Staff AI researcher salary

The median posted base pay for staff AI research jobs is $255K a year, from 94 open jobs at 55 companies. The middle half of the jobs is from $220K to $292K. One job in ten has posted pay above $339K.

Data of Nov 11, 2026. This is posted base pay, not total pay. It does not include stock or a bonus.

Median posted base pay: $255K
Middle half of the jobs: $220K to $292K
10th to 90th percentile: $195K to $339K
Open jobs with posted pay: 94
Companies: 55

AI researcher pay by level

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

Entry level27 jobs$190K$144K to $216K
Level not stated1,013 jobs$216K$179K to $275K
Senior265 jobs$213K$197K to $238K
Staff94 jobs$255K$220K to $292K
Principal67 jobs$240K$225K to $270K
Director+28 jobs$279K$209K to $325K

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
Entry level	$92K	$144K	$190K	$216K	$216K	27
Level not stated	$161K	$179K	$216K	$275K	$353K	1,013
Senior	$170K	$197K	$213K	$238K	$288K	265
Staff	$195K	$220K	$255K	$292K	$339K	94
Principal	$211K	$225K	$240K	$270K	$343K	67
Director+	$166K	$209K	$279K	$325K	$409K	28

Top-paying companies for staff AI research jobs

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

1The Voleon Group$263K6 jobs
2Google$254K7 jobs

The median posted base pay of each company for staff 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.

Company salaries:
The Voleon Group

Staff AI researcher pay by US region

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

New York28 jobs+16%$295K
Other US cities29 jobs+14%$292K
Bay Area66 jobs+2%$261K
US remote23 jobs−11%$228K

The median posted base pay for staff research in each US region, compared with the median of all US jobs ($255K). 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, staff research. Posted base pay in US dollars for each year.
Region	Median posted base pay	Against the US median	Jobs with pay
New York	$295K	+16%	28
Other US cities	$292K	+14%	29
Bay Area	$261K	+2%	66
US remote	$228K	−11%	23
All US jobs	$255K	0%	94

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.