AI Engineer Salary
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AI engineer postings advertised a median range of $145,000 to $215,000 in October 2026, in our US Job Postings Report: October 2026. That range is from the 1,172 postings that state pay out of the 1,626 we read on US employers' career sites, or 72%. That 72% is the 5th highest of the 122 roles in this report, whose median is 59%. These are advertised ranges, which can differ from what people end up earning.
Salary by level: bottom, middle and top of the range
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| Level | Bottom | Middle | Top | Postings that state pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Intern | - | - | - | - |
| Junior | - | - | - | - |
| Mid | - | - | - | - |
| Senior | $150k | $181k | $210k | 270 |
| Lead | $154k | $190k | $235k | 120 |
| Principal | $180k | $229k | $264k | 183 |
| Director | $189k | $247k | $298k | 64 |
| Executive | - | - | - | - |
72% of AI engineer postings state pay, and the chart is of those. Each bar runs from the median bottom of the advertised range to its median top, and the gap marks the middle. A dash means we do not publish that figure this month. These are advertised ranges, which can differ from what people end up earning.
Salary by industry
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| Industry | Bottom | Middle | Top | Postings that state pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Technology / IT | $155k | $202k | $237k | 619 |
| Finance & insurance | $139k | $178k | $213k | 159 |
| Manufacturing & industry | $111k | $138k | $166k | 106 |
By the sector of the employer's main industry, of postings that state pay, highest middle first. A sector with fewer than 100 such postings, or where one employer holds over 30% of them, is left out. Industry is read by our AI. Checked on 500 random postings, it was about 90% right.
Among postings that state pay, the middle of the advertised range is $181,000 at senior level, $190,000 at lead level, and $229,000 at principal level.
Skills named in postings
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| Skill | Share of postings |
|---|---|
| Python | 70% |
| RAG | 36% |
| AWS | 29% |
| LLMs | 27% |
| CI/CD | 25% |
| Prompt engineering | 24% |
| APIs | 24% |
| TypeScript | 19% |
| Azure | 19% |
| Vector databases | 18% |
| AI agents | 17% |
| LangChain | 17% |
| SQL | 17% |
| Kubernetes | 17% |
| Machine learning | 17% |
Salary by skill named in postings
| Machine learning | $176k | $181k | −$5k | +$9k |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kubernetes | $180k | $180k | $0k | −$2k |
| LLMs | $180k | $180k | $0k | −$4k |
| Python | $177k | $198k | −$20k | −$7k |
| AWS | $178k | $182k | −$4k | −$8k |
| TypeScript | $185k | $179k | +$6k | −$8k |
| RAG | $176k | $183k | −$7k | −$14k |
| APIs | $170k | $183k | −$12k | −$20k |
| CI/CD | $175k | $183k | −$8k | −$21k |
| Prompt engineering | $161k | $186k | −$25k | −$26k |
| Azure | $165k | $183k | −$18k | −$30k |
| SQL | $146k | $185k | −$39k | −$39k |
| Vector databases | $168k | $183k | −$14k | - |
| AI agents | $175k | $182k | −$7k | - |
| LangChain | $165k | $183k | −$17k | - |
The middle of the advertised range for postings that name each skill and for those that do not, of 1,170 postings that state pay. Senior postings name different skills from junior ones, so the plain difference partly measures seniority. “At the same level” compares postings of one level at a time and weighs the levels by the postings naming the skill; it stands on the postings whose title gives a level, which is a minority, and is a dash where no level has 50 postings on each side. A skill with fewer than 100 postings on either side, or where one employer holds over 30% of them, is left out.
Postings name Python in 70%, RAG in 36%, and AWS in 29%.
Also in postings this month
Remote, hybrid or onsite
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| Work mode | Share of postings |
|---|---|
| Remote | 36% |
| Onsite | 35% |
| Hybrid | 29% |
66% of AI engineer postings state a work mode, and the chart is of those.
Education
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| Education | Share of postings |
|---|---|
| Bachelor's degree | 91% |
| Master's degree | 6% |
| Secondary school | 2% |
| Doctorate | 1% |
| No formal education | 0% |
| Vocational training | 0% |
58% of AI engineer postings state education, and the chart is of those.
Who hires
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| Industry | Share of postings |
|---|---|
| Technology / IT | 55% |
| Finance & insurance | 14% |
| Manufacturing & industry | 9% |
| Professional services | 8% |
| Healthcare | 7% |
| Construction & real estate | 1% |
| Media & entertainment | 1% |
| Retail & consumer goods | 1% |
| Education | 1% |
Every sector with at least 1% of the 1,553 AI engineer postings that name an industry, by the sector of the employer's main industry. A dash is a sector where one employer holds over 30% of its postings. Industry is read by our AI. Checked on 500 random postings, it was about 90% right. The 9 sectors shown hold 97% of them.
Using these figures
Postings ask for 5 years of experience at senior level, 7 at lead level, and 8 at principal level. The years stated on a posting can help you place it at the right level. Once you have the level, use that level's advertised range as your reference when you are asked for salary expectations or when you weigh an offer.
Python appears in 70% of postings; list it on your resume where your experience with it applies. For full resumes for this job, see ai engineer resume examples.
Compare every role in the US Job Postings Report: October 2026.
From 1,626 AI engineer postings at 753 employers' career sites we crawl, first seen October 1 to 31, 2026, in the United States. This is not all US jobs: we read employers with an online career site, which leans toward tech and toward mid-size and large companies, and we keep adding employers. So a posting count is only a sample size. Role, level, work mode and education are read from each posting by our AI and were checked against the postings on a sample of 1,049: role 96% right, level 94%, work mode 85%, education 98%, years 99%. Skills are read the same way and have had a lighter check: a second model, on 108 postings, found 96% named in the posting and 87% really skills. Visa sponsorship is read the same way and was checked against the postings: 129 of 150 that our AI counted as sponsoring say so, and most of the others only accept people who already hold a visa. Of 3,350 postings it did not count that mention a visa, 3 say they sponsor. So the visa shares run a little high.
