ML engineer salary 2026
Updated Oct 16, 2026 · from live postings on company job boards
The median posted base salary for ML engineers is $244K; the middle half of postings pay $205K–$290K. Based on 389 ML engineer postings with a US salary, out of 829 open at 146 AI companies. Staff and principal titles post a median of $280K.
Pay by level
Bars show p25–p75 of posted US base pay; the tick is the median.
Level is read from the job title; "No level in title" is usually mid-level.
Highest-paying companies
| Company | Median | Middle half | Postings |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anthropic | $402K | $300K–$425K | 16 |
| Wayve | $366K | $351K–$382K | 12 |
| Perplexity | $312K | $312K–$312K | 3 |
| xAI | $310K | $310K–$310K | 4 |
| OpenAI | $308K | $256K–$383K | 27 |
| Suno | $307K | $301K–$312K | 4 |
| Figure AI | $300K | $300K–$300K | 8 |
| Zoox | $296K | $254K–$302K | 17 |
Show 16 more companies
| Company | Median | Middle half | Postings |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shield AI | $292K | $250K–$350K | 3 |
| Hex | $288K | $11K–$363K | 3 |
| Ramp | $278K | $265K–$278K | 3 |
| The Bot Company | $275K | $275K–$275K | 4 |
| Scale AI | $272K | $213K–$327K | 10 |
| Plaid | $272K | $272K–$272K | 5 |
| Handshake | $260K | $170K–$275K | 3 |
| Abridge | $252K | $240K–$270K | 3 |
| Character.AI | $250K | $225K–$250K | 3 |
| May Mobility | $245K | $245K–$250K | 7 |
| Together AI | $240K | $230K–$250K | 4 |
| Waymo | $238K | $238K–$280K | 53 |
| Motional | $238K | $174K–$285K | 5 |
| Cresta | $238K | $190K–$265K | 3 |
| Coinbase | $237K | $208K–$237K | 3 |
| NVIDIA | $236K | $197K–$236K | 35 |
USD annual base, midpoint of each posted range. Companies with 3+ postings that list pay.
FAQ
What is the average ML engineer salary in 2026?
In live postings at AI companies the median posted base salary is $244K (USD, annual base), with the middle half between $205K and $290K. Based on 389 postings that publish pay, updated Oct 16, 2026.
How much do senior ML engineers make?
Senior titles post a median base of $236K (97 postings); staff and principal titles $280K.
Which companies pay ML engineers the most?
Anthropic ($402K), Wayve ($366K), Perplexity ($312K).
Does this include equity or bonus?
No. These are base salary ranges as published in job postings. Equity and bonus are rarely posted, so total compensation is usually higher, especially at AI labs.