 10, 2026

Great AI work overshadowed by office politics and stagnation

Principal software engineer

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

AI related work is great.

Cons

full of politics. Group engineering managers - entire layer is now redundant and does nothing. No salary hikes. used to get goodies but now everything dried up

Viewing 4 - 6 of 415 Reviews

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Microsoft Principal Software Development Lead reviews

Ratings by category

Ratings by demographic groups

Reviews by job title

Great work-life balance, but pay could be better

Good work-life balance but teams feel isolated

Great AI work overshadowed by office politics and stagnation

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