Salaries in Boston.
3,500+ roles. One city.
Cost-of-living index: 1.22x national average. Last updated April 2026.
3445 roles tracked
Highest Paying
$444,000
Principal AI Research Scientist
Median of All Roles
$190,000
Senior Revenue Operations Manager
Entry Level
$40,000
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.
Boston, MA has a cost-of-living index of 1.22x the national average. The highest-paying role is Principal AI Research Scientist at $444,000, while the median across all 3445 roles is $190,000. Boston's job market is powered by world class universities, a thriving biotech corridor, and established finance and healthcare sectors.
About the Boston market
Boston's job market is powered by world class universities, a thriving biotech corridor, and established finance and healthcare sectors. The Kendall Square area is one of the most concentrated biotech hubs globally. Tech salaries in Boston are competitive with West Coast markets, particularly for roles that intersect with life sciences, AI, and robotics.
Biotech & Life SciencesHigher EducationFinancial ServicesHealthcareTechnology
Top 50 salaries in Boston
| # | Role | Median | Range |
|---|
| 1 | Principal AI Research Scientist | $444,000 | $346,000 – $577,000 |
| 2 | Principal Quantitative Researcher | $444,000 | $346,000 – $577,000 |
| 3 | Technical Fellow | $414,000 | $323,000 – $538,000 |
| 4 | Principal AI Safety Engineer | $407,000 | $318,000 – $529,000 |
| 5 | Distinguished Engineer | $403,000 | $305,000 – $512,000 |
| 6 | Senior VP of Security | $402,000 | $314,000 – $523,000 |
| 7 | Principal Quantitative Developer | $396,000 | $309,000 – $515,000 |
| 8 | Principal AI Agent Architect | $395,000 | $309,000 – $514,000 |
| 9 | Senior VP of Product | $394,000 | $308,000 – $512,000 |
| 10 | Principal Deep Learning Engineer | $392,000 | $306,000 – $510,000 |
| 11 | Chief Security Officer | $391,000 | $304,000 – $508,000 |
| 12 | Chief AI Officer | $390,000 | $289,000 – $503,000 |
| 13 | Principal AI Agent Engineer | $385,000 | $300,000 – $500,000 |
| 14 | Principal Cryptographer | $385,000 | $300,000 – $500,000 |
| 15 | Senior VP of Design | $382,000 | $299,000 – $497,000 |
| 16 | SVP of Product | $382,000 | $298,000 – $497,000 |
| 17 | Chief Machine Learning Officer | $381,000 | $297,000 – $495,000 |
| 18 | CTO | $381,000 | $297,000 – $495,000 |
| 19 | Chief Architect | $381,000 | $297,000 – $495,000 |
| 20 | Principal AI Compiler Engineer | $380,000 | $297,000 – $495,000 |
| 21 | Staff AI Research Scientist | $378,000 | $295,000 – $492,000 |
| 22 | L7 Software Engineer | $378,000 | $295,000 – $492,000 |
| 23 | SVP of Technology | $377,000 | $294,000 – $490,000 |
| 24 | Principal Applied Scientist | $370,000 | $289,000 – $481,000 |
| 25 | SVP of Sales | $370,000 | $288,000 – $481,000 |
| 26 | SVP of Strategy | $370,000 | $288,000 – $481,000 |
| 27 | Chief Transformation Officer | $368,000 | $287,000 – $478,000 |
| 28 | Principal Machine Learning Engineer | $367,000 | $285,000 – $476,000 |
| 29 | Principal Language Runtime Engineer | $367,000 | $285,000 – $476,000 |
| 30 | Chief Strategy Officer | $367,000 | $286,000 – $477,000 |
| 31 | Chief Commercial Officer | $367,000 | $286,000 – $478,000 |
| 32 | Senior Head of Product | $366,000 | $286,000 – $477,000 |
| 33 | Chief Growth Officer | $364,000 | $284,000 – $474,000 |
| 34 | SVP of Engineering | $363,000 | $283,000 – $472,000 |
| 35 | Staff Quantitative Researcher | $363,000 | $283,000 – $472,000 |
| 36 | Chief Science Officer | $363,000 | $283,000 – $472,000 |
| 37 | Lead High-Frequency Trading Engineer | $362,000 | $283,000 – $471,000 |
| 38 | Chief Legal Officer | $362,000 | $283,000 – $471,000 |
| 39 | Chief Digital Officer | $362,000 | $282,000 – $471,000 |
| 40 | SVP of Design | $362,000 | $282,000 – $471,000 |
| 41 | Chief Cloud Officer | $362,000 | $282,000 – $471,000 |
| 42 | VP of AI | $361,000 | $274,000 – $473,000 |
| 43 | Principal Computer Vision Engineer | $360,000 | $280,000 – $467,000 |
| 44 | Principal Kernel Engineer | $360,000 | $280,000 – $467,000 |
| 45 | VP of AI Research | $357,000 | $278,000 – $465,000 |
| 46 | Principal NLP Engineer | $356,000 | $277,000 – $462,000 |
| 47 | Principal AI Infrastructure Engineer | $356,000 | $277,000 – $462,000 |
| 48 | Principal Distributed Systems Engineer | $356,000 | $277,000 – $462,000 |
| 49 | Senior Head of Security | $356,000 | $278,000 – $463,000 |
| 50 | Principal Quantitative Analyst | $356,000 | $277,000 – $462,000 |
Tax considerations
Massachusetts has a flat 5% income tax on most earnings, plus a 4% surtax on income above $1 million. There is no city income tax in Boston, keeping the total burden moderate.
Negotiating in Boston
Emphasize specialized credentials or advanced degrees. Boston employers, especially in biotech and finance, place a premium on educational pedigree and certifications.
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