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OpenAI pays a median base salary of $335K ($280K–$385K) across 609 public job postings (2025–2026).
$225K median · $180K–$280K range · 541 postings analyzed
| Percentile | Salary |
|---|---|
| P25 (lower range) | $180K |
| P50 (median) | $225K |
| P75 (upper range) | $280K |
| Department / Role |
|---|
| Engineering |
| Sales |
| Operations |
| Marketing |
| Product |
Zip Security · Assort Health · Sierra Turbines · Eve Biomedical · Zip
Jobs requiring Openai pay a median of $225K in 2026, based on 541 active postings analyzed by Recruiting from Scratch.
The most common roles listing Openai are Engineering, Sales, Operations, Marketing, Product positions.
Zip Security · Assort Health · Sierra Turbines · Eve Biomedical · Zip
Salary data is drawn from 541 active job postings listing Openai as a required or preferred skill, tracked by Recruiting from Scratch. Figures represent the median of posted salary maximums (annual USD only).
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71% of OpenAI's disclosed-pay roles are remote-friendly. Remote roles run a $325K median vs $347K onsite.
Most-required skills across these postings: Python (143) · Go (37) · Kubernetes (33) · Azure (27) · Rust (25) · JavaScript (24) · AWS (23) · CI/CD (22) · Terraform (22) · PyTorch (15).
Commonly listed: relocation (250) · mental-health (3) · medical (1).
OpenAI is Late Stage stage · 1,001–5,000 employees · founded 2015 · HQ San Francisco, California. This context shapes pay: later-stage, well-funded companies tend to anchor base salary higher.
Roles typically ask for around 7 years of experience (up to 20+ for the most senior). Most postings don't state a degree requirement; of the 46 that do, Bachelor's and PhD and Master's and Associate's are most common.
The figures on this page are base salary only. Equity is a separate — and often large — component of total compensation, especially at high-growth and AI-native companies; 17% of these postings reference equity (options). Equity is not included in the medians above.
Beyond base salary, postings indicate: common structures: hourly. Bonus, commission, and equity vary by role and are not included in the base medians above.
OpenAI has 584 open roles right now, and this benchmark draws on 609 public job postings with disclosed pay. 433 of these roles were first seen in the last 30 days (433 in the last 90).
Compare OpenAI's pay with other Late Stage companies:
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What does OpenAI pay?
The median base salary is $335K, with a typical range of $280K–$385K, based on 609 public job postings (2025–2026). Base only — equity is separate.
What is the highest-paying job at OpenAI?
One of the highest-paying open roles is Technical Lead, Safety Research, at $460K–$555K base.
Which team pays the most at OpenAI?
The Scaling team, at a $445K median.
Where does this data come from?
Public job postings on company career pages and public job boards — no private placement or client data.
USD base salary aggregated from 609 public OpenAI job postings (2025–2026). Range = 25th–75th percentile; median = 50th percentile. Roles, departments, skills, and experience are parsed from the postings. Base salary only — equity excluded. Last refreshed June 10, 2026.
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