Data Scientists Salary in United States
Data Scientists pay snapshot in United States
Data scientists transform data into insights, models, and decision-support tools. They blend statistics, programming, and domain expertise to unlock business value from data assets.
Core responsibilities
- Collect, clean, and engineer data from multiple sources
- Build statistical models and machine learning pipelines
- Design experiments and interpret A/B test results
- Communicate insights to product, marketing, and leadership teams
Core skills
- Python or R programming and data manipulation libraries
- Machine learning algorithms, feature engineering, and evaluation
- Statistical inference and experimental design
- SQL and data warehousing tools
Median (USD)
$112,590
Annual gross compensation reference point
Median (USD)
$112,590
Converted using the latest available exchange rate
Global benchmark (USD)
$112,590
Published source: U.S. BLS OOH 2024 — Data Scientists
Salary Breakdown
Annual compensation converted into monthly, weekly, and hourly estimates for quick planning.
USD compensation
- Annual
- $112,590
- Monthly
- $9,383
- Weekly
- $2,165
- Hourly
- $54.13
USD compensation
- Annual
- $112,590
- Monthly
- $9,383
- Weekly
- $2,165
- Hourly
- $54.13
Experience tiers
Estimated salary ranges by career stage using local benchmarks (USD). Align your expectations with responsibilities and progression focus.
Associate Data Scientist
Builds features, supports modeling workstreams, and documents experiments
Typical experience: 0-3 years
Next focus: Ship portfolio projects, learn MLOps basics, and partner closely with product teams
Estimated annual pay (local)
$87,820
Estimated annual pay (USD)
$87,820
Data Scientist
Owns model lifecycle, collaborates with engineers, and delivers business-impacting insights
Typical experience: 4-7 years
Next focus: Scale models to production, mentor juniors, and optimize experimentation frameworks
Estimated annual pay (local)
$112,590
Estimated annual pay (USD)
$112,590
Senior / Principal Data Scientist
Sets data science strategy, drives platform adoption, and communicates directly with executives
Typical experience: 8+ years
Next focus: Lead data roadmaps, align with product strategy, and manage multidisciplinary squads
Estimated annual pay (local)
$149,745
Estimated annual pay (USD)
$149,745
Career Progression Checkpoints
- Data analyst or junior data scientist
- Data scientist owning models and experimentation
- Senior data scientist or machine learning engineer leading initiatives
- Principal data scientist or head of data science
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What Influences Pay?
Employers weigh industry context, location, and proven expertise. Use these levers to position your value when negotiating compensation.
Model deployment scope
Roles that own MLOps and production deployment often receive higher compensation.
Sector maturity
Tech, e-commerce, and finance sectors reward data scientists who directly move growth or efficiency metrics.
Advanced specialization
Expertise in NLP, computer vision, or generative AI is in high demand and raises salary ceilings.
Team leadership
Leading pods or centers of excellence can add equity or bonus incentives on top of base pay.
Credentials That Stand Out
- Google Professional Data Engineer
- Microsoft Azure Data Scientist Associate
- Databricks or Snowflake certifications
- Coursera/edX machine learning specializations
Skill Upgrades Employers Reward
- Python or R programming and data manipulation libraries
- Machine learning algorithms, feature engineering, and evaluation
- Statistical inference and experimental design
- SQL and data warehousing tools
- Data visualization and stakeholder storytelling
Next Steps and Tools
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Open toolData Scientists Salary FAQs in United States
Concise answers to the questions candidates and hiring teams ask most often when benchmarking compensation.
Do data scientists earn equity?
Tech companies frequently include equity; in established enterprises, equity is rarer but bonuses are meaningful.
How important is a PhD?
A PhD helps in research-heavy roles, but industry experience and shipped models weigh heavily in compensation discussions.
What skills drive salary growth?
End-to-end ownership, engineering collaboration, and ability to quantify business impact lead to higher offers.
How We Estimate Salaries
Figures blend public labor statistics with market calibration for United States. Median pay for data scientists professionals anchors the model, while quartiles and experience multipliers show typical ranges rather than exact offers.
- Benchmark year:Data reflects 2024 reporting where available and will be reviewed annually.
- Primary source:U.S. BLS OOH 2024 — Data Scientists
- Global context:U.S. BLS OOH 2024 — Data Scientists
- Country adjustment factor:1 (baseline 2024) from U.S. BLS OOH 2024 — Data Scientists
Use this guide as a starting point. Company size, equity grants, benefits, and negotiation timing can shift compensation. Refresh the numbers yearly or alongside significant market changes.