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AI pay

Forward Deployed Engineer pay

Disclosed yearly base-pay ranges in current Forward Deployed Engineer listings at U.S. AI companies and labs, from the employers’ own job listings. 177 of 211 current listings (84%) disclose one; 151 of those appear only in the job description. Listings last checked Oct 19, 2026.

The figures

Listings with disclosed pay
177
of 211 current listings
Median of range midpoints
$216K
a year, base pay
Middle range (25th–75th percentile)
$168K–$230K
half of the midpoints fall here
Remote
7%
13 of the listings with pay

Which titles count: A listing counts when its title contains “Forward Deployed” or “Forward-Deployed” (a space or any usual dash between the words), or the letters FDE as a whole word, so “Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE)” and “Senior FDE” count, and “CFDE” does not. Matching is on the title only, not the job description. Titles such as “Deployed Engineer” or “Partner Deployed Engineer” that do not say Forward Deployed and do not contain a whole-word FDE are left out.

All current Forward Deployed Engineer jobs, with or without pay

The listings behind these figures

Forward Deployed Engineer listings with disclosed pay, highest midpoint first
JobEmployerLocationYearly rangeMidpointPay from
Manager, Forward Deployed EngineeringAnthropicNew York City, NY$320,000–$405,000$363KDescription
Forward Deployed Security EngineerOpenAIWashington, DC$266,000–$445,000$356KFeed
Manager, Forward Deployed Engineering- NYCOpenAINew York City$302,000–$385,000$344KFeed
Principal AI Forward Deployed EngineerServiceNowSanta Clara, California, United States$221,200–$387,100$304KDescription
Principal, AI Deployment Strategist, FDEServiceNowNew York, New York, United States$221,200–$387,100$304KDescription
Forward Deployed Finance Engineer, BuyoutHarveyNew York$254,600–$350,000$302KFeed
Forward Deployed Finance Engineer, Private CreditHarveyNew York$254,600–$350,000$302KFeed
Forward Deployed Engineer (Training)BasetenNew York +1$200,000–$400,000$300KFeed
Staff Forward Deployed EngineerAnthropicNew York City, NY +2$280,000–$320,000$300KDescription
GTM Strategy & Operations, FDEAnthropicSan Francisco, CA | New York City, NY$270,000–$310,000$290KDescription
Forward Deployed Engineer (Inference & Post-Training)Together AISan Francisco$270,000–$300,000$285KDescription
Staff Frontier Agents Engineer (Forward Deployed Engineering)Scale AINew York, NY +1$252,000–$315,000$284KDescription
Senior Manager, Forward Deployed EngineeringCloudflareHybrid$244,000–$310,000$277KDescription
Forward Deployed Solution Engineer – Applied AI FDEServiceNowRemote$201,300–$352,300$277KDescription
Principal Forward Deployed Engineer, Creative AIAdobeNew York +1$190,200–$360,500$275KDescription
Member of Product Staff, Forward DeployedAbridgeNYC Office +1$260,000–$290,000$275KFeed
Forward Deployed Product Manager, Public SectorScale AINew York, NY +1$200,000–$345,000$273KDescription
Forward Deployed Product Manager, EnterpriseScale AINew York, NY$240,000–$300,000$270KDescription
Deployment Lead, FDE - SFOpenAINew York City +1$230,000–$294,000$262KFeed
Deployment Lead, FDE- NYCOpenAINew York City$230,000–$294,000$262KFeed
Sr. Deployment Strategist, FDE - Communications, Media, Entertainment & GamingDatabricksUnited States$219,765–$302,220$261KDescription
Sr. Deployment Strategist, FDE - Digital Native BusinessDatabricksSan Francisco, California$219,765–$302,220$261KDescription
Sr. Deployment Strategist, FDE - Financial ServicesDatabricksAtlanta, Georgia +4$219,765–$302,220$261KDescription
Sr. Deployment Strategist, FDE - Healthcare & Life SciencesDatabricksUnited States$219,765–$302,220$261KDescription
Sr. Deployment Strategist, FDE - Manufacturing & High-TechDatabricksUnited States$219,765–$302,220$261KDescription
Sr. Deployment Strategist, FDE - Public SectorDatabricksWashington, D.C.$219,765–$302,220$261KDescription
Forward Deployed Software Engineer - SFOpenAISan Francisco$185,000–$325,000$255KFeed
Manager, Forward Deployed Engineering - CMEGDatabricksRemote$211,800–$291,300$252KDescription
Forward Deployed EngineerBasetenRemote +5$165,000–$330,000$248KFeed
Senior Frontier Agents Engineer (Forward Deployed Engineering)Scale AINew York, NY +1$216,000–$270,000$243KDescription
Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - SFOpenAISan Francisco$185,000–$300,000$243KFeed
Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - SeattleOpenAISeattle$185,000–$300,000$243KFeed
Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE), Financial Services- NYCOpenAINew York City$185,000–$300,000$243KFeed
Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE), Healthcare - NYCOpenAINew York City$185,000–$300,000$243KFeed
Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE), Healthcare - SFOpenAISan Francisco$185,000–$300,000$243KFeed
Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE), Healthcare - SeattleOpenAISeattle$185,000–$300,000$243KFeed
Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE), Legal-NYCOpenAINew York City$185,000–$300,000$243KFeed
Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE), Legal-SFOpenAINew York City$185,000–$300,000$243KFeed
Forward Deployed EngineerReplitFoster City, CA +1$180,000–$300,000$240KFeed
Forward Deployed Software Engineer - NYCOpenAINew York City$153,000–$325,000$239KFeed
Forward Deployed Software Engineer - SeattleOpenAISeattle$153,000–$325,000$239KFeed
Lead Forward Deployed Engineer, Creative AIAdobeNew York +2$159,200–$301,600$230KDescription
Senior Forward Deployed EngineerAdobeSan Jose$159,200–$301,600$230KDescription
Senior Forward Deployed EngineerCloudflareHybrid$194,000–$266,000$230KDescription
Senior Forward Deployed Infrastructure EngineerCloudflareHybrid$194,000–$266,000$230KDescription
Technical Program Manager, Forward Deployed Engineering- Applied AIServiceNowSanta Clara, California, United States$166,500–$291,400$229KDescription
Applied Research - Forward-DeployedPrime IntellectNew York +1$150,000–$300,000$225KDescription
Senior Forward Deployed Software Engineer, Strategic DefenseAnduril IndustriesCosta Mesa, California, United States +1$191,000–$253,000$222KDescription
Manager, Forward Deployed Engineering, Creative AIAdobeNew York +1$147,900–$293,250$221KDescription
Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE)CloudflareHybrid$184,000–$253,000$219KDescription
AI Engineer – Forward Deployed Engineering (AI FDE)DatabricksUnited States$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
AI Engineer – Forward Deployed Engineering (AI FDE), U.S. Public Sector (Federal Focus)DatabricksMaryland +2$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed EngineerDatabricksUnited States$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed EngineerDatabricksSan Francisco, California$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed EngineerDatabricksRemote$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed EngineerDatabricksNew York City, New York$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed EngineerDatabricksChicago, Illinois$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed EngineerDatabricksAustin, Texas$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Communications, Media, Entertainment & GamesDatabricksPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Communications, Media, Entertainment & GamesDatabricksRaleigh, North Carolina$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Communications, Media, Entertainment & GamesDatabricksMountain View, California$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Communications, Media, Entertainment & GamesDatabricksDenver, Colorado$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Communications, Media, Entertainment & GamesDatabricksWashington, D.C.$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Communications, Media, Entertainment & GamesDatabricksAtlanta, Georgia$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Communications, Media, Entertainment & GamesDatabricksNew York City, New York$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Communications, Media, Entertainment & GamesDatabricksBoston, Massachusetts$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Communications, Media, Entertainment & GamesDatabricksChicago, Illinois$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Communications, Media, Entertainment & GamesDatabricksAustin, Texas$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Communications, Media, Entertainment & GamesDatabricksDallas, Texas$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Communications, Media, Entertainment & GamesDatabricksSeattle, Washington$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Communications, Media, Entertainment & GamesDatabricksLos Angeles, California$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Communications, Media, Entertainment & GamesDatabricksSan Francisco, California$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Digital Native BusinessDatabricksWest Coast - United States$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Digital Native BusinessDatabricksSeattle, Washington$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Digital Native BusinessDatabricksRemote$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Digital Native BusinessDatabricksRemote$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Digital Native BusinessDatabricksMountain View, California$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Digital Native BusinessDatabricksSan Francisco, California$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Financial ServicesDatabricksWashington, D.C.