Salaries in Virginia Beach.
522 roles. One city.
Cost-of-living index: 0.98x national average. Last updated April 2026.
522 roles tracked
Highest Paying
$336,000
Distinguished Engineer
Median of All Roles
$144,000
Clinical AI Engineer
Entry Level
$33,000
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.
Virginia Beach, VA has a cost-of-living index of 0.98x the national average. The highest-paying role is Distinguished Engineer at $336,000, while the median across all 522 roles is $144,000. Virginia Beach anchors the Hampton Roads region with a strong military presence, growing cybersecurity sector, and expanding tech corridor.
About the Virginia Beach market
Virginia Beach anchors the Hampton Roads region with a strong military presence, growing cybersecurity sector, and expanding tech corridor. Naval Station Norfolk drives significant defense contractor employment. The lower cost of living compared to Northern Virginia attracts remote workers and military-to-civilian transitions.
Military & DefenseCybersecurityHealthcareTourismLogistics
Top 50 salaries in Virginia Beach
| # | Role | Median | Range |
|---|
| 1 | Distinguished Engineer | $336,000 | $255,000 – $428,000 |
| 2 | Chief AI Officer | $313,000 | $232,000 – $404,000 |
| 3 | Chief Technology Officer | $296,000 | $219,000 – $387,000 |
| 4 | Chief Data & AI Officer | $286,000 | $213,000 – $374,000 |
| 5 | Chief Revenue Officer | $285,000 | $214,000 – $377,000 |
| 6 | Chief Algorithm Officer | $280,000 | $210,000 – $365,000 |
| 7 | SVP of AI Innovation | $277,000 | $209,000 – $364,000 |
| 8 | VP of AI | $276,000 | $209,000 – $361,000 |
| 9 | CEO | $272,000 | $198,000 – $376,000 |
| 10 | Chief Product Officer | $270,000 | $200,000 – $355,000 |
| 11 | Head of AI | $262,000 | $194,000 – $340,000 |
| 12 | Chief Marketing Officer | $262,000 | $197,000 – $343,000 |
| 13 | CFO | $260,000 | $195,000 – $345,000 |
| 14 | Chief Data Officer | $260,000 | $195,000 – $340,000 |
| 15 | Principal Engineer | $260,000 | $200,000 – $340,000 |
| 16 | VP of Engineering | $257,000 | $193,000 – $337,000 |
| 17 | Head of AI Research | $257,000 | $190,000 – $337,000 |
| 18 | VP of AI Engineering | $252,000 | $190,000 – $328,000 |
| 19 | Chief Operating Officer | $245,000 | $182,000 – $327,000 |
| 20 | Head of Applied AI | $245,000 | $182,000 – $322,000 |
| 21 | Chief Human Resources Officer | $243,000 | $183,000 – $315,000 |
| 22 | VP of Product | $243,000 | $183,000 – $312,000 |
| 23 | VP of AI Product | $240,000 | $179,000 – $310,000 |
| 24 | VP of Sales | $238,000 | $178,000 – $317,000 |
| 25 | Director of Generative AI | $234,000 | $177,000 – $308,000 |
| 26 | VP of Marketing | $233,000 | $173,000 – $307,000 |
| 27 | Head of AI Platform | $233,000 | $174,000 – $306,000 |
| 28 | AI Transformation Officer | $233,000 | $175,000 – $306,000 |
| 29 | CTO, AI Startup | $230,000 | $180,000 – $300,000 |
| 30 | VP of Product Design | $223,000 | $166,000 – $290,000 |
| 31 | AI Program Director | $221,000 | $167,000 – $289,000 |
| 32 | Head of AI Partnerships | $221,000 | $165,000 – $292,000 |
| 33 | Staff Engineer | $218,000 | $173,000 – $277,000 |
| 34 | Foundation Model Engineer | $217,000 | $162,000 – $283,000 |
| 35 | Multi-Agent Systems Architect | $212,000 | $156,000 – $281,000 |
| 36 | Director of Engineering | $211,000 | $163,000 – $274,000 |
| 37 | Director of Data Science | $211,000 | $162,000 – $274,000 |
| 38 | AI Hardware/Chip Design Engineer | $210,000 | $156,000 – $278,000 |
| 39 | AI Alignment Researcher | $209,000 | $155,000 – $277,000 |
| 40 | Director of AI Strategy | $207,000 | $157,000 – $271,000 |
| 41 | Transformer Architecture Engineer | $206,000 | $153,000 – $269,000 |
| 42 | Deep Learning Engineer | $204,000 | $158,000 – $260,000 |
| 43 | AI Financial Engineer | $204,000 | $150,000 – $262,000 |
| 44 | Engineering Manager, AI | $204,000 | $163,000 – $255,000 |
| 45 | AI Agent Architect | $203,000 | $153,000 – $262,000 |
| 46 | Multimodal AI Engineer | $202,000 | $151,000 – $262,000 |
| 47 | AI Systems Architect | $201,000 | $152,000 – $263,000 |
| 48 | AI Infrastructure Manager | $200,000 | $151,000 – $260,000 |
| 49 | AI Interpretability Researcher | $199,000 | $148,000 – $263,000 |
| 50 | AI Business Development Manager | $198,000 | $136,000 – $267,000 |
Tax considerations
Virginia's flat 5.75% state income tax applies. Virginia Beach has no city income tax. The moderate rate combined with lower housing costs than Northern Virginia creates good take home pay.
Negotiating in Virginia Beach
Leverage military transition benefits. Hampton Roads employers value candidates with security clearances and military technical experience.
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