Staff Engineer - Edge Protocols

Fastly; Denver (CO); Hybrid; USD 211,370 - 253,644; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Comprehensive benefits package

401(k) with company match

Employee Stock Purchase Program

Flexible vacation policy

Job summary

Fastly is seeking a Staff Software Engineer for its Edge Protocols Team. This role involves developing software that interacts with clients and optimizing network protocols for enhanced performance and security. You will work on a range of responsibilities, including coding in C and Rust and collaborating with teams to deliver robust features.

Fastly offers a hybrid work model with a preference for local candidates. A competitive salary range from $211,370 to $253,644 is provided, alongside a comprehensive benefits package.

Qualifications

• Proven ability to design and implement reliable, scalable, low-latency systems.
• Experience with web protocols such as HTTP, TLS, and DNS.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Write, test, and deploy both C and Rust code.
• Enhance and optimize network software implementing protocols.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams on technical roadmap.

Skills

C programming

Rust programming

C++ programming

Linux systems

Network programming

Mentorship

Education

7+ years of domain relevant engineering experience

Tools

Distributed systems

Job description

Fastly helps people stay better connected with the things they love. Fastly’s edge cloud platform enables customers to create great digital experiences quickly, securely, and reliably by processing, serving, and securing our customers’ applications as close to their end-users as possible — at the edge of the Internet. The platform is designed to take advantage of the modern internet, to be programmable, and to support agile software development. Fastly’s customers include many of the world’s most prominent companies, including GitHub, Yelp, Paramount, and JetBlue.

We're building a more trustworthy Internet. Come join us.

Posting date: June 25, 2026

Anticipated Posting Close Date: July 10, 2026

Staff Software Engineer – Edge Protocols

The Edge Protocols Team develops software that interacts with both sides of Fastly, front and back – handling every incoming client request to Fastly and talking to customers’ websites. Projects range from implementing new protocols, efficient load balancing, routing among the edge nodes, defending customers from attacks, security enhancements, privacy products and more. We are looking for a Staff Software Engineer passionate about applying their talents to make the Internet fast and secure.

What You’ll Do

• Write, test, and deploy both C and Rust code.
• Enhance, maintain and optimize network software that implements protocols including TLS, HTTP, QUIC, etc.
• Collaborate with cross‑functional teams and stakeholders to shape a clear technical roadmap – prioritizing key initiatives and proactively identifying and mitigating risks – to deploy, support, troubleshoot, and deliver features to customers.
• Contribute to open source projects such as h2o and picotls.
• Mentor and support the professional growth of engineers, fostering a culture of knowledge sharing, innovation, and collaboration within the team.

What We’re Looking For

• Proven ability to design and implement reliable, scalable, low‑latency systems. Most Staff Engineers at Fastly have at least 7 years of domain relevant engineering experience.
• A collaborative mindset with experience working across cross‑functional teams, fostering a culture of knowledge sharing and innovation.
• Significant production experience with coding in C, C++, and/or Rust.
• Proven ability to mentor and support the growth of engineers, both within a specific area of expertise and more broadly.
• Experience with Linux systems and network programming.
• Hands‑on experience in building distributed infrastructure and maintaining it over time.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to produce clear and comprehensive documentation.

We’ll Be Super Impressed if You Have Experience in Any of These

• Web/Internet protocols such as HTTP, TLS, DNS, TCP/IP, UDP, QUIC.
• Understanding of how customers will interact with features you develop.
• Comfortable working in a geographically distributed team and highly available environments.
• Proficient in Perl, Go, or similar high‑level languages.

Work Hours

This position will require you to be available during core business hours and occasionally nights and weekends as required for on‑call support.

Work Location(s) & Travel Requirements

The preferred office locations for this position are:

• San Francisco, CA
• Denver, CO
• New York, NY

Fastly currently embraces a largely hybrid model for most roles which allows employees flexibility to split their time between the office and home. There is a strong preference for hybrid near a local office. However, we may be willing to consider remote candidates within the US and Canada.

Salary

The estimated salary range for this position in the US is $211,370 to $253,644. Starting salary may vary based on permissible, non‑discriminatory factors such as experience, skills, qualifications, and location. This role may be eligible to participate in Fastly’s equity and discretionary bonus programs.

Benefits

We offer a comprehensive benefits package including medical, dental, and vision insurance. Family planning, mental health support, Employee Assistance Program, life, disability, and accident insurance, a flexible vacation policy, and up to 18 days of accrued paid sick leave are available to support our employees. We also offer 401(k) with company match and an Employee Stock Purchase Program. For 2026, we offer 11 paid local holidays and 12 paid company wellness days.

EEO Statement

Fastly is committed to ensuring equal employment opportunity and to providing employees with a safe and welcoming work environment free of discrimination and harassment. Our employment decisions are based on business needs, job requirements and individual qualifications.

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, marital status, medical condition, national origin, family or parental status, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran status, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by applicable laws, regulations and ordinances.

Consistent with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and federal or state disability laws, Fastly will provide reasonable accommodations for applicants and employees with disabilities. If reasonable accommodation is needed to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and/or to receive other benefits and privileges of employment, please contact your Recruiter, or the Fastly Employee Relations team at [e-mail] or 501-287-4901.

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