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openAI Developer Salary and Equity in 2026
How much can a openAI developer expect to make at US-based startups? The average estimated salary for openAI developers is 122k per year, with a range from 40k to 235k. The salary range for openAI developers varies depending on factors such as location, industry, experience, and startup stage.
122.0k
Average Salary
4 years
Average years of experience
Salary
The average salary for a openAI developer is$122,042, which is 5.4% lower than the average startup salary of$129,000. openAI developer 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, and industry.
Top of market
$195,208/yr
Range $155k - $235k
Average
$122,042/yr
Range $80k - $170k
Below Average
$88,792/yr
Range $40k - $130k
Top Locations
The highest average salary a openAI developer can get in Chicago, that is $200,000. This pay is 63.9% higher than the average openAI salary in startups, which is $122,042. Salaries will vary based on your location. The top-paying markets in the US, on average, are currently: Chicago (avg $200,000 per year), San Francisco Bay Area (avg $200,000 per year), Denver (avg $197,000 per year). Remote jobs often pay based on the location you reside in.
Chicago
$200k
Denver
$197k
Seattle
$169k
Boston
$162k
Minneapolis
$152.5k
Remote
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View SalariesIndustries
The highest average salary a openAI developer can get in Automotive, that is $250,000. This pay is 15.6% higher than the average openAI salary, which is $216,250. The highest-paying industries in 2023 are: Automotive (avg $250,000 per year), Publishing (avg $240,000 per year), Cryptocurrency (avg $225,000 per year).
Tech Stack
Top Tech Stacks
The top-paying developer skills of 2026 are:
1. Celery
$202k
2. Clojure
$195k
3. OpenCV
$192k
4. Clojurescript
$187.5k
5. rundeck
$176.5k
6. react
$175k
7. Scipy
$175k
8. Symfony
$175k
9. RESTful APIs
$174k
10. Vue
$170k
Years of experience
Below Average
Average
Top of Market
The highest average salary a openAI developer can get with 10+ years of experience, that is $187,000. This pay is 45.0% higher than the average salary in startups, which is $129,000. 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
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