AI Chip Designer Salary.
Across 81 U.S. cities.
$155,000
national median salary
$110,000 to $190,000. Last updated August 2026.
Government benchmark for this occupation
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics reports a median annual wage of $161,740 for Computer Hardware Engineers (SOC 17-2061) across the United States, based on 76,660 employed workers (May 2025 release).
10th percentile
$92,940
25th percentile
$126,090
Median
$161,740
75th percentile
$202,990
90th percentile
$225,330
Workers surveyed
76,660
What BLS published in each release
May 2024 release
$155,020
May 2025 release
$161,740
These are two separate published estimates, not a time series. The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not encourage the use of OEWS data for time-series analysis. Differences between releases reflect changes in occupational classification, survey methodology, and the three-year pooled sample as well as any change in pay, so the two figures should not be read as a rate of wage growth.
BLS publishes wages by occupation code, not by job title, so this figure covers every role mapped to Computer Hardware Engineers (SOC 17-2061) rather than AI Chip Designerspecifically. The national range at the top of this page is Orbyt’s role-level estimate, which is a different thing and is labelled as such.
View the BLS source for SOC 17-2061Highest Paying
$214,000
San Jose, CA
Best Purchasing Power
$162,000
Washington DC, DC
Lowest Paying
$117,000
Charleston, WV
The salary figures on this page are computed estimates, not observed wages. Each one is a national role baseline scaled by a Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parity cost-of-living multiplier (2025 index) and rounded to the nearest $1,000. No published wage percentile is consulted and no wage survey response enters the calculation, so an Orbyt estimate must not be cited as a Bureau of Labor Statistics figure or as measured pay. The published wage data Orbyt holds is Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, and Department of Labor H-1B Labor Condition Application filings, which record a filed minimum visa base wage rather than market pay. Where BLS publishes a wage for the occupation a role maps to, it is shown on that role's page as a separate benchmark, labelled with its occupation code, metro area and the number of employed workers it covers. Last updated August 2026. This role maps to BLS occupation code 17-2061. Full methodology.
Orbyt estimates the average AI Chip Designer salary in the United States at $155,000 in 2026, within a range of $110,000 to $190,000. These figures are Orbyt estimates, computed rather than measured, and must not be cited as Bureau of Labor Statistics figures; the published BLS wage for the occupation this role maps to is shown separately on this page. San Jose is the highest of the 81 cities at $214,000, while Washington DC offers the best purchasing power after cost-of-living adjustments. Expertise in designing custom silicon for neural network acceleration is the primary driver.
AI Chip Designer salary by city.
Skills that increase AI Chip Designer pay.
The skills below command measurable salary premiums for AI Chip Designers based on job posting data. Learning the top skill here could add $21,700 to your annual compensation.
≈ +$21,700 per year
≈ +$20,150 per year
≈ +$18,600 per year
≈ +$17,050 per year
≈ +$15,500 per year
≈ +$15,500 per year
≈ +$15,500 per year
≈ +$13,950 per year
What you should know.
Expertise in designing custom silicon for neural network acceleration is the primary driver. Designers who understand both VLSI design and ML workload characteristics command the highest salaries. Experience with systolic array architectures, on-chip memory hierarchies for inference, and hardware-aware neural architecture search adds significant premium.
Junior chip designers start at $120,000 to $145,000. Mid-level designers working on AI accelerator blocks reach $165,000 to $200,000. Senior architects defining chip architectures earn $210,000 to $270,000. Principal engineers and fellows at NVIDIA, Google, or AI chip startups can exceed $400,000 in total compensation.
Equity at AI chip startups can be transformative, adding $50,000 to $200,000+ in annual value. Large semiconductor companies offer RSUs and bonuses of 15% to 25%. Signing bonuses of $40,000 to $80,000 are common due to intense competition for chip design talent.
Total compensation breakdown.
Salary by company size
Remote salary adjustment
Remote AI Chip Designers typically earn $144,000 (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 AI Chip Designer pay.
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