AI / ML Engineer Salary in New York (2026)
The average AI / ML Engineer in New York earns around $215,000/year. After taxes, your estimated take-home is $148,123/year ($12,344/month).
Take-Home Pay Breakdown
| Category | Amount |
|---|---|
Annual Take-Home Pay | $148,123 |
Monthly Take-Home Pay | $12,344 |
Biweekly Take-Home Pay | $5,697 |
Hourly Take-Home Pay based on 2,080 hrs/year | $71/hr |
Federal Tax | $40,334 |
State Tax | $11,852 |
FICA Taxes | $14,692 |
Effective Tax Rate total taxes ÷ gross salary | 31.11% |
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Read the New York RSU tax guide →AI / ML Engineer Salary Ranges in New York
Not all AI / ML Engineers earn the same — not even close
New York City AI/ML compensation is anchored by two distinct ecosystems: FAANG NYC (Google Chelsea HQ — Gemini + Search ML, Meta NYC + Reality Labs, Microsoft Hudson Yards 10,000 employees, Apple SoHo, Bloomberg Engineering) and the quant ML cluster (Citadel + Two Sigma + Jane Street + D.E. Shaw + Hudson River Trading + Goldman Marquee/AI + JPMorgan AI + Morgan Stanley AI). Plus Cohere NYC, Hugging Face NYC, Runway ML, and growing AI startup cluster. NY+NYC combined top marginal 14.78% is the downside — but for engineers willing to commute from NJ, the savings are $10K-$50K/year. Real comp ranges for the New York market in 2026:
Junior MLE / New-Grad PhD
$180K base + $90K-$140K RSU/yr
0-2 yrs · TC $270K-$320K
Mid-Level MLE (FAANG NYC L4/L5)
$210K base + $140K-$240K RSU/yr
3-6 yrs · TC $360K-$490K
Senior MLE (FAANG NYC L5/L6)
$255K base + $250K-$420K RSU/yr
7-12 yrs · TC $530K-$705K
Staff / Principal MLE (FAANG L6/L7 NYC)
$335K base + $400K-$680K RSU/yr
12+ yrs · TC $775K-$1.1M
Quant ML (Citadel / Two Sigma / D.E. Shaw)
$285K base + 100-300% bonus
TC $570K-$1.4M · profit-share + carry-like comp at PM track
Jane Street / Hudson River / SIG Quant
$300K base + 100-400% bonus
Discretionary bonus + profit-share · TC $600K-$2M+ at senior
Goldman Marquee / JPMorgan / Morgan Stanley AI
$245K-$345K base + bonus 30-80% + RSU
Senior banker/MLE hybrid · TC $400K-$650K · firm RSU 3-yr cliff
Bloomberg Engineering ML
$215K-$295K base + bonus + RSU
Domain-specific (financial NLP, market data ML) · TC $360K-$520K
Cohere NYC / Hugging Face NYC / Runway ML
$215K-$320K base + ISO/RSU + QSBS-eligible
Pre-IPO AI startup · NY conforms federal QSBS
Worth knowing: New York has the largest quant ML cluster in the world. Citadel + Two Sigma + D.E. Shaw + Jane Street + Hudson River Trading + SIG + Bridgewater (CT-adjacent) + Renaissance (Long Island) employ ~5,000+ quant MLEs combined, with senior-tier TC routinely $600K-$2M+ via discretionary bonus + carry-like profit-share.
