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salary report · updated september 2026

How Much Do Data Science Jobs Pay in Palo Alto? (September 2026)

As of September 2026, the median data science salary in Palo Alto is $225,000 a year. Most roles pay between $173,192 and $311,750 (the 10th–90th percentile), drawn from 84 live salaried listings across 27 companies. All figures are converted to annual US dollars so different sources compare like-for-like.

Median salary
$225,000
per year · annual USD
Typical range
$173k – $312k
10th–90th percentile
Range seen
$123k – $433k
lowest to highest
Sample
84
salaried listings · 27 companies
Machine Learning Engineer pay

How pay has moved

$215k$222k$230kJun 2026Jul 2026Aug 2026Sep 2026

Median base salary by the month each role was posted, across current live listings. A monthly snapshot builds a firmer long-run trend over time.

Highest-paying employers

  1. #1
    AI
    Arc Institute
    2 salaried listings in Palo Alto
    $400,000
    median
    Director, Machine Learning, Alzheimer's Disease Initiative$380k – $420k·Palo Alto, CADirector, Machine Learning, Virtual Cell Initiative$380k – $420k·Palo Alto, CA
    All Arc Institute roles →
  2. #2
    P
    Perplexity
    3 salaried listings in Palo Alto
    $312,500
    median
    Member of Technical Staff (AI Researcher)$220k – $485k·San Francisco, Palo AltoMember of Technical Staff (ML Engineer, Recommendations & User Modeling)$220k – $405k·San Francisco, Palo AltoMember of Technical Staff (Software Engineer, Data Platform)$220k – $405k·San Francisco, Palo Alto, New York City
    All Perplexity roles →
  3. #3
    X
    xAI
    8 salaried listings in Palo Alto
    $310,000
    median
    Analytics Engineer - X$180k – $440k·Palo Alto, CaliforniaML Infrastructure Engineer$180k – $440k·Palo Alto, CAMachine Learning Engineer - Ads$180k – $440k·Palo Alto, CaliforniaMachine Learning Engineer - Recommendation Systems$180k – $440k·Palo Alto, CaliforniaNetwork Engineer - ML Infrastructure (High-Speed Interconnects)$180k – $440k·Palo Alto, CA
    All xAI roles →
  4. #4
    S
    SpaceX
    6 salaried listings in Palo Alto
    $285,000
    median
    Principal AI Engineer, Special Programs$220k – $350k·Palo Alto, CASr. AI Engineer, Platform Infrastructure, Special Programs$220k – $350k·Palo Alto, CASr. AI Engineer, Special Programs$220k – $350k·Palo Alto, CASr. AI Engineer, Special Programs - Top Secret Clearance$220k – $350k·Palo Alto, CAAI Engineer, Special Programs - Top Secret Clearance$135k – $230k·Palo Alto, CA
    All SpaceX roles →
  5. #5
    P
    Pinterest
    8 salaried listings in Palo Alto
    $260,866
    median
    Principal Machine Learning Engineer, Ads Delivery$315k – $551k·San Francisco, CA, USSr. Staff Machine Learning Engineer, Monetization Engineering$228k – $469k·San Francisco, CA, USStaff Machine Learning Engineer, Ads Conversion Core Modeling$223k – $390k·San Francisco, CA, USSr. Machine Learning Engineer, Core Engineering $190k – $332k·San Francisco, CA, USSr. Machine Learning Engineer, Monetization Engineering$190k – $332k·San Francisco, CA, US
    All Pinterest roles →

Employers ranked by median advertised base among those with at least two salaried listings in Palo Alto; each one’s best-paying open roles are listed beneath it.

See the open data science roles in Palo Alto →

Data science pay elsewhere

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All salary reports →

Methodology: data science listings in Palo Alto with a published salary, updated daily. Figures come from roles that are open right now. Ranges and single figures are converted to an annual US-dollar midpoint; hourly rates are annualised and out-of-band values dropped. Salary data is self-reported by employers and covers the roles that disclose pay — treat it as a directional guide, not a guarantee.