Hiring a machine learning engineer in Austin? Across 64 live machine learning engineer postings in Austin, the market pays a $215K median salary (typically $175K–$232K). Recruiting from Scratch is the contingency technical recruiting firm for these hires — a 29-day average time to hire, 300+ placements, and a 2M+ candidate network.
A machine learning engineer builds, trains, and deploys machine-learning models and the production systems that serve them. Hiring one in Austin means competing with the companies below.
What employers actually screen for, aggregated across 64 active machine learning engineer postings in Austin:
| Percentile | Base salary |
|---|---|
| 25th | $175K |
| Median | $215K |
| 75th | $232K |
Based on 23 machine learning engineer postings in Austin that disclose pay. Base only — equity is typically on top.
Austin pays about 6% above the US median for this role ($203K).
The companies with the most live machine learning engineer openings in Austin, with what each pays and screens for (medians shown only where at least 3 postings disclose pay):
| Company | Open machine learning engineer roles | Median pay (disclosed) | Top skills |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apple | 11 | — | Python, Java, Scala |
| Roku | 4 | — | Python, Java, Airflow |
| Visa Inc | 3 | — | AWS, Kubernetes, MLOps |
| Striveworks | 3 | $225K | Python, Go, Rust |
| Allen Control Systems | 3 | — | PyTorch, TensorFlow, Python |
| Currencycloud | 3 | — | AWS, Kubernetes, MLOps |
| Avride | 3 | — | Python, PyTorch, TensorFlow |
| NODA AI | 2 | — | Python, PyTorch |
| Computer Vision | 2 | — | — |
| JPMorgan | 2 | — | — |
Where the machine learning engineer demand sits across funding stages, across the 32 companies with the most live openings in Austin:
| Stage | Companies hiring | Open roles | Median pay (disclosed) | Examples |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Series A | 1 | 2 | — | webAI |
| Series B | 5 | 10 | $215K | Striveworks, NODA AI, Chase |
| Series C | 2 | 3 | — | Computer Vision, CesiumAstro |
| Series D+ | 5 | 9 | $225K | Allen Control Systems, Currencycloud, Iterable |
| Public | 8 | 25 | $221K | Apple, Roku, Visa Inc |
A further 11 of those companies have no funding stage on file and are not shown above.
Recruiting from Scratch is a contingency technical recruiting firm — no retainer and no upfront cost, so you pay only when you make a hire. The process: align on the role and must-haves → a curated shortlist of 3–5 genuinely qualified machine learning engineers (not resume volume) → a 29-day average time to hire versus the 49-day industry average → a 90-day replacement guarantee. Backed by 300+ placements, a 2M+ candidate network, and named hires at companies like Decagon and Mercor.
A machine learning engineer builds, trains, and deploys machine-learning models and the production systems that serve them.
What salary does a machine learning engineer in Austin command in 2026?Across 64 live postings in Austin, a $215K median salary (typically $175K–$232K) — base only; equity is typically on top. Most postings expect 5+ years of experience.
What should you look for when hiring a machine learning engineer?Depth in the skills these postings require (Python, PyTorch, TensorFlow, Java, Scala, AWS, MLOps, SQL), plus ML fundamentals paired with real production engineering — not just notebooks. Recruiting from Scratch sends a shortlist of 3–5 genuinely qualified candidates, not resume volume.
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