The NYC AI/ML market: FAANG NYC + quant ML cluster + bank AI + NY+NYC tax stack
14.78%
NY+NYC combined top marginal — kicks in $25M (state) + $50K (city)
$18-$80K
NJ commuter annual savings vs NYC resident on senior+ MLE comp
$2M+
Senior Jane Street / Citadel quant ML TC via discretionary bonus + carry
NYC's AI/ML market is functionally three overlapping clusters. FAANG NYC (Google Chelsea HQ at Pier 57 + 8th Ave — Gemini + Search ML + YouTube ML, Meta NYC Astor Place + Reality Labs + Instagram ML, Microsoft Hudson Yards ~10K employees + Microsoft AI NYC subset, Apple SoHo + Cupertino-adjacent ML, Amazon NYC HQ2-cancelled-but-Manhattan-office-still-active). Quant ML (Citadel Madison Avenue + Citadel Securities + Citadel Wellington + GAM, Two Sigma Soho + Tribeca ~2,000 employees, D.E. Shaw Sixth Avenue, Jane Street Brookfield Place + Hudson Yards, Hudson River Trading Hudson Yards, SIG Bryn Mawr-adjacent NYC office). Bank AI (Goldman Marquee + Goldman Engineering, JPMorgan AI Research + JPMorgan Chase Engineering, Morgan Stanley AI, Citi AI Lab — all Manhattan-based).
The quant ML cluster is the distinguishing NYC AI/ML feature. Citadel + Two Sigma + Jane Street + D.E. Shaw + Hudson River Trading + SIG quant MLEs work on alpha-generating market-prediction models (typically 10-millisecond to 1-day horizons), execution algorithms, market microstructure ML, and risk modeling. Comp structure: high base ($275K-$400K senior) + discretionary bonus (typically 100-400% of base depending on firm performance + individual contribution) + profit-share / carry-like equity. Senior quant ML at Jane Street / Citadel routinely $600K-$2M TC, with PM-track promotions reaching $5M-$30M+ TC at staff/partner level.
NY+NYC combined top marginal 14.78% (NY state 10.9% + NYC resident 3.876%) is the downside. At $530K senior FAANG NYC MLE comp, ~$58K combined NY+NYC tax. At $1M-$2M senior quant ML, ~$120K-$255K combined NY+NYC tax. Same comp in WA / TX / FL = $0 state. Annual delta $58K-$255K, recurring.
The NJ commuter arbitrage is valuable for AI/ML engineers. NYC employer + NJ resident → pay NJ state (1.4%-10.75%, top 10.75% above $1M) + 0% NYC resident tax. NJ effective rate at $530K senior FAANG NYC comp roughly 7.5% (vs ~11.0% NY+NYC). Savings $18K/year at senior MLE, $40K-$80K at staff/principal, $100K-$200K+ at quant ML senior. Bergen / Hudson / Essex County housing $600K-$1.2M for SFH vs $1.5M-$3M Manhattan / Brooklyn equivalent. PATH train + NJ Transit commute Hoboken / Jersey City / Weehawken / Edgewater is 15-25 minutes to Penn Station / WTC.
New York as a place to live — the honest take for AI/ML engineers
NYC AI/ML housing is dominated by Manhattan + Brooklyn proximity to office (FAANG Chelsea / Hudson Yards, quant Midtown / Hudson Yards / Tribeca, banks Midtown). Manhattan condo $1.5M-$3M for 1-2BR within reasonable commute. Brooklyn (Park Slope, Carroll Gardens, Cobble Hill, Boerum Hill, Brooklyn Heights, DUMBO, Williamsburg) brownstone / condo $1.5M-$3M+. Queens (Long Island City, Astoria, Sunnyside) condo $900K-$1.5M.
NJ commuter housing is materially below Manhattan / Brooklyn. Hoboken condo $1.0M-$1.6M (PATH 15 min Manhattan), Jersey City Newport / Exchange Place condo $900K-$1.4M (PATH 10 min WTC). Hudson County SFH $700K-$1.2M (Weehawken, Edgewater, Cliffside Park). Bergen County SFH $700K-$1.4M (Englewood, Tenafly, Ridgewood, Glen Rock, top NJ ISDs). Essex County SFH $600K-$1.2M (Montclair, Maplewood, South Orange).
