Builds software products on top of large language models and other AI systems, wiring them into apps with retrieval, tools and safety checks. BLS does not publish separate figures for software developers; it counts them within software developer (SOC 15-1252), whose median pay is $135,980 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025). Typical entry-level education: Bachelor's degree.
- SOC 15-1252
- Computer and Mathematical
- Last updated October 9, 2026
At a glance
AI Engineer in four numbers
- Median pay
- $135,980a year, or $65.38/hrBLS OEWS, May 2025Lowest 10% $82KTop 10% $215K
US median, all jobs: $50,980
- Projected growth
- +10.2%Much faster than averageBLS EP, 2025–2035This career+10.2%All jobs+3.5%
Projected employment change, 2025–2035 Item Value This career +10.2% All jobs +3.5% - Openings a year
- 95,3001,717,800 jobs todayBLS EP, 2025–2035
- Jobs in 20251.7M
- Projected 20351.9M
Employment, 2025–2035 Item Value Jobs in 2025 1.7M Projected 2035 1.9M - Typical education
- Bachelor'sneeded to enterBLS EP, 2025–2035; mix: O*NET
- High school3.1%
- Certificate1.7%
- Associate's5.1%
- Bachelor's84.8%
- Post-bacc certificate0.8%
- Master's4.5%
Highest education held by software developers Segment Value High school 3.1% Certificate 1.7% Associate's 5.1% Bachelor's 84.8% Post-bacc certificate 0.8% Master's 4.5%
Also advertised as: Generative AI Engineer, LLM Engineer, Applied AI Engineer, AI Application Developer.
Pay
How much do Software Developers make?
Every ai engineer in the US, by percentile of annual wage
Median
$135,980
Middle half earn $105,210 to $171,980
- 10th
- $82,460
- 25th
- $105,210
- 75th
- $171,980
- 90th
- $214,670
All US occupations: $50,980
| Percentile | Value |
|---|---|
| 10th | $82,460 |
| 25th | $105,210 |
| Median | $135,980 |
| 75th | $171,980 |
| 90th | $214,670 |
| All US occupations | $50,980 |
Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025
- Median annual wage
- $135,980
- Median hourly wage
- $65.38/hr
- Mean annual wage
- $148,100
- People employed
- 1,687,890
Versus all US occupations
At $135,980, Software Developers earn 167% above the $50,980 median across all US occupations, a difference of $85,000 a year.
Versus computer and mathematical occupations
Inside the Computer and Mathematical group, where the middle occupation pays $116,580, this is 17% above the group median.
Pay range
The top 10% earn $214,670 or more while the bottom 10% earn $82,460, a gap of 2.6×. That is a typical spread for a US occupation.
Rank in the bank
This median pays more than 90% of the 1,741 occupations in the NueCareer career bank.
Highest-paying state
California pays the most at $174,410, and still leads at $157,523 once local prices are taken into account.
Pay by state
Which states pay Software Developers the most?
State medians come from the same OEWS release as the national figures. The cost-of-living column divides each state median by that state's BEA Regional Price Parity, restating pay in national-average dollars so a high-cost state and a low-cost one can be compared directly.
| State | Median | COL-adjusted | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1California | $174,410 | $157,523 | 284,390 |
| 2Washington | $166,540 | $155,626 | 107,030 |
| 3New York | $166,180 | $153,983 | 113,510 |
| 4Massachusetts | $165,210 | $156,217 | 48,190 |
| 5Oregon | $142,720 | $138,079 | 21,830 |
| 6New Hampshire | $139,720 | $134,133 | 10,840 |
| 7Maryland | $138,680 | $132,128 | 31,350 |
| 8Colorado | $138,390 | $134,291 | 43,320 |
| 9District of Columbia | $136,880 | $124,548 | 6,120 |
| 10Virginia | $136,460 | $134,970 | 88,280 |
Job outlook
Is AI Engineer a growing career?
Employment change over 2025–2035, against every US occupation
Much faster than average. +10.2% projected growth vs 3.5% for all occupations.
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Software Developers | +10.2% |
| All US occupations | +3.5% |
Source: BLS EP, 2025–2035
Much faster than average
BLS projects employment of Software Developers to change 10.2% over 2025–2035, roughly 2.9× the 3.5% projected for all occupations. That is 174,700 more jobs.
Annual openings
About 95,300 openings are projected each year, 5.5% of the 1,717,800 jobs that existed in 2025. Most come from workers leaving the occupation, not from growth alone.
