Senior Research Scientist (Computer Science) salary in San Jose, CA
Based on 370 certified H-1B filings at DOL wage level III in the San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA metro area, FY2025–FY2026. Includes Mountain View, Sunnyvale, Santa Clara, Palo Alto, Cupertino.
Also listed as: Machine Learning Engineer, AI Researcher
Salary range
| Percentile | Salary |
|---|---|
| 10th | $201,094 |
| 25th | $205,000 |
| 50th (median) | $224,682 |
| 75th | $240,000 |
| 90th | $274,730 |
Salary by year
Median salary
Filings per year
Show as table
| Fiscal year | Median | P25 | P75 | Filings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2020 | $178,162 | $168,002 | $185,000 | 131 |
| FY2021 | $180,000 | $171,163 | $189,392 | 111 |
| FY2022 | $185,000 | $171,943 | $196,005 | 144 |
| FY2023 | $230,840 | $220,459 | $239,488 | 54 |
| FY2024 | $238,703 | $231,250 | $253,890 | 22 |
| FY2025 | $230,000 | $224,682 | $243,125 | 144 |
| FY2026 | $211,275 | $201,094 | $237,054 | 226 |
Cost of living
San Jose's median senior Research Scientist (Computer Science) salary of $224,682 is worth about $203,500 at national average prices.
Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024 (U.S. = 100; San Jose = 110.4).
Compared with all workers here
All Computer and Information Research Scientists in the San Jose, CA area earned a median of $218,420 in May 2025 (2,210 employed). The H-1B median here is $224,682, 3% 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Amazon | $220,000 | 95 |
| $268,500 | 30 | |
| NVIDIA | $201,094 | 28 |
| Microsoft | $219,660 | 27 |
| Adobe | $224,000 | 17 |
| Tencent America | $220,000 | 14 |
| ByteDance | $280,000 | 13 |
| Meta | too few | 9 |
| Hippocratic AI | too few | 8 |
| Salesforce | too few | 6 |
Employers with at least 2 filings here. Median shown at 10+ filings.
By experience level
| Wage level | Median | Filings |
|---|---|---|
| Entry-level · Level I | $174,000 | 250 |
| Mid-level · Level II | $200,000 | 911 |
| Senior · Level III | $224,682 | 370 |
| Expert · Level IV | $275,000 | 261 |
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 | $127,712 | $174,000 | 250 |
| Mid-level · Level II | $164,403 | $200,000 | 911 |
| Senior · Level III | $201,094 | $224,682 | 370 |
| Expert · Level IV | $237,786 | $275,000 | 261 |
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.