Salaries in Phoenix.
3,500+ roles. One city.
Cost-of-living index: 0.96x national average. Last updated April 2026.
3445 roles tracked
Highest Paying
$339,000
Principal Quantitative Researcher
Median of All Roles
$150,000
Hugging Face Engineer
Entry Level
$30,000
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.
Phoenix, AZ has a cost-of-living index of 0.96x the national average. The highest-paying role is Principal Quantitative Researcher at $339,000, while the median across all 3445 roles is $150,000. Phoenix is one of the fastest growing metros in the U.
About the Phoenix market
Phoenix is one of the fastest growing metros in the U.S., fueled by semiconductor manufacturing, financial services, and tech company expansions. Intel, TSMC, and other chipmakers have made massive investments in the area. The combination of affordable housing and rising salaries has made Phoenix increasingly attractive to relocating professionals.
Semiconductor ManufacturingFinancial ServicesHealthcareReal EstateTechnology
Top 50 salaries in Phoenix
| # | Role | Median | Range |
|---|
| 1 | Principal Quantitative Researcher | $339,000 | $265,000 – $441,000 |
| 2 | Principal AI Research Scientist | $333,000 | $259,000 – $432,000 |
| 3 | Senior VP of Security | $332,000 | $260,000 – $432,000 |
| 4 | Technical Fellow | $326,000 | $254,000 – $424,000 |
| 5 | Senior VP of Product | $323,000 | $252,000 – $420,000 |
| 6 | Principal AI Compiler Engineer | $311,000 | $243,000 – $405,000 |
| 7 | Principal AI Safety Engineer | $308,000 | $240,000 – $400,000 |
| 8 | SVP of Technology | $308,000 | $241,000 – $401,000 |
| 9 | Distinguished Engineer | $307,000 | $233,000 – $391,000 |
| 10 | Senior VP of Design | $307,000 | $240,000 – $398,000 |
| 11 | Chief Security Officer | $307,000 | $239,000 – $399,000 |
| 12 | Principal AI Agent Architect | $305,000 | $238,000 – $396,000 |
| 13 | Chief AI Officer | $304,000 | $225,000 – $392,000 |
| 14 | Principal Cryptographer | $303,000 | $236,000 – $394,000 |
| 15 | SVP of Engineering | $301,000 | $235,000 – $391,000 |
| 16 | Staff Quantitative Researcher | $301,000 | $235,000 – $391,000 |
| 17 | Principal AI Agent Engineer | $300,000 | $234,000 – $390,000 |
| 18 | Principal Deep Learning Engineer | $299,000 | $234,000 – $390,000 |
| 19 | Principal Quantitative Developer | $296,000 | $231,000 – $386,000 |
| 20 | Chief Data & AI Officer | $295,000 | $220,000 – $384,000 |
| 21 | Principal LLM Engineer | $295,000 | $229,000 – $383,000 |
| 22 | Chief Science Officer | $295,000 | $230,000 – $383,000 |
| 23 | L7 Software Engineer | $295,000 | $230,000 – $383,000 |
| 24 | Lead High-Frequency Trading Engineer | $294,000 | $229,000 – $382,000 |
| 25 | Chief Architect | $294,000 | $229,000 – $382,000 |
| 26 | Principal Computer Vision Engineer | $292,000 | $227,000 – $379,000 |
| 27 | Principal Kernel Engineer | $292,000 | $227,000 – $379,000 |
| 28 | SVP of Product | $292,000 | $228,000 – $379,000 |
| 29 | SVP of Data | $292,000 | $227,000 – $380,000 |
| 30 | SVP of Strategy | $291,000 | $227,000 – $378,000 |
| 31 | VP of AI | $290,000 | $220,000 – $379,000 |
| 32 | Principal AI Engineer | $289,000 | $225,000 – $375,000 |
| 33 | Principal NLP Engineer | $289,000 | $225,000 – $374,000 |
| 34 | Principal Compiler Engineer | $289,000 | $225,000 – $374,000 |
| 35 | VP of AI Research | $287,000 | $223,000 – $373,000 |
| 36 | Chief Transformation Officer | $287,000 | $223,000 – $373,000 |
| 37 | SVP of Marketing | $287,000 | $223,000 – $373,000 |
| 38 | Staff AI Research Scientist | $286,000 | $223,000 – $371,000 |
| 39 | Principal Quantitative Analyst | $286,000 | $222,000 – $371,000 |
| 40 | Chief Design Officer | $286,000 | $223,000 – $372,000 |
| 41 | Chief Strategy Officer | $286,000 | $223,000 – $371,000 |
| 42 | SVP of AI Innovation | $285,000 | $215,000 – $374,000 |
| 43 | Principal Applied Scientist | $285,000 | $223,000 – $371,000 |
| 44 | SVP of Sales | $285,000 | $222,000 – $371,000 |
| 45 | Staff AI Safety Engineer | $284,000 | $221,000 – $369,000 |
| 46 | Chief Risk Officer | $284,000 | $221,000 – $369,000 |
| 47 | Principal Machine Learning Engineer | $283,000 | $220,000 – $367,000 |
| 48 | Principal AI Infrastructure Engineer | $283,000 | $220,000 – $367,000 |
| 49 | Chief Legal Officer | $282,000 | $220,000 – $367,000 |
| 50 | SVP of Design | $282,000 | $220,000 – $367,000 |
Tax considerations
Arizona has a flat 2.5% income tax rate, one of the lowest in the nation. Phoenix has no additional city income tax, making overall take home pay very competitive.
Negotiating in Phoenix
Reference the influx of semiconductor and tech employers to justify higher offers. Phoenix salaries are rising fast, and employers know they must compete with coastal recruiters.
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