Getting in
How to become an AI Engineer
Most AI engineers come from software engineering, usually with a bachelor's degree in computer science or a related field. The role grew out of ordinary application development, so strong backend skills, API design and Python or TypeScript experience are the foundation. University continuing-education programs, such as Stanford's graduate certificate in artificial intelligence, cover the underlying theory for those who want it.
People usually break in by shipping AI features at their current job or by building public projects that show retrieval, tool use and evaluation working together. Familiarity with vector databases, model provider APIs and evaluation frameworks is expected. Because the field is young, demonstrated work counts for more than formal credentials.
- 1
Typical entry-level education
Bachelor's degree
- 2
Work experience in a related occupation
None
- 3
Typical on-the-job training
None
- 4
Preparation needed (O*NET job zone)
Medium preparation
BLS Employment Projections, 2025–2035; job zone from O*NET 31.0 Database.
What education people in the job have
O*NET incumbent survey: the highest level of education reported by people already working as software developers.
- Bachelor's Degree84.8%
- Associate's Degree or other 2-year degree5.1%
- Master's Degree4.5%
- High School Diploma or the equivalent (such as a GED)3.1%
- Post-Secondary Certificate1.7%
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Bachelor's Degree | 84.8% |
| Associate's Degree or other 2-year degree | 5.1% |
| Master's Degree | 4.5% |
| High School Diploma or the equivalent (such as a GED) | 3.1% |
| Post-Secondary Certificate | 1.7% |
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database
The work
What does an AI Engineer do?
AI engineers build applications that use large language models and other pretrained AI systems rather than training models from scratch. They design how a model is prompted, connect it to company documents through retrieval systems, give it tools such as search or database access, and write the surrounding code that turns a raw model into a dependable product feature like a support assistant or a document summarizer.
A large part of the work is evaluation. AI engineers build test sets that check whether answers are accurate, safe and on-brand, track cost and speed, and decide when to switch models or fine-tune one. They also add guardrails that catch harmful output, protect private data and log behavior so problems can be traced.
Day-to-day tasks
- Design prompts and system instructions for language model features
- Build retrieval pipelines that ground model answers in company data
- Connect models to tools, APIs and databases
- Create evaluation sets that score accuracy, safety and tone
- Compare models on quality, latency and cost
- Add guardrails that filter harmful or private content
- Log and trace model behavior in production
- Fine-tune smaller models when a task needs it
Typical tasks, researched by NueCareer from the sources below.
Working conditions and hours
AI engineers work at software companies, consultancies, startups and the internal technology teams of large employers. The job is desk-based and frequently remote or hybrid. Schedules follow normal business hours, though fast release cycles and on-call rotations for customer-facing features can add pressure. Collaboration with product managers, designers and legal or trust teams is routine.
Where the work happens
Indoors, climate-controlled
NeverEvery dayOutdoors in all weather
NeverEvery dayAlmost never works outdoors.
Physical demands
Sitting
NeverAlmost all the timeSeated for more than half the working day.
Standing
NeverAlmost all the timeBending or twisting
NeverAlmost all the time
Working with people
Contact with other people
NoneConstantFace-to-face discussions
NeverEvery dayDealing with the public
Not importantExtremely importantLittle or no dealing with customers or the public.
Pressure and stakes
Strict deadlines
NeverEvery dayConflict situations
NeverEvery dayConflict situations are rare.
Cost of a mistake
Not seriousExtremely serious
Autonomy
Freedom to decide
NoneA lotA lot of freedom to make decisions without checking first.
Conditions: O*NET Work Context survey. Each item has its own scale, so each dot is read against the two answers that end its own line.
