On-Device AI Engineer Salary.
Across 81 U.S. cities.
$133,000
national median salary
$99,000 to $174,000. Last updated July 2026.
Highest Paying
$189,000
San Jose, CA
Best Purchasing Power
$139,000
Salt Lake City, UT
Lowest Paying
$101,000
Charleston, WV
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. Most ranges are anchored to BLS OES occupation wage percentiles and placed by seniority level (entry near the 25th, mid at the median, senior at the 75th); a minority of emerging roles retain a modeled estimate where BLS has no matching series. Cost-of-living adjustments use Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parities (2025 index). Last updated July 2026. Baseline derived from BLS SOC 15-1252. Full methodology.
The average On-Device AI Engineer salary in the United States is $133,000 in 2026, with the full range spanning $99,000 at the 25th percentile to $174,000 at the 75th. San Jose pays the most at $189,000, while Salt Lake City offers the best purchasing power after cost-of-living adjustments. Salary scales with expertise in model compression and deployment across diverse hardware targets.
On-Device AI Engineer salary by city.
Skills that increase On-Device AI Engineer pay.
The skills below command measurable salary premiums for On-Device AI Engineers based on job posting data. Learning the top skill here could add $18,620 to your annual compensation.
≈ +$18,620 per year
≈ +$17,290 per year
≈ +$15,960 per year
≈ +$14,630 per year
≈ +$13,300 per year
≈ +$13,300 per year
≈ +$13,300 per year
≈ +$11,970 per year
What you should know.
Salary scales with expertise in model compression and deployment across diverse hardware targets. Engineers optimizing transformer models for mobile NPUs and edge TPUs earn premiums. Experience with Apple CoreML, Qualcomm AI Engine, or MediaTek NeuroPilot adds 10% to 18% over generalist ML engineers.
Junior on-device AI engineers start around $132,000 porting models to mobile frameworks. Mid-level engineers designing custom on-device inference pipelines earn $173,000 to $198,000. Senior engineers leading edge AI strategy for product lines reach $228,000 to $280,000.
Device manufacturers offer RSU grants vesting over four years with annual refreshers. Annual bonuses of 12% to 18% are standard, with patent bonuses of $5,000 to $15,000 per filing common at hardware companies.
Total compensation breakdown.
Salary by company size
Remote salary adjustment
Remote On-Device AI Engineers typically earn $124,000 (7% less than on-site). This reflects location-adjusted pay policies at companies using geographic salary bands. Some companies pay flat national rates regardless of location.
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Common questions about On-Device AI Engineer pay.
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