Data scientist salary
What remote US data scientist roles pay at each experience level, and where the next step up sits. All roles
Pay by experience level
Median posted pay by the experience each posting asks for. The role family is the base title plus the steps on the ladder below, 200 postings.
For postings that ask for 5 to 10 years of experience, the median posted pay for a remote data scientist is $172,500, which is 43% above the US median of $120,230 for data scientists (BLS, May 2025).
Source US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. The BLS figure covers every work arrangement and experience level, so it is a rough yardstick and not a like-for-like match.
How pay is spread across postings
Each outline is one experience band. Taller means more postings at that pay. Dashed lines mark each band median.
Half of 5 to 10 year postings pay between $148,000 and $199,000, with a median of $173,000. The medians are $149,000 for 2 to 5 years, $173,000 for 5 to 10 years and $195,000 for 10+ years.
What each step up the ladder pays
Each bar runs from the 25th to the 75th percentile within one experience band, so it holds the middle half of postings. The dot is the median. A step needs 30 postings in a band before we draw it.
Only one step on this ladder has enough postings to show yet.
| Step | 2 to 5 years | 5 to 10 years | 10+ years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Data scientist | $145,000middle half $119,250 to $160,425, n 52 | not enough postings yetn 24 | not enough postings yetn 3 |
| Senior data scientist | not enough postings yetn 9 | $165,500middle half $149,500 to $188,253, n 50 | not enough postings yetn 11 |
| Staff, principal or lead data scientist | not enough postings yetn 1 | not enough postings yetn 26 | not enough postings yetn 18 |
| Data science manager | not enough postings yetn 1 | not enough postings yetn 4 | not enough postings yetn 1 |
How pay changes with job title
Each outline is one step of the ladder, and each posting counts once, in the highest step its title matches. A step needs 30 postings in the view to be drawn. Dashed lines mark medians.
For postings asking for 5 or more years, the median is $170,000 for Senior data scientist and $196,000 for Staff, principal or lead data scientist. Postings asking for 2 to 5 years are shown in the charts above.
| Step, 5 or more years | Median | n |
|---|---|---|
| Senior data scientist | $170,000 | 61 |
| Staff, principal or lead data scientist | $196,000 | 44 |
Left out with fewer than 30 postings in this view, Data scientist (n 27), Data science manager (n 5). This view combines the 5 to 10 and 10+ bands, which come from the same continuous pulls. The 2 to 5 band is never combined with them.
Where this role leads
Two kinds of next move. Steps up the ladder compare the same experience band at both ends. Nearby roles compare whole role families.
These roles list similar skills, so they are common moves. Each figure is the other role median minus this one, in the same experience band, and each role mixes every step of its ladder. It is not the raise a move would bring.
The skill groups this role asks for
Skills that tend to be listed together are grouped. The bar shows the share of this role's postings that list at least two skills from a group. Postings with no skills listed are left out.
Machine learning and generative AI appears in 56% of the 200 postings that list skills, followed by BI and reporting at 44%.
Machine learning and generative AI
56% of postings, n 113- machine learning
- data science
- pytorch
- generative ai
- mlops
- llms
Not enough postings on both sides, within one ladder step, to compare pay.
BI and reporting
44% of postings, n 88- data visualization
- predictive modeling
- statistical modeling
- statistical analysis
- tableau
- product analytics
Not enough postings on both sides, within one ladder step, to compare pay.
Data engineering
28% of postings, n 57- data modeling
- dbt
- snowflake
- data pipelines
- data engineering
- databricks
Not enough postings on both sides, within one ladder step, to compare pay.
Pay comparisons show association and not cause. Postings that ask for a skill group may differ in employer, industry or the work itself, and listing a skill does not guarantee the raise. A comparison appears only for 5 to 10 years of experience, within one ladder step, with at least 30 postings with and without the group.
Top hiring employers
How wide posted pay ranges are
Median gap between the top and bottom of the range, within each experience band. Postings with a single figure are left out.
A typical 5 to 10 year posting's range spans $43,000 from bottom to top, so the top is about 1.28 times the bottom.
| Experience | Median range width | Top as a multiple of bottom | n |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 to 5 years | $50,000 | 1.39 | 57 |
| 5 to 10 years | $43,000 | 1.28 | 98 |
| 10+ years | $71,000 | 1.40 | 32 |
Experienced in data and analytics and looking for a remote role?
Get roles like this scored to you every morning. 7 days free.
A few remote roles each morning, scored 0 to 100 against what you told us you want. Each score shows the lines from the posting behind it.
Start free7-day free trial. No credit card.