Core skills
O*NET importance, 1 to 5
- Critical Thinking3.9
- Reading Comprehension3.5
- Active Learning3.5
- Active Listening3.4
- Writing3.3
- Speaking3.1
- Monitoring3.0
- Mathematics2.8
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Critical Thinking | 3.9 |
| Reading Comprehension | 3.5 |
| Active Learning | 3.5 |
| Active Listening | 3.4 |
| Writing | 3.3 |
| Speaking | 3.1 |
| Monitoring | 3.0 |
| Mathematics | 2.8 |
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database
Transferable skills
O*NET importance, 1 to 5
- Programming4.0
- Judgment and Decision Making3.6
- Systems Analysis3.5
- Complex Problem Solving3.4
- Technology Design3.4
- Systems Evaluation3.4
- Operations Analysis3.3
- Time Management3.1
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Programming | 4.0 |
| Judgment and Decision Making | 3.6 |
| Systems Analysis | 3.5 |
| Complex Problem Solving | 3.4 |
| Technology Design | 3.4 |
| Systems Evaluation | 3.4 |
| Operations Analysis | 3.3 |
| Time Management | 3.1 |
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database
Tools and software
- Analytical or scientific software · in demand
- Application server software · in demand
- Business intelligence and data analysis software · in demand
- Cloud-based data access and sharing software · in demand
- Cloud-based management software · in demand
- Configuration management software · in demand
- Content workflow software · in demand
- Customer relationship management CRM software · in demand
- Data base management system software · in demand
- Data base reporting software · in demand
- Data base user interface and query software · in demand
- Data mining software · in demand
“In demand” marks an O*NET Employer-Based Hot Technology, software named in real job postings for this occupation.
Personality fit
What personality type suits an AI Engineer?
NueCareer estimate (Holland code IRC) built on O*NET's Software Developer profile, scored 1 to 7
| Axis | AI Engineer |
|---|---|
| Realistic | 4 |
| Investigative | 6 |
| Artistic | 2 |
| Social | 2 |
| Enterprising | 2 |
| Conventional | 6 |
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database
What the work is built around
Day to day this is work built around investigating, analysing and solving problems with ideas and data, combined with organising, following procedures and working precisely with data.
- Investigative6.0
- Conventional5.6
- Realistic4.2
- Artistic2.4
- Enterprising1.9
- Social1.8
Closest MBTI types
NueCareer fit scores: cosine similarity between each MBTI type's interest vector and this occupation's O*NET interest profile. Not a BLS or O*NET figure; the method is documented on our methodology page.
Explore further
Careers related to AI Engineer
O*NET related occupations
- Computer and Mathematical
- Computer and Mathematical
- Computer and Mathematical
- Computer and Mathematical
- Computer and Mathematical
- Computer and Mathematical
More computer and mathematical careers
Median annual pay, with software developers highlighted
- Software Developer$135,980
- AI Engineer$135,980
- Actuary$130,000
- Data Scientist$120,230
- Business Intelligence Analyst$120,230
- Database Administrator$104,620
- Web Designer$104,000
- Computer Programmer$100,390
- Web Developer$92,650
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Software Developer | $135,980 |
| AI Engineer | $135,980 |
| Actuary | $130,000 |
| Data Scientist | $120,230 |
| Business Intelligence Analyst | $120,230 |
| Database Administrator | $104,620 |
| Web Designer | $104,000 |
| Computer Programmer | $100,390 |
| Web Developer | $92,650 |
Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025
Lists AI Engineer appears on
Questions
AI Engineer: frequently asked questions
How much do Software Developers make?
BLS does not publish a separate wage for software developers. It counts them within software developer, whose median pay is $135,980 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025). The middle half of that occupation earn between $105,210 and $171,980, and the top 10% earn $214,670 or more.
Do you need a degree to become an AI Engineer?
Yes. BLS reports a bachelor's degree as the typical entry-level education for Software Developers, and O*NET rates the preparation needed as medium preparation. In O*NET's survey of people already doing the job, 84.8% hold bachelor's degree.
Is AI Engineer a growing career?
Yes, strongly. Employment is projected to grow 10.2% over 2025–2035, more than double the 3.5% projected for all occupations (BLS EP, 2025–2035). BLS still projects about 95,300 openings a year, mostly from workers retiring or moving to other work.
What does an AI Engineer do?
AI engineers build applications that use large language models and other pretrained AI systems rather than training models from scratch. A typical task: design prompts and system instructions for language model features. Employers most often ask for Analytical or scientific software, Application server software, Business intelligence and data analysis software.
Which states pay Software Developers the most?
The highest state medians for Software Developers are California ($174,410), Washington ($166,540), New York ($166,180) (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
What personality type suits an AI Engineer?
O*NET scores Software Developers highest on the Investigative, Conventional and Realistic interest areas, so the work mixes investigating, analysing and solving problems with ideas and data with organising, following procedures and working precisely with data. On NueCareer's MBTI-to-interest mapping the closest types are ISTJ, INTJ. Personality is a fit signal, not a gate. The free NueCareer quiz scores your own profile against all 1,731 careers in the bank.