By Damien Tanner
The AI market is expected to more than treble from 2021 to 2029 with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 20.1% for this period.
As the industry grows, the importance of senior roles will too. Therefore, it remains a fantastic time to land a senior ML engineer position, particularly if you’re focused on an upward career trajectory.
At AI/ML Jobs, we understand the value of finding the right job and company for you. After all, we are the number one place to surf through thousands of AI and machine learning jobs from across the US and internationally.
In this guide, we’ll explore how much senior ML engineer jobs tend to pay. We’ll also explore a range of factors that can shape any given individual’s compensation, compare the average senior ML engineer pay rates with comparable jobs, and much more. Let’s begin!
All salary information correct as of April 14th 2023
On average, the total pay for a Senior Machine Learning Engineer generally ranges from $131,000 to $214,000 with the average being $166,215.
Given that a senior ML engineer is such an important role that requires plenty of experience, a unique skill set, and specific knowledge, it won’t be surprising to see that a senior ML engineer is a role that almost always comes with a six-figure salary.
There is a high demand for ML engineers as the industry continues to grow rapidly. Of course, more experience will often result in higher pay. However, this is not the only factor to consider.
There’s a range of factors that can shape how much employers are willing to pay a senior machine learning engineer, including but not limited to the following.
Firstly, where you live can influence expected pay. While the average total pay for a senior ML engineer is $132,510 nationwide, figures vary from region to region.
Here are some examples of total pay by region:
Unsurprisingly, the more experience you have, the higher your starting pay is likely to be. Some senior ML engineers may have 4-5 years of experience, whereas others may be decades-long industry veterans. We’ll discuss the role of experience in more detail soon.
In some cases, your level of education will also play a role. For example, having an M.Sc or even Ph.D. in engineering, computer science, mathematics, or another relevant area could boost your chances of starting on a higher salary.
Some jobs will require a wider skill set than others. Naturally, these jobs tend to pay more than those with fewer skill requirements.
Due to bonuses and overtime, productivity can often play a role in shaping your overall salary. Moreover, if the company puts a particular value on you, you may receive higher compensation.
Last but not least, the better you can negotiate, the more likely you are to land a favorable deal when discussing your contract details, such as pay.
According to Glassdoor, machine learning engineers rate their employers a score of 3.8/5 for compensation and benefits. Glassdoor determined this figure based on over 10,000 ML engineer reviews for 5,000+ companies. While 3.8 is a decent score, ML engineers rated the same companies with a score of 4.1/5 for work/life balance and 4/5 for career opportunities.
We know how important it is for AI and machine learning employees to find the right job and employer for them. Our service advertises only the best AI and machine learning jobs. Moreover, you can use AI/ML Jobs to search by top locations, top skills, and top salaries alike.
Here is the average pay for senior ML engineers by the level of experience, according to Glassdoor:
| Experience | Base Pay (yearly) | Addtl. Pay (yearly) | Total Pay (yearly) |
| 4-6 Years | $125,491 | $41,772 | $167,264 |
| 7-9 Years | $130,246 | $44,684 | $174,931 |
| 10-14 Years | $135,939 | $47,908 | $183,846 |
| 15+ Years | $145,878 | $57,387 | $203,265 |
The biggest pay leap based on experience (percentage-wise) for senior ML engineers is from the 10-14 year range of experience to 15+ years.
This makes sense, as those in senior roles will have over a decade of experience under their belts, which means they’ll have a bounty of knowledge to fall back on in their roles.
This is an expansion on a subtle but notable trend in that the pay rise from 4-6 years to 7-9 years is 4.58% while going from experience levels of 7-9 years to 10-14 years stands at 5.10%. A slight but noticeable rise before a significant pay leap (of 10.56%) to the 15+ year range.
Regardless of experience levels, senior ML engineers tend to make somewhere in the region of $131,000 to $214,000 per year. However, a wider range of salary expectations goes from $106,000 all the way up to a little over a quarter of a million dollars annually.
Total compensation combines base pay with additional pay (e.g., cash bonuses, stocks, etc.).
| Related Careers | Average Base Salary (per year) |
| Senior Machine Learning Engineer | $166,215 |
| Senior Software Engineer | $148,631 |
| Senior Software Developer | $105,000 |
| Senior Front End Engineer | $127,796 |
| Senior Data Scientist | $129,603 |
| Senior Business Intelligence Developer | $116,914 |
As you can see, the position of senior ML engineer is, on average, a particularly high-paying job in the industry with other senior AI/ML/software jobs offering a base total pay of $105,000 to a little under $149,000 per year. This reflects how much companies value senior ML engineers as the industry launches forward.
| Median Machine Learning Engineer Salary in | Base Pay (yearly) |
| Education | $108,851 |
| Healthcare | $121,190 |
| Finance | $121,054 |
| Government and Public Admin | $123,433 |
| Insurance | $126,184 |
| Personal Consumer Services | $111,059 |
| Information Technology | $123,712 |
| Manufacturing | $110,748 |
When it comes to industries, unsurprisingly IT is among the best places for AI researcher salaries. However, currently, the insurance sector offers the highest average base pay for AI researchers, with the IT sector providing the highest average total pay.
In terms of use cases, machine learning may be employed in the insurance sector to gauge risk or/and streamlining the process of connecting applicants with carriers more efficiently.
Other AI uses across sectors include improving sales and customer experience for personal consumer services, demand prediction for manufacturing, traffic flow analysis for local government, and diagnosis/treatment applications in the healthcare sector.
It’s predicted that AI will grow across a whole host of industries in the decade ahead. For example, AI in healthcare currently holds a value of around $5.4 billion but is expected to top $70 billion in the early 2030s, representing a whopping 33.7% CAGR.
Along with considering current salaries, you’ll also want to take industry growth potential into account for the medium- to long-term future. With that said, much about the future of AI and its impacts on the world remain speculative, and no one really knows exactly how each industry will change as AI evolves.
This guide has explored how much a senior ML engineer role pays on average, by industry, and by experience. We also discussed how a range of factors can influence your likely pay as well as comparing senior ML engineer salaries with those of comparable positions.
Want to find the perfect senior ML engineer job for you? AI/ML Jobs is the best place to browse through thousands of AI and ML jobs nationwide and from across the world.