$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Financial ServicesDatabricksCharlotte, North Carolina$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Financial ServicesDatabricksNew York City, New York$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Financial ServicesDatabricksPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Financial ServicesDatabricksChicago, Illinois$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Financial ServicesDatabricksBoston, Massachusetts$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Financial ServicesDatabricksDallas, Texas$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Financial ServicesDatabricksAtlanta, Georgia$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Financial ServicesDatabricksCentral - United States$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Healthcare & Life SciencesDatabricksPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Healthcare & Life SciencesDatabricksAtlanta, Georgia$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Healthcare & Life SciencesDatabricksAustin, Texas$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Healthcare & Life SciencesDatabricksDallas, Texas$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Healthcare & Life SciencesDatabricksChicago, Illinois$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Healthcare & Life SciencesDatabricksBoston, Massachusetts$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Healthcare & Life SciencesDatabricksNew York City, New York$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - ManufacturingDatabricksSeattle, Washington$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - ManufacturingDatabricksPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - ManufacturingDatabricksBoston, Massachusetts$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - ManufacturingDatabricksNew York City, New York$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Public SectorDatabricksRemote +2$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Public Sector/National SecurityDatabricksWashington, D.C.$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - RetailDatabricksRemote$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - RetailDatabricksDenver, Colorado$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - RetailDatabricksDallas, Texas$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - RetailDatabricksChicago, Illinois$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - RetailDatabricksAustin, Texas$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - RetailDatabricksCentral - United States$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - RetailDatabricksNortheast - United States +1$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer - National SecurityDatabricksRemote +7$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer - National SecurityDatabricksUnited States$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Sr. Forward Deployed Engineer - Public SectorDatabricksAlabama +12$182,000–$250,208$216KDescription
Forward Deployed Software Engineer, Public SectorScale AIAustin, TX +5$138,000–$292,560$215KDescription
Forward Deployed Engineer - MLModalNew York +1$180,000–$250,000$215KFeed
Founding Forward Deployed EngineerGleanNew York, NY$160,000–$270,000$215KDescription
Founding Forward Deployed EngineerGleanRemote$160,000–$270,000$215KDescription
Founding Forward Deployed EngineerGleanMountain View, CA$160,000–$270,000$215KDescription
Forward Deployed Software Engineer, GovOpenAISan Francisco +2$145,800–$280,000$213KFeed
Lead Engagement Manager, FDE - DNBDatabricksSan Francisco, California$178,800–$245,850$212KDescription
Senior Forward Deployed Engineer, AI AgentsCoreWeaveSunnyvale, CA / San Francisco, CA$182,000–$242,000$212KDescription
Forward Deployed Engineer - SystemsModalNew York +1$180,000–$240,000$210KFeed
Forward Deployed EngineerAll Hands AI (OpenHands)Remote +1$175,000–$240,000$208KFeed
Lead Field Technical Program Manager, FDE - Retail, Consumer Goods, Travel, Transportation & HospitalityDatabricksUnited States$151,400–$260,150$206KDescription
Frontier Agents Engineer (Forward Deployed Engineering)Scale AINew York, NY +1$180,000–$225,000$203KDescription
Lead Engagement Manager, FDE - Communications, Media, Entertainment & GamingDatabricksDallas, Texas +2$143,000–$245,850$194KDescription
Lead Engagement Manager, FDE - Healthcare & Life SciencesDatabricksCentral - United States +2$143,000–$245,850$194KDescription
Senior Product Manager, Forward DeployedAnduril IndustriesWashington, District of Columbia, United States$166,000–$220,000$193KDescription
Senior Product Manager, Forward DeployedAnduril IndustriesCosta Mesa, California, United States$166,000–$220,000$193KDescription
Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) - Public SectorDatabricksUnited States$152,900–$210,155$182KDescription
Forward Deployed Creative [US]Luma AIRemote$145,000–$205,000$175KFeed
Forward-Deployed EngineerVercelHybrid - San Francisco, New York City, Austin$137,000–$207,000$172KDescription
Sr. Delivery Partner Manager, FDEDatabricksCentral - United States +2$124,800–$214,500$170KDescription
Sr. Field Technical Program Manager, FDEDatabricksUnited States$124,800–$214,500$170KDescription
Forward Deployed AI EngineerPalantirNew York, NY$135,000–$200,000$168KDescription
