AI Financial Engineer.
Seattle.
$258,000
median salary, 23% above the national average
$190,000 to $331,000. Last updated August 2026.
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Data points to own the conversation.
Seattle is 24% more expensive than the national average. For AI Financial Engineers, that shakes out to a median of $258,000, with the full range spanning $190,000 to $331,000. Pay depends on ability to apply ML models to quantitative finance problems like risk modeling, algorithmic trading, and fraud detection. Know the range before you walk in. 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.
Salary range.
Where do you fall?
Orbyt estimate for AI Financial Engineer in Seattle, modelled from national occupation wages adjusted for local cost of living. The published government benchmark for this occupation is below.
Government benchmark for this occupation
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics reports a median annual wage of $124,790 for Financial and Investment Analysts (SOC 13-2051) in the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA metropolitan area, based on 6,170 employed workers (May 2025 release).
10th percentile
$80,880
25th percentile
$98,850
Median
$124,790
75th percentile
$161,180
90th percentile
$177,940
Workers surveyed
6,170
Why this differs from the estimate above. The Orbyt estimate of $258,000 is 107% higher than this published figure. That is usually not an error in either number: BLS reports by occupation code, and Financial and Investment Analysts covers a different population than the AI Financial Engineer title as it is typically advertised. Both are shown, unreconciled, so you can judge which one describes the job you mean.
BLS publishes wages by occupation code, not by job title, so this figure covers every role mapped to Financial and Investment Analysts (SOC 13-2051) rather than AI Financial Engineer specifically. The Seattlerange 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 13-2051Salary by experience.
The gap between entry and lead level is typically $232,000. Where you land depends on years of experience and what you bring to the table.
Entry (0-2 yrs)
$168,000
to $206,000
Mid (3-5 yrs)
$219,000
to $271,000
Senior (6-9 yrs)
$284,000
to $335,000
Lead (10+ yrs)
$323,000
to $400,000
Total compensation.
Base salary is not the full picture. Equity, bonus, and signing can add $126,000 to the total package.
Base
$258,000
Equity
$77,000
Bonus
$34,000
Signing
$15,000
Estimated total: $384,000
How Seattle compares.
Seattle, WA
$258,000
Cost of living: 24% above average
National Average
$210,000
Seattle is $48,000 above
AI Financial Engineer salary by city.
Salary by role in Seattle.
What you should know.
Here is what the AI Financial Engineer market actually looks like in Seattle. Seattle is home to Amazon, Microsoft, and a dense cluster of cloud computing, gaming, and AI companies. The presence of major tech headquarters drives some of the highest engineering salaries outside the Bay Area. Seattle's job market is particularly strong for cloud infrastructure, machine learning, and enterprise software roles. Pay depends on ability to apply ML models to quantitative finance problems like risk modeling, algorithmic trading, and fraud detection. Engineers combining deep finance domain expertise with advanced ML skills earn top-band compensation. Experience with real-time inference for trading systems and regulatory-compliant model development adds 20 to 30% to base salaries.
Junior quant ML engineers start at $120,000 to $150,000. AI financial engineers earn $155,000 to $210,000. Senior roles at top funds reach $250,000 to $350,000 base, and portfolio managers or heads of AI strategy at major firms command $500,000 to $1,000,000 or more in total compensation. In Seattle, those numbers run higher. The cost of living here is 24% above average, and employers adjust to compete.
Base salary is not the full picture. Performance bonuses at hedge funds and trading firms can range from 50 to 200% of base salary. Equity is less common in finance but deferred compensation plans are standard. Banks offer structured bonus pools tied to desk profitability. And on the tax side: washington State has no personal income tax, which significantly boosts take home pay. However, state and local sales taxes are among the highest in the country at roughly 10.25%. When someone quotes you $258,000, ask what the total package looks like. The gap between base and total comp is where real money hides.
On negotiation: Remind employers that no state income tax makes your effective compensation higher. You can accept a slightly lower gross salary and still take home more than in California. The range for AI Financial Engineers in Seattle runs from $190,000 to $331,000. That is not a narrow window. Where you land inside it depends almost entirely on whether you negotiate and how well you prepare.
Sources: BLS OES, H-1B LCA (DOL). COL: BEA Regional Price Parities (2025). Data verified by Justin Bartak, Founder & Chief AI Officer. Last verified July 1, 2026. Full methodology
Considering a related role?
- A Supply Chain AI Optimization Engineer in Seattle earns $259,000 (0% more)
- The highest-paying role in Seattle is CTO at $365,000
- See all ai finance roles tracked in Orbyt Intelligence
Common questions.
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