AI / ML Engineer Salary in Louisiana (2026)
The average AI / ML Engineer in Louisiana earns around $220,000/year. After taxes, your estimated take-home is $158,513/year ($13,209/month).
Take-Home Pay Breakdown
| Category | Amount |
|---|---|
Annual Take-Home Pay | $158,513 |
Monthly Take-Home Pay | $13,209 |
Biweekly Take-Home Pay | $6,097 |
Hourly Take-Home Pay based on 2,080 hrs/year | $76/hr |
Federal Tax | $41,704 |
State Tax | $4,974 |
FICA Taxes | $14,809 |
Effective Tax Rate total taxes ÷ gross salary | 27.95% |
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Read the guideAI / ML Engineer Salary Ranges in Louisiana
Not all AI / ML Engineers earn the same — not even close
Louisiana's AI/ML engineering market is anchored by Ochsner Health AI/ML (clinical decision support + radiology AI + sepsis prediction + readmission risk + population health), Entergy grid AI (load forecasting + outage prediction + AMI analytics), Tulane SPHTM machine learning epidemiology research, LSU Center for Computation & Technology (CCT, the LSU supercomputing + AI research center supporting the SuperMike supercomputer cluster), LSU Pennington biomedical AI, Cyber Innovation Center Bossier City (cleared cyber + AI), plus FAANG remote + Anthropic + OpenAI LA remote positions filling on NOLA + BTR + Lafayette cost of living advantage. LA's AI/ML market is smaller than coastal hubs but distinctive in clinical + utility + academic research clusters.
Staff / Principal ML Engineer (Ochsner / Entergy / Tulane)
$175,000–$310,000+ TC
Senior ML IC at LA Fortune 500 + Ochsner + Tulane · clinical + utility + academic research AI
Senior ML Engineer (Clinical AI / Radiology)
$135,000–$215,000
Ochsner AI · LCMC · Tulane Medical · radiology AI + sepsis prediction + readmission models
Senior ML Engineer (Utility / Grid AI)
$128,000–$195,000
Entergy · Cleco · grid optimization + load forecasting + outage + AMI ML
Senior ML Engineer (Petrochemical / LNG)
$135,000–$210,000
Cheniere · Cameron LNG · Sasol · Dow · production optimization + predictive maintenance ML
Senior ML Engineer (Academic Research)
$115,000–$175,000
LSU CCT + Tulane SPHTM + Pennington · NIH-funded ML research at LA R1 universities
Senior ML Engineer (Cleared / Bossier)
$130,000–$200,000
Cyber Innovation Center · Barksdale AFB contractors · cleared AI/ML + cyber + intelligence
ML Engineering Manager
$170,000–$295,000+ TC
EM at Ochsner + Entergy + LSU CCT + cleared contractors · team lead
Mid-Level ML Engineer (3-6 yrs)
$92,000–$140,000
Functional IC at LA Fortune 500 + healthcare + academic research · transitioning to senior
Junior ML Engineer (0-3 yrs)
$72,000–$108,000
LSU CCT + Tulane + ULL + LA Tech + Pennington pipeline · entry band
Senior ML Engineer (Remote, LA-based)
$155,000–$280,000+ TC
FAANG LA remote · Anthropic · OpenAI · NOLA + BTR cost of living + MSY hub
Worth knowing: Ochsner Health is one of the country's most distinctive US clinical AI + healthcare ML adopters HQ'd outside the major coastal tech metros and a feature most national AI/ML surveys understate for LA. Ochsner (Fortune private, ~36K employees, founded 1942 + post-2006 expansion under Warner Thomas to become the country's largest US health system HQ'd in LA + largest LA private employer) operates substantial clinical AI + ML supporting ~40 hospitals + ~400 clinics across LA + MS + AL + TX. Senior Ochsner ML engineers clear $135-215K building radiology AI + sepsis early warning + readmission risk + population health risk stratification + Epic clinical decision support integrations. LSU Center for Computation & Technology (CCT, founded 2003 as the LSU supercomputing + computational science research center, ~$30M+ annual research funding) operates LSU's SuperMike supercomputer cluster + substantial in-house AI/ML research across multiple LSU colleges including computer science + engineering + agriculture + medicine + petroleum engineering. LSU Pennington Biomedical Research Center operates substantial biomedical AI + ML research in nutrition + obesity + metabolic disease. Tulane SPHTM operates machine learning epidemiology research. Cyber Innovation Center Bossier City (~$11M annual operations + ~150 partners) supports cleared AI/ML + cyber + intelligence work for Barksdale AFB + Air Force Global Strike Command. LA's flat 3% (post-2024 Act 11) + LA RTW since 1976 + no state estate tax + NOLA + BTR + Lafayette cost of living + LA Citizens Property Insurance hurricane premium offset = the LA AI/ML proposition.
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More on Louisiana
Salaries by profession, top-paying roles by industry, and an economic breakdown for Louisiana in 2026.
Tax brackets, standard deductions, and take-home estimates for Louisiana in 2026.
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