Salaries in Tennessee.
2 metro areas. 3445 roles.
Average cost-of-living index: 0.95x national average. Last updated April 2026.
2 cities tracked3445 roles
Highest Paying
$364,000
Technical Fellow
Median Role
$307,000
Principal Computer Vision Engineer
Entry Level
$298,000
Chief AI Officer
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.
Tennessee has 2 major metro areas tracked in our salary database, with an average cost-of-living index of 0.95x the national average. The highest-paying role across the state is Technical Fellow at $364,000 in Nashville. The median role pays $307,000.
Top 30 salaries in Tennessee
| # | Role | Median | Top City | Range |
|---|
| 1 | Technical Fellow | $364,000 | Nashville | $284,000 – $473,000 |
| 2 | Principal AI Research Scientist | $347,000 | Nashville | $270,000 – $450,000 |
| 3 | Senior VP of Product | $346,000 | Nashville | $270,000 – $450,000 |
| 4 | Distinguished Engineer | $343,000 | Nashville | $260,000 – $437,000 |
| 5 | Principal Quantitative Researcher | $336,000 | Nashville | $262,000 – $437,000 |
| 6 | Chief Security Officer | $333,000 | Nashville | $260,000 – $433,000 |
| 7 | Senior VP of Security | $326,000 | Nashville | $255,000 – $424,000 |
| 8 | Principal AI Agent Architect | $321,000 | Nashville | $250,000 – $417,000 |
| 9 | Senior VP of Design | $319,000 | Nashville | $250,000 – $415,000 |
| 10 | SVP of Technology | $318,000 | Nashville | $248,000 – $414,000 |
| 11 | Principal Deep Learning Engineer | $315,000 | Nashville | $246,000 – $410,000 |
| 12 | Principal Cryptographer | $315,000 | Nashville | $246,000 – $410,000 |
| 13 | SVP of Engineering | $313,000 | Nashville | $244,000 – $407,000 |
| 14 | Principal AI Safety Engineer | $311,000 | Nashville | $243,000 – $404,000 |
| 15 | Lead High-Frequency Trading Engineer | $309,000 | Nashville | $241,000 – $401,000 |
| 16 | Principal Computer Vision Engineer | $307,000 | Nashville | $239,000 – $399,000 |
| 17 | Principal LLM Engineer | $307,000 | Nashville | $239,000 – $399,000 |
| 18 | Chief Science Officer | $307,000 | Nashville | $240,000 – $399,000 |
| 19 | SVP of Product | $307,000 | Nashville | $240,000 – $399,000 |
| 20 | Principal AI Agent Engineer | $306,000 | Nashville | $239,000 – $398,000 |
| 21 | Principal AI Compiler Engineer | $306,000 | Nashville | $239,000 – $398,000 |
| 22 | CTO | $306,000 | Nashville | $239,000 – $398,000 |
| 23 | Senior Head of Product | $306,000 | Nashville | $239,000 – $398,000 |
| 24 | Principal Quantitative Developer | $306,000 | Nashville | $239,000 – $398,000 |
| 25 | Chief Architect | $306,000 | Nashville | $239,000 – $398,000 |
| 26 | Staff Quantitative Researcher | $304,000 | Nashville | $237,000 – $395,000 |
| 27 | SVP of Finance | $302,000 | Nashville | $235,000 – $392,000 |
| 28 | SVP of Strategy | $300,000 | Nashville | $234,000 – $390,000 |
| 29 | Chief Risk Officer | $299,000 | Nashville | $233,000 – $388,000 |
| 30 | Chief AI Officer | $298,000 | Nashville | $221,000 – $384,000 |
Tax considerations in Tennessee
Tennessee has no state income tax on wages or salaries. This gives Nashville workers a meaningful take home advantage over peers in states with 5 to 10% income tax rates.
Tennessee has no state income tax on wages. Knoxville has no city income tax. This zero income tax environment combined with very affordable housing creates excellent purchasing power.
Know the number. Get the offer.
Orbyt gives you the salary data, interview prep, and pipeline tools to negotiate from a position of strength.
Start free.