Senior AI researcher salary

The median posted base pay for senior AI research jobs is $193K a year, from 216 open jobs at 148 companies. The middle half of the jobs is from $147K to $225K. One job in ten has posted pay above $281K.

Data of Nov 9, 2026. This is posted base pay, not total pay. It does not include stock or a bonus.

Median posted base pay: $193K
Middle half of the jobs: $147K to $225K
10th to 90th percentile: $104K to $281K
Open jobs with posted pay: 216
Companies: 148

AI researcher pay by level

Posted base pay for AI research jobs, by the level in the job title. This page is about the senior level. A level needs 20 or more jobs with posted pay.

Intern24 jobs$151K$124K to $208K
Level not stated940 jobs$220K$170K to $275K
Senior216 jobs$193K$147K to $225K
Staff95 jobs$249K$214K to $288K
Principal35 jobs$235K$197K to $283K
Director+72 jobs$225K$160K to $298K

Each band goes from the 10th to the 90th percentile. The darker part is the middle half of the jobs. The line is the median. This is posted base pay, not total pay.

Pay bands by level, research. Posted base pay in US dollars for each year.
Level	10th	25th	Median	75th	90th	Jobs with pay
Intern	$80K	$124K	$151K	$208K	$264K	24
Level not stated	$108K	$170K	$220K	$275K	$356K	940
Senior	$104K	$147K	$193K	$225K	$281K	216
Staff	$186K	$214K	$249K	$288K	$328K	95
Principal	$167K	$197K	$235K	$283K	$366K	35
Director+	$128K	$160K	$225K	$298K	$352K	72

Top-paying companies for senior AI research jobs

The companies with the highest median posted base pay for senior AI research jobs. A company name opens its levels in the pay explorer.

1Stevens Capital Management LP$225K6 jobs
2HUD$208K6 jobs
3STR$195K14 jobs

The median posted base pay of each company for senior AI research jobs. We use the middle point of each posted range. A company needs 5 or more jobs with posted pay. This is posted base pay, not total pay.

Senior AI researcher pay by US region

The median posted base pay for senior AI research jobs in each US region, compared with the median of all US jobs.

New York25 jobs+16%$225K
Bay Area77 jobs+7%$208K
US remote34 jobs+6%$206K
Other US cities102 jobs−4%$186K

The median posted base pay for senior research in each US region, compared with the median of all US jobs ($194K). A job that lists two regions counts in each region. A region needs 20 or more jobs. This is posted base pay, not total pay.

Pay by region, senior research. Posted base pay in US dollars for each year.
Region	Median posted base pay	Against the US median	Jobs with pay
New York	$225K	+16%	25
Bay Area	$208K	+7%	77
US remote	$206K	+6%	34
Other US cities	$186K	−4%	102
All US jobs	$194K	0%	201

Open jobs

Other levels

By place

Other job types

How we compute these numbers

We read each job from the job board of the company and check it every day. We use only open jobs that state a yearly pay range in US dollars. One job counts with the middle point of its posted range. The median is the middle value of these amounts: half of the jobs are above it and half are below it.

We do not use a range with a bottom below $15,000, a top above $1,000,000, or a top that is more than four times the bottom. A role page needs 20 or more open jobs with posted pay. In the bar chart, a company needs 5 or more jobs with posted pay.

The numbers are base pay as the company posted it. They are not the pay of a person, and they do not include stock, a bonus or benefits. For the stock and the bonus that people reported, see Reported pay.