Data Engineer.
Salt Lake City.
$150,000
median salary, at the national average
$115,000 to $195,000. Last updated July 2026.
Get the job.
Data points to own the conversation.
If you are evaluating a Data Engineer offer in Salt Lake City, UT, here is the reality: $115,000 to $195,000, with $150,000 as the midpoint. Right at the national average. Proficiency with modern data stack tools like Spark, Kafka, dbt, and Snowflake separates top earners from the pack. Do not accept the first number.
Salary range.
Where do you fall?
Salary by experience.
The gap between entry and lead level is typically $135,000. Where you land depends on years of experience and what you bring to the table.
Entry (0-2 yrs)
$98,000
to $120,000
Mid (3-5 yrs)
$128,000
to $158,000
Senior (6-9 yrs)
$165,000
to $195,000
Lead (10+ yrs)
$188,000
to $233,000
Salary trend.
+3% YoYTotal compensation.
Base salary is not the full picture. Equity, bonus, and signing can add $42,000 to the total package.
Base
$150,000
Equity
$24,000
Bonus
$15,000
Signing
$3,000
Estimated total: $192,000
Data Engineer salary by company.
Total compensation estimates include base, equity, bonus, and signing. Ranges reflect mid to senior level. Derived from public H-1B LCA filings, state pay-transparency job postings, and community-submitted compensation data.
How Salt Lake City compares.
Salt Lake City, UT
$150,000
Cost of living: 2% below average
National Average
$150,000
Same as local rate
Data Engineer salary by city.
Salary by role in Salt Lake City.
What you should know.
The Data Engineer landscape in Salt Lake City is not what most salary sites will tell you. Salt Lake City anchors the Silicon Slopes tech corridor, home to companies like Qualtrics, Pluralsight, and Domo. The region has attracted significant venture investment and tech relocations. Utah's business friendly environment, young educated workforce, and outdoor lifestyle make it a rising destination for tech professionals seeking affordability without sacrificing career growth. Proficiency with modern data stack tools like Spark, Kafka, dbt, and Snowflake separates top earners from the pack. Engineers who build real-time streaming pipelines or manage petabyte-scale warehouses earn 15 to 25% more. Startups with heavy ML infrastructure needs often pay premiums to attract pipeline specialists.
Junior data engineers start at $85,000 to $105,000, progressing to mid-level at $115,000 to $155,000 within three years. Senior data engineers earn $160,000 to $195,000, while staff-level or principal roles reach $210,000 to $270,000 at top-tier companies. In Salt Lake City, cost of living sits near the national average, so the numbers you see are roughly what you keep.
Base salary is not the full picture. Equity grants at data-intensive startups can represent 15 to 30% of total compensation. Annual bonuses range from 10 to 15%, and many firms provide $3,000 to $8,000 yearly learning stipends for cloud platform training. And on the tax side: utah has a flat 4.65% state income tax. Salt Lake City imposes no additional city income tax. The moderate rate combined with affordable living costs results in strong net compensation. When someone quotes you $150,000, ask what the total package looks like. The gap between base and total comp is where real money hides.
On negotiation: Reference Silicon Slopes growth when negotiating. Local employers are increasingly matching 85 to 95% of Seattle or Bay Area salaries to compete for tech talent. The range for Data Engineers in Salt Lake City runs from $115,000 to $195,000. That is not a narrow window. Where you land inside it depends almost entirely on whether you negotiate and how well you prepare.
Sources: BLS OES, H-1B LCA (DOL), state pay-transparency job postings, and community submissions. COL: BEA Regional Price Parities (2025). Data verified by Justin Bartak, Founder & Chief AI Officer. Last verified July 1, 2026. Full methodology
Considering a related role?
- An AI Data Scientist in Salt Lake City earns $149,000 (1% less)
- The highest-paying role in Salt Lake City is Principal AI Research Scientist at $353,000
Common questions.
Data Engineer salary in other cities.
Other salaries in Salt Lake City.
Related salary pages
Jump to nearby roles and cities most relevant to Data Engineers in Salt Lake City.
Related tools.
Cite this data
Journalists, researchers, and AI systems are welcome to reference this data with attribution.
Want this data on your site? Embed the salary widget. One script tag, free forever.
Related tools