Westchester is the third NYC AI/ML housing tier — Yonkers, Hastings, Tarrytown, Scarsdale, Rye SFH $700K-$2M with Metro-North commute 30-45 min Grand Central. Long Island (Garden City, Manhasset, Great Neck) $700K-$1.5M with LIRR commute 30-50 min Penn Station. Both viable but slightly less efficient than NJ commuter for tax savings.
How New York taxes AI/ML compensation (RSU + NJ commuter arbitrage + quant carry-interest)
NY state brackets progressive 4%-10.9% (top kicks in $25M). Effective state tax for NYC RNs ranges 6.0%-7.8% across $360K-$1M+. Plus NYC resident tax 3.078%-3.876% — combined NY+NYC effective rate 9.5%-11.0% across senior MLE comp tiers.
A $530K senior FAANG NYC MLE pays roughly $58K combined NY+NYC tax (effective 11%). At $1M senior quant ML, ~$110K combined. At $2M staff/principal quant ML, ~$255K combined. Plus federal 37% + Medicare 1.45% + Additional Medicare 0.9% = combined marginal ~52% on top dollars at senior MLE.
The NJ commuter arbitrage: NYC employer + NJ resident → pay NJ state (1.4%-10.75%, top 10.75% above $1M) + 0% NYC resident tax. NJ effective rate at $530K senior FAANG NYC comp roughly 7.5% (vs ~11.0% NY+NYC). Savings $18K/year. At $1M-$2M+ quant ML, $40K-$120K/year savings. Combined with Bergen / Hudson / Essex County housing $700K-$1.4M SFH (vs $1.5M-$3M Manhattan / Brooklyn equivalent) → tax + housing combined savings $100K-$300K/year at senior tier.
vest at FAANG NYC is treated as ordinary wage income for federal + NY state + NYC resident (or NJ state for NJ commuters) + + Medicare + Additional Medicare. Combined marginal ~52% NYC resident vs ~48% NJ commuter. Quarterly estimated tax or W-4 step 4(c) supplemental withholding.
Quant ML carry-interest 3-year holding rule ( 2017). Citadel / Two Sigma / Jane Street / D.E. Shaw / Hudson River / SIG quant MLEs at PM-track promotions receive partnership carry interest, which must be held 3+ years to qualify for long-term capital gains rates. Sub-3-year carry sales taxed as ordinary income (~52% combined). Most quant MLEs at PM track structure carry-grants for 3-year qualification to capture the ~20% delta vs ordinary income.
Bank AI (Goldman / JPMorgan / Morgan Stanley) vest cliff — these firms typically use 3-year cliff vesting for RSU (vs 4-year graded at FAANG). Cliff structure means concentrated vest spike year 3 → tax + cash-flow planning critical. Some firms allow ratable election (graded over 3 years) at hire.
Bonus structure at quant + bank — typically discretionary, paid March of following year (Q1). Senior quant ML annual bonus $200K-$2M. NY taxes bonus at full marginal NY+NYC rates (~52% NYC resident, ~48% NJ commuter). Estimated tax planning + state withholding election critical to avoid April-15 underpayment penalty.
() at FAANG NYC — Google, Meta, Microsoft, Apple, Amazon NYC offices all offer after-tax + in-plan Roth conversion. $47.5K/year. Quant funds + banks generally do NOT offer MBR (Citadel 401(k) limited tier-dependent; Two Sigma 401(k) + 100% match up to limit; banks vary).
Section 1202 at NYC AI startups (Cohere NYC, Hugging Face NYC, Runway ML, smaller). NY conforms federal QSBS — full federal $10M tax-free + NY state tax on the gain. Net of NY tax, $10M QSBS gain saves ~$3.7M federal but still pays ~$1M NY+NYC = net $5.6M-$5.9M to engineer (vs $10M cash gain).
Pre-retirement NYC → FL / TX / TN / NC relocation arbitrage — most senior NYC MLEs relocate before retirement to escape NY+NYC retirement-tax stack. NY taxes pension + distributions (only $20K/year exemption) at full state rates. home-sale exclusion $500K + RSU vesting moved to 0%-state-tax jurisdiction during pre-retirement window. NY is aggressive on residency audits — document carefully (new state driver license, voter registration, primary care physician relocation, 183+ days out of NY in transition year).