Forward Deployed Engineer - Mixed RealityPalantirWashington, D.C.$135,000–$200,000$168KDescription
Forward Deployed Infrastructure Engineer - US GovernmentPalantirHonolulu, HI$135,000–$200,000$168KDescription
Forward Deployed Infrastructure Engineer - US GovernmentPalantirWashington, D.C.$135,000–$200,000$168KDescription
Forward Deployed Infrastructure Engineer - US GovernmentPalantirNew York, NY$135,000–$200,000$168KDescription
Forward Deployed Software EngineerPalantirNew York, NY$135,000–$200,000$168KDescription
Forward Deployed Software Engineer - Autonomous Systems C2PalantirPalo Alto, CA$135,000–$200,000$168KDescription
Forward Deployed Software Engineer - Autonomous Systems C2PalantirSeattle, WA$135,000–$200,000$168KDescription
Forward Deployed Software Engineer - Edge Autonomous SystemsPalantirWashington, D.C.$135,000–$200,000$168KDescription
Forward Deployed Software Engineer - IntelPalantirWashington, D.C.$135,000–$200,000$168KDescription
Forward Deployed Software Engineer - Japan Forward DeployedPalantirWashington, D.C.$135,000–$200,000$168KDescription
Forward Deployed Software Engineer - Korea Forward DeployedPalantirWashington, D.C.$135,000–$200,000$168KDescription
Forward Deployed Software Engineer - Tactical EdgePalantirWashington, D.C.$135,000–$200,000$168KDescription
Forward Deployed Software Engineer - US GovernmentPalantirLaurel, MD$135,000–$200,000$168KDescription
Forward Deployed Software Engineer - US GovernmentPalantirNorfolk, VA$135,000–$200,000$168KDescription
Forward Deployed Software Engineer - US GovernmentPalantirKitsap, WA$135,000–$200,000$168KDescription
Forward Deployed Software Engineer - US GovernmentPalantirFayetteville, NC$135,000–$200,000$168KDescription
Forward Deployed Software Engineer - US GovernmentPalantirSan Diego, CA$135,000–$200,000$168KDescription
Forward Deployed Software Engineer - US GovernmentPalantirNew York, NY$135,000–$200,000$168KDescription
Forward Deployed Software Engineer - US GovernmentPalantirWashington, D.C.$135,000–$200,000$168KDescription
Forward Deployed Software Engineer - US Government - Federal Health and CivilianPalantirWashington, D.C.$135,000–$200,000$168KDescription
Forward Deployed Software Engineer - US Government - Federal Health and CivilianPalantirNew York, NY$135,000–$200,000$168KDescription
Forward Deployed Software Engineer - Warp SpeedPalantirNew York, NY$135,000–$200,000$168KDescription
Sr. Field Technical Program Manager, FDE - Public SectorDatabricksWashington, D.C.$140,400–$193,050$167KDescription
Forward Deployed Software Engineer - US GovernmentPalantirHonolulu, HI$125,000–$200,000$163KDescription
Sr. Engagement Manager, FDE - Financial ServicesDatabricksNortheast - United States$115,800–$199,100$157KDescription
Forward Deployed Site Reliability Engineer - US GovernmentPalantirWashington, D.C.$125,000–$185,000$155KDescription
Forward Deployed AI Engineer, Marketing Intelligence & Consumer InsightsAdobeSan Francisco +2$109,000–$200,700$155KDescription
Sr. Engagement Manager, Forward Deployed Engineering - Public SectorDatabricksRemote +1$130,300–$179,200$155KDescription
Forward Deployed Security Engineer - US GovernmentPalantirWashington, D.C.$110,000–$175,000$143KDescription
Deployment Strategist - Japan Forward DeployedPalantirWashington, D.C.$110,000–$170,000$140KDescription
Deployment Strategist - Korea Forward DeployedPalantirWashington, D.C.$110,000–$170,000$140KDescription
Forward Deployed Infrastructure Engineer, New Grad - US GovernmentPalantirHonolulu, HI$135,000–$145,000$140KDescription
Forward Deployed Infrastructure Engineer, New Grad - US GovernmentPalantirWashington, D.C.$135,000–$145,000$140KDescription
Forward Deployed Infrastructure Engineer, New Grad - US GovernmentPalantirPalo Alto, CA$135,000–$145,000$140KDescription
Forward Deployed Infrastructure Engineer, New Grad - US GovernmentPalantirNew York, NY$135,000–$145,000$140KDescription
Forward Deployed Software Engineer, New Grad - CommercialPalantirChicago, IL$135,000–$145,000$140KDescription
Forward Deployed Software Engineer, New Grad - CommercialPalantirNew York, NY$135,000–$145,000$140KDescription
Forward Deployed Software Engineer, New Grad - Intel, US GovernmentPalantirWashington, D.C.$135,000–$145,000$140KDescription
Forward Deployed Software Engineer, New Grad - US GovernmentPalantirWashington, D.C.$135,000–$145,000$140KDescription
Forward Deployed Software Engineer, New Grad - US GovernmentPalantirNew York, NY$135,000–$145,000$140KDescription
Forward Deployed Engineer, Air Defense (FDE)Anduril IndustriesCosta Mesa, California, United States$113,000–$155,000$134KDescription
Forward Deployed Enablement Engineer - Customer SuccessPalantirWashington, D.C.$110,000–$147,000$129KDescription
Forward Deployed Enablement Engineer - Customer SuccessPalantirNew York, NY$110,000–$147,000$129KDescription
Forward Deployed Reliability EngineerPalantirNew York, NY$110,000–$147,000$129KDescription
Forward Deployed EngineerThe University of Texas at AustinAustin, TX$95,000–$110,000$103KDescription

