Machine Learning Engineer Salary in Chicago

Pay ranges below come from 27 current machine learning engineer listings that disclose salary in Chicago, updated daily. We only show what employers actually post — never estimates.

Median base pay

from 27 disclosed ranges

$162,708/yr

$33,500$130,000 – $170,000 typical$253,125

Highest-paying employers in Chicago

PwCup to $297,000
Bain & Co.up to $270,500
Factoredup to $260,000
The Hartfordup to $234,000
Ulta Beauty, Inc.up to $215,000

Highest disclosed figure per employer in the current feed.

See what you're worth.

Climbr scores live machine learning engineer roles against your real resume, shows the pay where it's listed, and tailors your resume per job so you can target the higher offers. Free to start.

Build my free resume →

Machine Learning Engineer roles in Chicago that list pay

Real current listings, highest disclosed pay first.

Director, AI and Machine Learning Engineering

Bain & Co. · Chicago, Illinois

$235,750 - $270,500

Tailor & apply →

Senior Machine Learning Engineer; LLMs - Agentic Workflows

Factored · Chicago, Illinois

$180,000 - $260,000

Tailor & apply →

Lead AI Engineer: GenAI & Real-Time ML Architect

Ulta Beauty, Inc. · Chicago, Illinois

$214,000 - $215,000

Tailor & apply →

AI Engineer / Data Scientist, AI Manager

PwC · Chicago, Illinois

$99,000 - $297,000

Tailor & apply →

Director Data and Analytics AI Engineering

The Hartford · Chicago, Illinois

$156,000 - $234,000

Tailor & apply →

ML Engineer, Retrieval & Grounded Generation

DEFCON AI, Inc. · Chicago, Illinois

$165,000 - $200,000

Tailor & apply →

What moves Machine Learning Engineer pay

Seniority

Years of experience and scope are the biggest lever — senior machine learning engineer roles routinely clear the top of the range above.

Company & industry

Larger and high-margin employers pay more for the same machine learning engineer title than smaller or non-profit ones.

Local market

Cost of living and local demand shift Chicago offers up or down versus the national figure.

Frequently asked

How much does a Machine Learning Engineer make in Chicago?

Based on 27 disclosed ranges in our current feed, the median is around $162,708 per year. Actual pay varies by experience, company, and specialty.

Where do these numbers come from?

Real job listings in Climbr's feed that publish a salary range, refreshed daily and annualized for comparison. We don't use survey estimates or model-generated figures — if employers don't post pay, we don't show a number.

How can I earn more as a Machine Learning Engineer?

Target the higher-paying employers above, tailor your resume to each role so it clears applicant screens, and negotiate against the posted range. Climbr scores your resume against each job and rewrites bullets to match — free to start.

Machine Learning Engineer salary in other cities

Other salaries in Chicago

See open Machine Learning Engineer jobs in Chicago →