Connecticut commuter alternative for Bridgewater / Renaissance / Two Sigma Westport — CT effective state tax 5.5%-6.99%, no city tax. NJ commuter still better for Manhattan-based quant funds; CT commuter relevant for CT-based funds (Bridgewater Westport, Greenwich hedge funds).
- →Live in NJ + work in NYC — saves $18K-$120K/year vs NYC resident at senior+ MLE tier. PATH 15 min Manhattan, NJT 25-45 min.
- →Max at FAANG NYC — $47.5K/year of after-tax → Roth. Quant + bank generally don't offer MBR.
- →Quant carry-interest 3-year holding — structure carry grants for qualification, save ~20% vs ordinary income.
- →Quarterly estimated tax + state withholding election for bank/quant March bonus to avoid April-15 underpayment penalty.
- →Bank 3-year cliff cash-flow planning — concentrated vest spike year 3, plan tax + brokerage liquidity accordingly.
- →Pursue Section 1202 at pre-Series B NYC AI startups — Cohere NYC / Hugging Face / Runway ML / smaller. NY conforms federal but NY still taxes; net $5.6M-$5.9M on $10M gain.
- →Pre-retirement NYC → FL / TX / TN / NC relocation — + vesting + retirement income to 0% state. Document residency carefully.
- →Sale-on-vest concentration management at FAANG NYC — most senior MLEs sell 50-70% on vest to fund tax + diversify.
- →Quant bonus deferral programs — some firms allow elective deferral of bonus into supplemental -style vehicle (taxed at distribution). Defers tax but creates concentration risk in firm.
- →Pre-IPO AI startup NYC equity with qualification — Cohere NYC Series B-C grants, Hugging Face Series C-D, Runway Series C-D as of 2025-2026.
Three NYC AI/ML submarkets — FAANG NYC, quant ML cluster, and bank AI
NYC AI/ML is functionally three overlapping clusters. FAANG NYC (Google Chelsea + Meta + Microsoft Hudson Yards). Quant ML (Citadel + Two Sigma + Jane Street + D.E. Shaw + Hudson River Trading). Bank AI (Goldman + JPMorgan + Morgan Stanley + Bloomberg).
FAANG NYC — Google Chelsea + Meta + Microsoft Hudson Yards + Bloomberg
Senior MLE base $245K-$295K + RSU $250K-$420K/yr · TC $530K-$705K · staff $775K-$1.1MGoogle NYC HQ Chelsea (Pier 57 + 111 8th Ave + 76 9th Ave — Gemini, Search ML, YouTube ML, Google Cloud AI, Google AI NYC subset, ~14K employees), Meta NYC Astor Place + 770 Broadway + Hudson Yards (Reality Labs subset + Instagram ML + WhatsApp ML), Microsoft Hudson Yards 300 Lafayette ~10K employees + Microsoft AI NYC subset, Apple SoHo + Manhattan-Cupertino-adjacent ML, Amazon NYC Manhattan office (HQ2 cancelled but engineering presence remains, ~2-3K employees). Bloomberg LP 731 Lexington (Bloomberg Engineering ML — financial NLP, market data, terminal ML, ~6K total engineers). Workforce housing in Manhattan ($1.5M-$3M condo) or NJ commuter (Hoboken / Jersey City / Weehawken) or Brooklyn ($1.5M-$3M brownstone/condo).
FAANG NYC is the second-largest US AI/ML market by employment after Bay Area. Google NYC HQ is the company's largest non-CA office. Bloomberg Engineering ML is a genuinely deep financial-NLP + market-data ML environment with stable comp + lower volatility than quant funds.
