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Data Engineer Salary and Equity in 2026
How much do Data Engineers expect to make at US-based startups? The average expected salary for Data Engineers in a startup is 153k per year, with a range from 85k to 256k. The salary range for Data Engineers varies depending on factors such as location, industry, experience, skills, and startup stage.
153.0k
Average Salary
4 years
Average years of experience
Salary
The average Data Engineer salary is $153,000, which is 18.6% higher than the average startup salary of $129,000. Data Engineer salaries are based on exclusive Wellfound data. All data is updated on a weekly basis. Factors that may influence salary include: location, years of experience, title, size of company, skill-set, and industry.
Top of market
$225,708/yr
Range $183k - $256k
Average
$153,000/yr
Range $123k - $174k
Below Average
$118,167/yr
Range $85k - $138k
Top Locations
The highest average salary a Data Engineer can get in New York, that is $187,000. This pay is 22.2% higher than the average Data Engineer salary in startups, which is $153,000. Salaries will vary based on your location. The top-paying markets in the US, on average, are currently: New York (avg $187,000 per year), Minneapolis (avg $178,500 per year), Seattle (avg $170,000 per year). Remote jobs often pay based on the location you reside in.
New York
$187k
Minneapolis
$178.5k
Seattle
$170k
Denver
$150k
Austin
$140k
San Diego
$135k
Melbourne
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View SalariesIndustries
The highest average salary a Data Engineer can get in Portals, that is $305,500. This pay is 8.3% higher than the average Data Engineer salary, which is $282,200. The highest-paying industries in 2023 are: Portals (avg $305,500 per year), Development Platforms (avg $305,500 per year), Video Games (avg $305,500 per year).
Tech Stack
The highest average salary a Data Engineer can get with Ruby on Rails, that is $190,000. This pay is 24.2% higher than the average Data Engineer salary in startups, which is $153,000. Salary range for specific skills will vary based on the supply and demand in the current market.
Top Tech Stacks
The top-paying Data Engineer skills of 2026 are:
1. Ruby on Rails
$190k
2. Deep Learning
$185k
3. C++
$185k
4. PyTorch
$185k
5. Go
$166k
6. C
$160k
7. C#
$145k
8. Docker
$145k
9. Rust
$140k
10. PostgreSQL
$140k
Years of experience
Below Average
Average
Top of Market
The highest average salary a Data Engineer can get with 10+ years of experience, that is $215,000. This pay is 40.5% higher than the average Data Engineer salary, which is $153,000. The salary range varies with years of experience and depends on other factors such as skill set, size of company, and industry.
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Popular skills
Tech Hubs for Data Engineer
Industries for Data Engineer
Blockchain / CryptocurrencyFin TechBig DataRetailManufacturingMarketplacesSmall and Medium BusinessesReal EstateDigital MarketingAdvertisingHealth and WellnessMobile ApplicationArtificial IntelligenceSales and MarketingFinancial ServicesWeb DevelopmentSoftwareEducationTechnologySocial MediaB2BSaaSE-CommerceHealthcareEnterprise SoftwareMobile