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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 93k per year, with a range from 40k to 200k. The salary range for openAI developers varies depending on factors such as location, industry, experience, and startup stage.
92.8k
Average Salary
4 years
Average years of experience
Salary
The average salary for a openAI developer is$92,813, which is 17.7% lower than the average startup salary of$112,833. 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
$173,688/yr
Range $155k - $200k
Average
$92,813/yr
Range $80k - $125k
Below Average
$59,063/yr
Range $40k - $75k
Top Locations
The highest average salary a openAI developer can get in Chicago, that is $200,000. This pay is 115.5% higher than the average openAI salary in startups, which is $92,813. 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), Los Angeles (avg $150,000 per year). Remote jobs often pay based on the location you reside in.
Industries
The highest average salary a openAI developer can get in Software Engineering, that is $200,000. This pay is 10.5% higher than the average openAI salary, which is $181,000. The highest-paying industries in 2023 are: Software Engineering (avg $200,000 per year), Construction (avg $200,000 per year), Big Data Analytics (avg $200,000 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. Symfony
$175k
6. Scipy
$175k
7. Heroku
$165k
8. Dart
$160k
9. Amazon ECS
$155k
10. DynamoDB
$150k
Years of experience
Below Average
Average
Top of Market
The highest average salary a openAI developer can get with 4-6 years of experience, that is $90,000. This pay is 20.2% lower than the average salary in startups, which is $112,833. 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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