Quant ML cluster — Citadel + Two Sigma + Jane Street + D.E. Shaw + Hudson River
Senior quant ML base $285K-$400K + bonus 100-400% · TC $570K-$2M+ at senior · partner $5M-$30M+Citadel Madison Avenue (Citadel + Citadel Securities + Wellington + GAM, ~3K employees in NY), Two Sigma Soho + Tribeca + Hudson Yards (~2K employees), D.E. Shaw Sixth Avenue (~1.5K employees in NY), Jane Street Brookfield Place + Hudson Yards (~1.2K employees globally, mostly NY), Hudson River Trading Hudson Yards (~700 employees), SIG / Susquehanna NYC office. Bridgewater Westport CT-adjacent (~1.5K employees), Renaissance Technologies Long Island (~300 quant employees, famously secretive). Workforce housing same as FAANG NYC pattern but with stronger preference for NJ commuter (Hoboken / Jersey City) due to higher comp + larger NY+NYC tax burden.
Quant ML cluster is the distinguishing NYC AI/ML feature. Senior quant ML TC $600K-$2M with discretionary bonus 100-400% of base. PM-track promotions reach $5M-$30M+ TC at staff/partner. Carry-interest 3-year holding rule applies to partnership equity.
Bank AI — Goldman / JPMorgan / Morgan Stanley / Citi
Senior MLE/banker hybrid base $245K-$345K + bonus 30-80% + RSU · TC $400K-$650KGoldman Sachs 200 West Street (Marquee platform + Goldman Engineering + Goldman AI, ~13K total tech in NY of which ~2K AI/ML), JPMorgan 270 Park Ave + 383 Madison (JPMorgan AI Research + JPMorgan Chase Engineering, ~6K tech in NY of which ~1.5K AI/ML), Morgan Stanley 1585 Broadway (Morgan Stanley AI + Tech, ~4K tech in NY), Citi 388 Greenwich (Citi AI Lab + Tech). Bonus typically Q1 of following year. cliff vesting (3-year) standard at all four banks. Workforce housing same as FAANG NYC pattern.
Bank AI is the lowest-volatility NYC AI/ML market. Stable base + bonus + vs quant fund discretionary swings. Senior bank MLE TC $400K-$650K is below FAANG NYC senior ($530K-$705K) but with more stable cash flow + benefits. Government-adjacency clearance work available at all four banks for engineers with security clearance.
The NYC AI/ML career arc — entry, FAANG/quant pivot, late-career relocation
Year 0 (PhD entry / new-grad MLE): $180K base + $90K-$140K /yr + $25K-$50K signing. Columbia + Cornell + NYU + MIT + Stanford + Harvard + Princeton + UPenn typical PhD pipelines. New-grad PhD at Google NYC L4 typically $185K-$215K base + RSU $130K-$200K/yr. Quant new-grad at Jane Street + Two Sigma typically $200K-$250K base + bonus $50K-$200K year 1. Bank AI new-grad at Goldman / JPMorgan typically $175K-$200K base + bonus 30-50% + RSU 3-year cliff.
Year 1-3 (Mid-Level / FAANG NYC L4/L5 · quant Tier 2): $210K-$255K base + /bonus $140K-$320K/yr · TC $360K-$575K. First refresher RSU grant at year 1 (FAANG) or first profit-share allocation (quant) at year 2-3. Mid-career FAANG → quant pivot peaks at this stage — leave FAANG for Citadel / Two Sigma / D.E. Shaw / Jane Street at +30-80% base + 100-300% bonus, accepting concentration in single hedge fund + carry-interest 3-year hold complexity.
Year 3-7 (Senior MLE / FAANG NYC L5/L6 · quant senior): $255K-$345K base + /bonus $250K-$700K/yr · TC $530K-$1.1M. maxing at FAANG. Backdoor Roth IRA. Section 1202 qualification window for early-hire NYC AI startup equity (Cohere, Hugging Face, Runway). Senior quant ML PM-track promotions begin year 5-7 with carry-interest grants.
