How much should Machine Learning Engineers earn?

Machine Learning Engineer salaries broken down by experience, seniority, and position salary listings. Taken from the Insights Library on cord.

The average Machine Learning Engineer salary is £65,737, based on expected salaries of 664 Engineers looking for UK-based work on cord in 2021. The average salary range of Mid-Senior level Machine Learning Engineer positions in the UK is £41,230-£73,679. These insights break down the details of the salary expectations of Machine Learning by years of experience and seniority, as well as the salaries listed on Machine Learning Engineer positions at different seniority levels.

Up to 11 years’ experience, Machine Learning Engineer salaries increase at an average of £5,972 per year from £42,090 to £107,778. Above 11 years’ experience, they level out, and don’t tend to exceed £90,000 on average. This suggests that, at 11 years or more in, years’ experience is no longer the most decisive factor in a Machine Learning Engineer’s salary expectations, and that they may need to change jobs (for example, by moving into management) in order to significantly increase their earning potential above this level.

On average, UK-based Machine Learning Engineers expect the following salaries:

• Entry-level: £38,274
• Junior: £43,464
• Mid: £57,256
• Senior: £83,118
• Lead: £98,452

As above, Machine Learning Engineers who become Lead level (i.e., middle managers) can expect to earn more than even the most experienced Senior Machine Learning Engineers who remain in fully hands-on roles.

Salary ranges of Machine Learning Engineer positions

Positions on cord are posted with a minimum salary level and a maximum salary level. The graph below shows the average values of these ranges, as well as the average mid-point. Average ranges are large for several reasons, including that definitions of seniorities vary across companies, and that positions can be posted with multiple seniorities (but only one salary range).

Among 85 UK-based Machine Learning Engineer positions, the average mid point of salaries listed were as follows:

• Entry-level: £35,000
• Junior: £42,778
• Mid: £52,418
• Senior: £61,981
• Lead: £78,594

Based on the expectations data above, Machine Learning Engineer salary expectations exceed, on average, the mid-range of what companies are willing to offer them. At Senior and Lead level, salary expectations exceed the average upper limit of what companies are willing to offer.

Key Insights

• The average Machine Learning Engineer salary is £65,737
• Machine Learning Engineer salaries increase at an average of £5,972 per year of experience from £42,090 to £107,778 after eleven years
• Entry-Mid level Machine Learning Engineers expect to be paid around the maximum of what companies are willing to offer. Senior and Lead Machine Learning Engineers expect higher salaries than companies are willing to pay

Data Disclaimer

Salary expectation data refers to 664 UK-based Machine Learning Engineers and Data Scientists listing Machine Learning as a Primary Skill, looking for UK-based (On-site or Hybrid) work on cord between January — December 2021.

Position salary data refers to 85 UK-based Machine Learning Engineer or Data Science positions posted on cord between January — December 2021 listing Machine Learning as a required skill.

While data encompasses the whole of the UK, the majority of UK-based roles on cord are based in London, which makes the data more relevant to people considering work in London. Further information on regional salaries will be available soon.