AI Engineer Salary at Startups
What startups pay AI engineers, from the pay their live postings state: base salary as the employer writes it, on roles still taking applications.
107 of 434 live roles state payChecked dailyUpdated
Median base pay
$200Ka year
The median of 93 live AI engineer postings that state pay in US dollars, as of October 2026. Each posting counts at the middle of its range.
- Middle half of postings
- $170K–$245K
- One in ten pays over
- $285K
- A typical posted range
- $170K–$240K
- Under $140K: 5 postings
- $140K–$160K: 12 postings
- $160K–$180K: 12 postings
- $180K–$200K: 13 postings
- $200K–$220K: 17 postings
- $220K–$240K: 9 postings
- $240K–$260K: 7 postings
- $260K–$280K: 7 postings
- $280K–$300K: 5 postings
- $300K and up: 6 postings
By level
As the title states it: "Senior", "Staff" and so on. Mid-level is a title with no level in it.
MedianMiddle half10th to 90th percentile
- Mid-level$200K$162K–$225K · 52 postings
- Senior$189K$169K–$226K · 20 postings
By city
Each in the currency its postings use. Pounds, euros and Canadian dollars aren't converted.
MedianMiddle half10th to 90th percentile
- Remote$190K$162K–$225K · 46 postings
- San Francisco$225K$205K–$264K · 17 postings
- New York$203K$191K–$221K · 14 postings
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Common questions
How much does an AI engineer make at a startup?
As of October 2026, the median base pay startups advertise for AI engineers is $200K a year, across 93 live postings that state it in US dollars. The middle half of those postings pay between $170K and $245K, and one in ten pays over $285K.
How much does a senior AI engineer make at a startup?
Postings with "senior" in the title have a median of $189K a year, across 20 of them, against $200K for titles that state no level. The middle half pay $169K–$226K.
Where do AI engineers earn the most?
San Francisco, with a median of $225K a year across 17 postings, against $190K for remote roles.
Does an AI engineer at a startup get equity?
Often, though few postings say how much: 38% of the 468 AI engineer postings we've read mention equity. The figures on this page are base pay only.
Where do these figures come from?
From the postings themselves: the pay range each employer states, on roles still taking applications, which we check against the company's own careers page every day. Each posting counts once, at the middle of its range. Postings that don't state pay, and pay in other currencies, are left out of the main figures.