Year 7-15 (Staff/Principal MLE · senior quant PM · bank Director): $345K-$510K base + /bonus $400K-$1.5M/yr · TC $775K-$2M+. At FAANG, L7+ staff/principal $775K-$1.1M. At quant, senior PM track $1M-$5M+ TC. At banks, Director $400K-$650K TC. Quant carry-interest 3-year qualification matures at this stage — first major LTCG distributions.
Year 15+ (Distinguished Engineer / VP / Quant Partner / Founder): At FAANG, Distinguished Engineer / Fellow tier $1.5M-$3M+ TC. At quant, partner-track $5M-$30M+ TC at staff/partner. At banks, Managing Director $800K-$1.5M base + bonus $1M-$3M. Founder route — pre-Series B AI startup founding with NY conformity. Most senior NYC MLEs relocate to FL / TX / TN / NC pre-retirement — + vesting moved to 0% state + retirement income to 0% state. NY is aggressive on residency audits — document carefully.
Where New York AI/ML engineers live
NYC AI/ML housing patterns favor Manhattan / Brooklyn for FAANG / bank engineers, NJ commuter (Hoboken / Jersey City) for quant ML engineers due to higher comp + tax burden.
Hoboken / Jersey City Newport / Exchange Place (NJ commuter)
PATH 10-20 min Manhattan · $900K-$1.6M condo · saves $18K-$120K/yr NYC tax
Edgewater / Weehawken / Cliffside Park (NJ Hudson SFH)
NJT bus 25-35 min · $700K-$1.2M SFH · scenic Hudson views
Park Slope / Cobble Hill / Brooklyn Heights (Brooklyn brownstone)
Subway 20-30 min Manhattan · $1.5M-$3M brownstone · craft-foodie urban
Long Island City / Astoria / Sunnyside (Queens)
7/N/W trains 15-25 min Manhattan · $900K-$1.5M condo · cheaper than Brooklyn
Englewood / Tenafly / Ridgewood (Bergen County NJ)
NJT 35-45 min Penn · $700K-$1.4M SFH · top NJ ISDs
Westchester (Yonkers / Hastings / Scarsdale)
Metro-North 30-45 min Grand Central · $700K-$2M SFH · top schools
PATH + NJ Transit + Metro-North + LIRR commute infrastructure makes 25-50 minute commutes routine across the metro.
Is this the right move?
New York AI/ML — who it's best for
Working in your favor
- +Only US AI/ML market with FAANG pivot AND quant fund pivot (Citadel / Two Sigma / Jane Street)
- +Senior quant ML TC $600K-$2M+ via discretionary bonus + carry-interest profit-share
- +Google NYC HQ Chelsea is largest non-CA Google office — Gemini + Search ML + YouTube ML
- +NJ commuter arbitrage saves $18K-$120K/year vs NYC resident at senior+ MLE tier
- +Bank AI (Goldman / JPMorgan / Morgan Stanley) offers most stable cash flow vs FAANG/quant
- +NY conforms to federal QSBS + HSA — strong tax treatment for AI startup equity (NY still taxes gain though)
- +Densest US PhD ML pipeline (Columbia + NYU + Cornell Tech + adjacent Princeton / Yale / MIT / Harvard)
Worth knowing before you sign
- −NY+NYC combined top marginal 14.78% — eats $58K-$255K/year at senior+ tiers
- −NY does NOT participate in NLC (irrelevant for engineers but blocks adjacent healthcare/legal moves)
- −NY taxes pension + 401(k) distributions (only $20K/year exemption) — pre-retirement relocation common
- −NY is aggressive on residency audits when relocating mid- or late-career
- −Manhattan / Brooklyn workforce housing $1.5M-$3M+ for SFH equivalent
- −Quant bonus discretionary swings (50-150% YoY) create cash-flow volatility
- −Bank RSU 3-year cliff vest creates concentrated vest spike year 3 (cash-flow + tax planning)
- −Frontier-lab cluster is CA — NYC quant pivot path doesn't replace OpenAI/Anthropic upside
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