After two years of layoffs, mid-size SaaS is finally hiring junior engineers again

The great SaaS reset appears to be ending. After eight consecutive quarters of net headcount reduction among companies with 50–500 employees, the sector added a net 12,400 engineering positions in Q1 2026 — the first positive quarter since late 2023.

The data, compiled from LinkedIn hiring signals, job board postings, and SEC filings for public companies, tells a more nuanced story than the headline suggests. The jobs being created are not simply the jobs that were cut in 2023 and 2024 coming back.