Senior Data Scientist salary in San Jose, CA
Based on 582 certified H-1B filings at DOL wage level III in the San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA metro area, FY2025–FY2026. Includes Sunnyvale, Mountain View, Santa Clara, Palo Alto, Cupertino.
Also listed as: Machine Learning Scientist
Salary range
| Percentile | Salary |
|---|---|
| 10th | $180,128 |
| 25th | $190,000 |
| 50th (median) | $210,000 |
| 75th | $235,000 |
| 90th | $274,949 |
Salary by year
Median salary
Filings per year
Show as table
| Fiscal year | Median | P25 | P75 | Filings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2020 | $152,500 | $140,000 | $169,963 | 144 |
| FY2021 | $150,000 | $145,725 | $170,893 | 201 |
| FY2022 | $163,600 | $156,853 | $179,520 | 313 |
| FY2023 | $165,000 | $156,853 | $182,150 | 427 |
| FY2024 | $232,690 | $190,075 | $259,250 | 140 |
| FY2025 | $196,464 | $182,750 | $221,719 | 420 |
| FY2026 | $234,848 | $225,077 | $255,100 | 162 |
Cost of living
San Jose's median senior Data Scientist salary of $210,000 is worth about $190,200 at national average prices.
Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024 (U.S. = 100; San Jose = 110.4).
Compared with all workers here
All Data Scientists in the San Jose, CA area earned a median of $185,080 in May 2025 (6,060 employed). The H-1B median here is $210,000, 13% higher.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS metropolitan area estimates. BLS wages include some incentive pay; H-1B figures are base salary.
Employers filing at this level
| Employer | Median | Filings |
|---|---|---|
| $200,000 | 104 | |
| TikTok | $260,000 | 89 |
| ByteDance | $280,000 | 35 |
| $225,077 | 35 | |
| Adobe | $208,000 | 29 |
| Microsoft | $209,424 | 28 |
| Amazon | $220,000 | 25 |
| Atlassian | $208,250 | 19 |
| PayPal | $217,713 | 14 |
| eBay | $199,990 | 12 |
Employers with at least 2 filings here. Median shown at 10+ filings.
By experience level
| Wage level | Median | Filings |
|---|---|---|
| Entry-level · Level I | $123,531 | 599 |
| Mid-level · Level II | $174,304 | 1,231 |
| Senior · Level III | $210,000 | 582 |
| Expert · Level IV | $257,000 | 368 |
Median shown when a level has at least 10 filings.
Minimum H-1B salary by level
| Wage level | Prevailing wage (most common) | Median offered salary | Filings |
|---|---|---|---|
| Entry-level · Level I | $123,531 | $123,531 | 599 |
| Mid-level · Level II | $148,699 | $174,304 | 1,231 |
| Senior · Level III | $180,128 | $210,000 | 582 |
| Expert · Level IV | $211,536 | $257,000 | 368 |
The prevailing wage is the minimum an employer must pay for this job and area. Amounts vary by county within a metro and by wage source.