All 177 listings with pay. Every listing with pay in the Jobs directory (the directory’s “shows pay” also includes hourly and other pay).

How these figures are computed

Method. Only pay employers disclose: the yearly U.S.-dollar base range in the employer’s job feed, or, when the feed gives none, a range stated in the employer’s own job description (labelled “description”). Each listing counts once, at the midpoint of its range (a listing with several location tiers spans its lowest to its highest figure). The median and the middle range (25th to 75th percentile) are of those midpoints. Listings are the current ones in the Jobs directory’s default view: a U.S. location, or no location that can be read.

Left out. Hourly, monthly, open-ended (“up to”), and non-dollar pay; ranges the employer labels as on-target earnings (base plus commission), bonus, equity, or total compensation; ranges with a lower end under $10,000 or an upper end over $2,000,000 a year (not plausible as a yearly base). Nothing is converted, annualized, or estimated. A group is shown only with at least 10 listings with pay.

Caveats. Posted ranges are what employers advertise, not what anyone is paid; many employers (and many states) post wide ranges, and listings without pay are not represented. Sales roles often state on-target earnings (base plus commission) without labelling them, so their figures may include commission. Role groups come from title rules, not job descriptions. There is no trend yet: USASI keeps no history of listings or pay, so each figure is for the listings current when this page was built.

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