Operations Lead

💰 $117K–$186K salary range

Median: $155K  ·  Based on 280 public job postings  ·  Updated July 1, 2026

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The individual overseeing core operational strategies at high-growth companies plays a pivotal role in ensuring the efficient design and optimization of critical data pipelines and ML model deployment workflows that underpin AI product development and scaling. Based on 35 recent job postings, the salary range for this position typically falls between $143,000 and $220,000, with a median salary of $185,000. This data reflects a competitive market for professionals capable of navigating the unique operational demands of AI environments. Candidates demonstrating expertise in MLOps platforms, robust data governance frameworks, and cloud infrastructure optimization for large-scale AI workloads frequently command salaries at the higher end of this spectrum. A deep understanding of automation and system reliability within a fast-paced, iterative product cycle is also highly valued.

📊 Salary breakdown

Operations Lead salary by location

• All locations: $155K median ($117K–$186K typical range)
• New York: $160K median, $126K–$194K range (+3% vs. national)
• San Francisco: $190K median, $164K–$205K range (+23% vs. national)
• Remote: $145K median, $127K–$178K range (-6% vs. national)
• Los Angeles: $153K median, $120K–$195K range (-2% vs. national)
• Seattle: $97K median, $97K–$115K range (-37% vs. national)
• Chicago: $135K median, $127K–$143K range (-13% vs. national)
• Austin: $97K median, $97K–$115K range (-37% vs. national)

Highest paying companies

San Francisco

• OpenAI: $294K median
• Laurel: $225K median
• Broccoli AI: $205K median
• Harper: $163K median

New York

• Suno: $200K median
• Crosby: $163K median
• Amazon: $97K median

Based on companies with 3+ active postings. Median of publicly advertised salary range.

What's typically included

• Health insurance: 71% of postings
• Equity (RSU/options): 73% of postings
• Flexible PTO: 54% of postings
• Parental leave: 32% of postings
• Learning/education budget: 18% of postings
• Visa sponsorship: 3% of postings

Typical experience required: 5–6 years.

Operations salaries by seniority

• Business Operations Analyst: $103K
• Business Operations Manager: $120K
• Revenue Operations Manager: $120K
• Senior BizOps Manager: $143K
• Operations Lead: $155K
• Head of Strategy & Operations: $172K
• Strategic Projects Lead: $173K
• VP Operations: $201K

What does a Operations Lead do?

Operations Leads are operators who keep the company running and scaling. This benchmark reflects Lead-level base compensation at high-growth and AI-native companies.

Common questions

What is the average Operations Lead salary at an AI startup?
The median pay is $155K, with a typical range of $117K–$186K, based on 280 public job postings collected in 2025–2026.

How does Operations Lead pay compare in San Francisco vs. remote?
San Francisco roles pay a median of $189K, while fully-remote roles pay $145K.

What is the Operations Lead salary in New York?
New York Operations Leads at AI-native startups earn a median of $160K, with a typical range of $126K–$194K (25th–75th percentile). That's 3% above the $155K US national median. 16% below San Francisco's $190K. Based on 66 qualifying postings, 2025–2026.

What is the Operations Lead salary in San Francisco?
San Francisco Operations Leads at AI-native startups earn a median of $190K, with a typical range of $164K–$205K (25th–75th percentile). That's 23% above the $155K US national median. Based on 50 qualifying postings, 2025–2026.

Where does this salary data come from?
It is aggregated from public job postings on company career pages — no private placement or client data. We require a minimum of 15 postings per role.

Methodology

Figures are the midpoint of each posting's advertised USD salary range, aggregated from 280 public job postings (2025–2026). The range shown is the 25th–75th percentile; the median is the 50th percentile. Equity is separate and not included; where a posting's range reflects on-target earnings (OTE) for commission roles, that is included in the midpoint. Roles require at least 15 postings to be published. Last refreshed July 1, 2026.

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