AI Data Quality Engineer Salary.
Across 30 U.S. cities.
$140,000
national median salary
$105,000 to $185,000. Last updated April 2026.
Highest Paying
$191,000
San Jose, CA
Best Purchasing Power
$146,000
Phoenix, AZ
Lowest Paying
$111,000
Wichita, KS
Salary data sourced from SEC filings, H-1B Labor Condition Applications (DOL), Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, and aggregated job postings across 50+ platforms. Ranges reflect 25th to 75th percentile for full-time positions. Cost-of-living adjustments use Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parities (2025 index). Last updated April 2026.
The average AI Data Quality Engineer salary in the United States is $140,000 in 2026, with the full range spanning $105,000 at the 25th percentile to $185,000 at the 75th. San Jose pays the most at $191,000, while Phoenix offers the best purchasing power after cost-of-living adjustments. AI data quality engineers ensure training and serving data meets standards for ML model reliability.
AI Data Quality Engineer salary by city
What you should know
AI data quality engineers ensure training and serving data meets standards for ML model reliability. Salary is driven by experience with data validation frameworks, drift detection systems, and automated quality monitoring at scale. Engineers working in regulated industries like healthcare and finance earn 12 to 20% premiums due to compliance requirements.
Junior AI data quality engineers earn $105,000 to $125,000. Engineers with 3 to 5 years of ML data quality experience reach $140,000 to $185,000. Senior engineers and quality team leads earn $190,000 to $248,000, while directors of data quality at enterprise AI companies can command $255,000 to $330,000.
Tech companies provide equity grants of 12 to 22% of base salary. Bonuses range from 10 to 15% annually. Some firms offer additional compensation for maintaining critical data quality SLAs, adding $5,000 to $12,000 for on-call responsibilities.