Salaries in Sioux Falls.
3,445 roles. One city.
Cost-of-living index: 0.85x national average. Last updated June 2026.
3,445 roles tracked
Highest Paying
$306,000
Principal Quantitative Researcher
Median of All Roles
$133,000
Lead Smart Building Engineer
Entry Level
$28,000
Hotel Clerk / Front Desk
Salary data sourced from Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, H-1B Labor Condition Applications (DOL), state pay-transparency job postings, and community submissions. 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 June 2026.
Sioux Falls, SD has a cost-of-living index of 0.85x the national average. The highest-paying role is Principal Quantitative Researcher at $306,000, while the median across all 3,445 roles is $133,000. Sioux Falls is South Dakota's largest city and a growing financial services hub, home to major credit card operations for Citibank and Wells Fargo.
About the Sioux Falls market
Sioux Falls is South Dakota's largest city and a growing financial services hub, home to major credit card operations for Citibank and Wells Fargo. The city's no state income tax and very low cost of living create exceptional take home pay ratios. Healthcare and agriculture round out the economy.
Financial Services & BankingHealthcareAgricultureRetailTechnology
Top 50 salaries in Sioux Falls
| # | Role | Median | Range |
|---|
| 1 | Principal Quantitative Researcher | $306,000 | $239,000 – $398,000 |
| 2 | Principal AI Research Scientist | $298,000 | $232,000 – $387,000 |
| 3 | Distinguished Engineer | $292,000 | $221,000 – $371,000 |
| 4 | Technical Fellow | $289,000 | $225,000 – $375,000 |
| 5 | Principal AI Agent Architect | $286,000 | $224,000 – $372,000 |
| 6 | Principal AI Safety Engineer | $281,000 | $219,000 – $365,000 |
| 7 | Chief Security Officer | $278,000 | $216,000 – $361,000 |
| 8 | Principal Quantitative Developer | $276,000 | $215,000 – $359,000 |
| 9 | SVP of Product | $274,000 | $214,000 – $356,000 |
| 10 | Principal AI Compiler Engineer | $273,000 | $213,000 – $355,000 |
| 11 | Senior VP of Security | $272,000 | $212,000 – $353,000 |
| 12 | Senior VP of Product | $272,000 | $212,000 – $353,000 |
| 13 | Principal Applied Scientist | $271,000 | $211,000 – $352,000 |
| 14 | L7 Software Engineer | $271,000 | $212,000 – $353,000 |
| 15 | SVP of Technology | $270,000 | $211,000 – $352,000 |
| 16 | Principal Cryptographer | $268,000 | $209,000 – $348,000 |
| 17 | Senior Head of Security | $266,000 | $208,000 – $346,000 |
| 18 | Chief Strategy Officer | $264,000 | $206,000 – $343,000 |
| 19 | Principal AI Engineer | $263,000 | $205,000 – $342,000 |
| 20 | Chief Legal Officer | $263,000 | $205,000 – $341,000 |
| 21 | SVP of Engineering | $261,000 | $204,000 – $339,000 |
| 22 | Senior VP of Design | $261,000 | $204,000 – $339,000 |
| 23 | Staff Quantitative Researcher | $261,000 | $204,000 – $339,000 |
| 24 | Chief Design Officer | $261,000 | $203,000 – $339,000 |
| 25 | SVP of Data | $261,000 | $203,000 – $339,000 |
| 26 | Principal Deep Learning Engineer | $260,000 | $203,000 – $338,000 |
| 27 | Principal Kernel Engineer | $258,000 | $201,000 – $336,000 |
| 28 | Chief Architect | $258,000 | $201,000 – $335,000 |
| 29 | Principal AI Agent Engineer | $257,000 | $201,000 – $335,000 |
| 30 | Chief Science Officer | $256,000 | $200,000 – $332,000 |
| 31 | Staff AI Safety Engineer | $254,000 | $198,000 – $330,000 |
| 32 | Chief AI Officer | $253,000 | $188,000 – $326,000 |
| 33 | Staff AI Research Scientist | $253,000 | $197,000 – $329,000 |
| 34 | Chief Machine Learning Officer | $252,000 | $197,000 – $328,000 |
| 35 | Senior Head of Product | $252,000 | $197,000 – $329,000 |
| 36 | Lead High-Frequency Trading Engineer | $252,000 | $197,000 – $328,000 |
| 37 | Principal Quantitative Analyst | $251,000 | $195,000 – $325,000 |
| 38 | Chief Technology Officer | $249,000 | $185,000 – $326,000 |
| 39 | VP of AI | $249,000 | $189,000 – $326,000 |
| 40 | Principal Computer Vision Engineer | $248,000 | $193,000 – $322,000 |
| 41 | Chief Commercial Officer | $248,000 | $194,000 – $323,000 |
| 42 | Staff AI Compiler Engineer | $247,000 | $193,000 – $321,000 |
| 43 | CTO | $247,000 | $193,000 – $322,000 |
| 44 | SVP of Finance | $247,000 | $192,000 – $320,000 |
| 45 | Chief Data & AI Officer | $246,000 | $183,000 – $321,000 |
| 46 | Principal Language Runtime Engineer | $246,000 | $191,000 – $319,000 |
| 47 | Chief Revenue Officer | $245,000 | $184,000 – $324,000 |
| 48 | Principal Research Engineer | $245,000 | $191,000 – $319,000 |
| 49 | SVP of Sales | $245,000 | $191,000 – $318,000 |
| 50 | SVP of Design | $245,000 | $191,000 – $319,000 |
Tax considerations
South Dakota has no state income tax. Sioux Falls has no city income tax. This zero income tax environment is a major draw for high earners seeking maximum take home pay.
Negotiating in Sioux Falls
Use the zero income tax advantage in negotiations. Sioux Falls employers know this is a major recruiting tool and will frame compensation accordingly.
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