Salaries in Austin.
3,500+ roles. One city.
Cost-of-living index: 1.03x national average. Last updated April 2026.
3445 roles tracked
Highest Paying
$371,000
Principal AI Research Scientist
Median of All Roles
$160,000
AI Change Management Lead
Entry Level
$34,000
Hotel Clerk / Front Desk
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.
Austin, TX has a cost-of-living index of 1.03x the national average. The highest-paying role is Principal AI Research Scientist at $371,000, while the median across all 3445 roles is $160,000. Austin has transformed into one of America's fastest growing tech hubs, attracting relocations from Apple, Tesla, Oracle, and Samsung.
About the Austin market
Austin has transformed into one of America's fastest growing tech hubs, attracting relocations from Apple, Tesla, Oracle, and Samsung. The city's combination of no state income tax, a vibrant startup scene, and a strong university pipeline makes it highly competitive. Salaries have risen sharply over the past five years, narrowing the gap with coastal cities.
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Top 50 salaries in Austin
| # | Role | Median | Range |
|---|
| 1 | Principal AI Research Scientist | $371,000 | $290,000 – $483,000 |
| 2 | Principal Quantitative Researcher | $371,000 | $290,000 – $483,000 |
| 3 | Technical Fellow | $346,000 | $270,000 – $450,000 |
| 4 | Principal AI Agent Architect | $344,000 | $268,000 – $447,000 |
| 5 | Principal AI Safety Engineer | $340,000 | $266,000 – $442,000 |
| 6 | Distinguished Engineer | $337,000 | $255,000 – $428,000 |
| 7 | Senior VP of Security | $336,000 | $262,000 – $437,000 |
| 8 | SVP of Engineering | $332,000 | $259,000 – $432,000 |
| 9 | Staff Quantitative Researcher | $332,000 | $259,000 – $432,000 |
| 10 | Chief Science Officer | $332,000 | $259,000 – $432,000 |
| 11 | Principal Quantitative Developer | $331,000 | $258,000 – $431,000 |
| 12 | Senior VP of Product | $329,000 | $257,000 – $428,000 |
| 13 | Principal Deep Learning Engineer | $328,000 | $256,000 – $427,000 |
| 14 | Chief AI Officer | $326,000 | $242,000 – $420,000 |
| 15 | Chief Security Officer | $326,000 | $254,000 – $424,000 |
| 16 | Principal AI Agent Engineer | $321,000 | $251,000 – $418,000 |
| 17 | Principal Cryptographer | $321,000 | $251,000 – $418,000 |
| 18 | Principal AI Engineer | $319,000 | $249,000 – $415,000 |
| 19 | Principal LLM Engineer | $319,000 | $249,000 – $415,000 |
| 20 | Senior VP of Design | $319,000 | $250,000 – $415,000 |
| 21 | SVP of Product | $319,000 | $249,000 – $415,000 |
| 22 | Principal AI Compiler Engineer | $318,000 | $248,000 – $414,000 |
| 23 | Chief Machine Learning Officer | $318,000 | $248,000 – $414,000 |
| 24 | CTO | $318,000 | $248,000 – $414,000 |
| 25 | Chief Architect | $318,000 | $248,000 – $414,000 |
| 26 | Staff AI Research Scientist | $316,000 | $247,000 – $411,000 |
| 27 | L7 Software Engineer | $316,000 | $247,000 – $411,000 |
| 28 | SVP of Technology | $315,000 | $246,000 – $410,000 |
| 29 | Principal Applied Scientist | $309,000 | $241,000 – $402,000 |
| 30 | SVP of Sales | $309,000 | $241,000 – $402,000 |
| 31 | SVP of Strategy | $309,000 | $241,000 – $402,000 |
| 32 | Chief Transformation Officer | $308,000 | $240,000 – $400,000 |
| 33 | Principal Machine Learning Engineer | $307,000 | $239,000 – $398,000 |
| 34 | Principal Language Runtime Engineer | $307,000 | $239,000 – $398,000 |
| 35 | Chief Strategy Officer | $307,000 | $239,000 – $398,000 |
| 36 | Chief Commercial Officer | $307,000 | $239,000 – $399,000 |
| 37 | Senior Head of Product | $306,000 | $239,000 – $398,000 |
| 38 | Chief Growth Officer | $305,000 | $237,000 – $396,000 |
| 39 | Lead High-Frequency Trading Engineer | $303,000 | $237,000 – $394,000 |
| 40 | Chief Legal Officer | $303,000 | $236,000 – $394,000 |
| 41 | VP of AI | $302,000 | $229,000 – $395,000 |
| 42 | Chief Digital Officer | $302,000 | $236,000 – $394,000 |
| 43 | SVP of Design | $302,000 | $236,000 – $394,000 |
| 44 | Chief Cloud Officer | $302,000 | $236,000 – $394,000 |
| 45 | Principal Computer Vision Engineer | $301,000 | $234,000 – $391,000 |
| 46 | Principal Kernel Engineer | $301,000 | $234,000 – $391,000 |
| 47 | Chief Innovation Officer | $300,000 | $234,000 – $390,000 |
| 48 | VP of AI Research | $299,000 | $233,000 – $388,000 |
| 49 | Principal NLP Engineer | $298,000 | $232,000 – $386,000 |
| 50 | Principal AI Infrastructure Engineer | $298,000 | $232,000 – $386,000 |
Tax considerations
Texas has no state income tax, which can mean 5 to 10% more take home pay compared to California roles. Property taxes are above average, however, running about 1.8% of home value.
Negotiating in Austin
Use the no income tax advantage as a negotiation lever. Ask employers to match 90% of a Bay Area offer and show that your net pay will actually be higher.
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