Machine Learning Engineer salary

Q: Do machine learning engineers make good money?

Yes. The median machine learning engineer salary of $148,000 is 27% above the roughly $116,537 median across engineering occupations, and experienced machine learning engineers can earn $240,000 or more.

Q: Which cities pay machine learning engineers the most?

Estimated machine learning engineer pay is highest in San Jose ($219,040), San Francisco ($210,160), Seattle ($192,400). These are cost-of-labor estimates that adjust the national baseline by local wage levels — not direct BLS metro wages.

Mapped est.

Updated January 2025

Machine learning engineers design, train, and deploy ML models inside production systems, owning everything from data pipelines to live model monitoring.

Median pay

$148,000

U.S. typical

Top earners

$240,000

90th percentile

Entry level

$115,500

0–2 yrs

Senior

$200,000

15+ yrs

The median machine learning engineer salary in the U.S. is about $148,000 per year. Entry-level pay starts near $99,000, while top earners (90th percentile) make $240,000 or more. Machine Learning Engineeris a newer title that standard salary surveys don't track on its own, so this figure is a labeled estimate benchmarked against closely related engineering work.

Median annual wage

$148,000

Mean

$159,000

10th pct · $99,00090th pct · $240,000

What machine learning engineers do

Build training and inference pipelines, productionize models, and own model performance, monitoring, and scaling.

Machine learning engineers design, train, and deploy ML models inside production systems, owning everything from data pipelines to live model monitoring.

What affects machine learning engineer pay

▹Research vs. production ML focus
▹Company type (Big Tech and AI labs pay a premium)
▹Years of experience
▹Equity and bonus
▹Metro cost of labor

Machine Learning Engineer salary by experience

Pay typically climbs from about $115,500 for entry level engineers to $200,000+ at the principal / staff level.

Entry level 0–2 yrs

$115,500

Early career 3–5 yrs

$139,000

Mid level 6–9 yrs

$160,000

Senior 10–14 yrs

$180,500

Principal / Staff 15+ yrs

$200,000

Your actual offer depends on company, location, and specialization — run the calculator for a tailored range.

Highest-paying cities for machine learning engineers

Estimated machine learning engineer pay in the top-paying metros, vs the national median.

8results

Metro	State	Median	90th pct	vs U.S.	Data
San Jose California	CA	$219,040	$355,200	+48%	Estimate
San Francisco California	CA	$210,160	$340,800	+42%	Estimate
Seattle Washington	WA	$192,400	$312,000	+30%	Estimate
New York City New York	NY	$186,480	$302,400	+26%	Estimate
Boston Massachusetts	MA	$180,560	$292,800	+22%	Estimate
Washington, D.C. District of Columbia	DC	$177,600	$288,000	+20%	Estimate
Los Angeles California	CA	$174,640	$283,200	+18%	Estimate
San Diego California	CA	$170,200	$276,000	+15%	Estimate

Machine Learning Engineer salary by state

State	Est. median	Est. 90th pct
California	$183,520	$297,600
Texas	$153,920	$249,600
New York	$168,720	$273,600
Washington	$174,640	$283,200
Massachusetts	$171,680	$278,400

State figures are estimates — open a state for its full city-by-city breakdown.

Machine Learning Engineer salary — frequently asked questions

How much does a machine learning engineer make?

The median machine learning engineer salary in the U.S. is about $148,000 per year. Most machine learning engineers earn between $99,000 and $240,000, and top earners (90th percentile) make $240,000 or more. Machine Learning Engineer is a newer title that standard salary surveys don't track on its own, so these figures are labeled, mapped estimates benchmarked against closely related engineering work.

What is the highest machine learning engineer salary?

Top-earning machine learning engineers (90th percentile) make about $240,000 or more nationally. In the highest-paying metros, estimated pay can run even higher — for example around $219,040 in San Jose. Metro figures are cost-of-labor estimates, not direct BLS metro data.

How much do entry-level machine learning engineers make?

Entry-level machine learning engineers (0–2 years) earn about $115,500 per year, rising to roughly $160,000 at mid-level and $200,000+ at the principal/staff level. These by-experience figures are modeled estimates based on typical engineering career progression.

Do machine learning engineers make good money?

Yes. The median machine learning engineer salary of $148,000 is 27% above the roughly $116,537 median across engineering occupations, and experienced machine learning engineers can earn $240,000 or more.

Which cities pay machine learning engineers the most?

Estimated machine learning engineer pay is highest in San Jose ($219,040), San Francisco ($210,160), and Seattle ($192,400). These are cost-of-labor estimates that adjust the national baseline by local wage levels — not direct BLS metro wages.

How can a machine learning engineer earn more?

Machine Learning Engineer pay rises most with research vs. production ml focus, company type (big tech and ai labs pay a premium), and years of experience. Moving to a higher-cost metro, specializing, and taking on senior or lead scope are the biggest levers — the salary calculator lets you model each one.

Source details

Machine Learning Engineer is not a BLS-tracked title. Mapped to BLS SOC 15-1252 Software Developers. Not a direct BLS-tracked title — treat as an estimate.

Benchmarks come from published government wage data via BLS OEWS. Local and emerging-role figures are labeled estimates. Full methodology →