Forward Deployed Engineer salary (2026)
What companies actually offer FDEs: the base-pay ranges published in 179 US job posts from 20 companies, read from their own careers pages.
Updated: 10 Oct 2026
By seniority
| Posts | Median range | Midpoint | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Senior, staff and lead | 95 | $182k–$250k | $216k |
| Mid level | 73 | $135k–$200k | $168k |
| Early career | 11 | $135k–$145k | $140k |
By company
By location
| Posts | Median range | Midpoint | |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Francisco Bay Area | 23 | $182k–$242k | $216k |
| Remote (US) | 5 | $182k–$250k | $216k |
| New York | 49 | $180k–$250k | $216k |
| Other US | 39 | $182k–$250k | $216k |
| Chicago | 6 | $182k–$250k | $216k |
| Texas | 8 | $182k–$250k | $216k |
| Boston | 4 | $182k–$250k | $216k |
| Southern California | 5 | $156k–$234k | $195k |
| Seattle | 6 | $159k–$225k | $192k |
| Washington DC area | 34 | $135k–$200k | $168k |
Highest posted ranges right now
- Manager, Forward Deployed Engineering · Anthropic · New York City, NY · $320k–$405k
- Director, Forward Deployed Researcher - Data as a Service · Snorkel AI · New York City, NY (Hybrid); San Francisco, CA (Hybrid); United States (Remote) · $229k–$403k
- VP, Head of Forward Deployed Engineering · Snorkel AI · New York City, NY (Hybrid); San Francisco, CA (Hybrid) · $269k–$403k
- Forward Deployed Engineer · Figma · San Francisco, CA • New York, NY • United States · $153k–$376k
- Pre-Sales Program Lead, Forward Deployed Engineering · Anthropic · San Francisco, CA | New York City, NY · $270k–$365k
- Forward Deployed Finance Engineer, Buyout · Harvey · New York · $255k–$350k
- Forward Deployed Finance Engineer, Private Credit · Harvey · New York · $255k–$350k
- Forward Deployed Finance Engineer, Real Estate · Harvey · New York · $255k–$350k
- Forward Deployed Product Manager, Public Sector · Scale AI · New York, NY; Washington, DC · $210k–$345k
- Sr. Manager, AI Forward Deployed Engineering (AI FDE) · Databricks · United States · $233k–$320k
- Manager, Forward Deployed Engineering · Snorkel AI · New York City, NY (Hybrid); San Francisco, CA (Hybrid) · $200k–$320k
- Senior/Staff FDE - CUA · Snorkel AI · New York City, NY (Hybrid); San Francisco, CA (Hybrid) · $180k–$320k
What these numbers are
Base salary only, in US dollars, as the employer published it. Equity, bonus and benefits are not included; at AI companies equity can add a large share on top.
US roles only (179 of 251 open US FDE roles state a range; states such as California, New York, Washington and Colorado require it). Outside the US, posts rarely state pay, so we do not estimate it.
A posted range is what the company is prepared to pay for that role. Where an offer lands inside it depends on level, location and negotiation.
Two employers post many of the ranges: Databricks (79) and Palantir (53), 74% of the posts between them. The overall and per-city figures lean towards their pay; the company list shows each employer on its own.
How we count
Every open Forward Deployed Engineer role on the official careers boards (Greenhouse, Ashby, Lever) we track is read several times a day. We take the first annual base-pay range in each US post and drop anything that is not an annual salary. Seniority is read from the job title. The page rebuilds itself when the roles change.
Suggested citation: FDE Times, “Forward Deployed Engineer salary (2026)”, https://fdetimes.net/en/fde-salary/, 10 Oct 2026.
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