2026 Salary — Arkansas
Updated April 29, 2026
Machine Learning Engineer Salary in Arkansas: $138K Median
Machine Learning Engineers in Arkansas earn between $94K and $251K per year.
That's -15% below the US national median.
Quick Answer
As of April 2026, the median Machine Learning Engineer salary in Arkansas is $137,700 per year — -15% below the US national median of $162,000. Salaries range from $93,500 (entry, 25th percentile) to $250,750 (90th percentile). Arkansas's cost-of-living index is 87. State income tax applies.
Median
$137,700
+520.0% YoY
Entry
$110,500
Experienced
$212,500
Top 10%
$250,750
About Machine Learning Engineers in Arkansas
ML engineers design, build, and deploy machine learning models at scale, bridging research and production engineering.
Hot 2026 Skills
LLMsPyTorchRAG/fine-tuningDistributed trainingMLOps
ATS Keywords
PythonPyTorchTensorFlowscikit-learnMLOpsKubernetesfeature engineeringdistributed trainingLLMs
How to Negotiate Your Machine Learning Engineer Salary in Arkansas
Walk-away anchor: $119,739.
Leverage Points
- Reference levels.fyi total compensation data for your level (L4/L5/etc.) at comparable companies
- Quantify recent shipped impact: latency reduced, revenue driven, on-call incidents resolved
- Hold a competing offer (or credible interview pipeline) before the salary conversation
- Highlight in-demand skill premiums: LLMs, Kubernetes, Rust, distributed systems
Negotiate Beyond Base
Sign-on bonus ($25K-$100K is standard at Big Tech)RSU refreshers and accelerated vesting cliffsRemote/hybrid flexibility and home-office stipendAnnual learning budget and conference allowanceSabbatical eligibility after 4-5 years
Machine Learning Engineer Salary FAQ — Arkansas
What is the average Machine Learning Engineer salary in Arkansas?
The average Machine Learning Engineer salary in Arkansas is $137,700 per year as of April 2026. Salaries range from $93,500 (entry, 25th percentile) up to $250,750 (90th percentile). State income tax applies.
How does Machine Learning Engineer pay in Arkansas compare to the US average?
Machine Learning Engineers in Arkansas earn approximately 15% less than the US national median ($162,000 nationally vs $137,700 in Arkansas). Arkansas's cost-of-living index of 87 amplifies the real purchasing power.
Did Machine Learning Engineer salaries in Arkansas increase in 2026?
Yes — Machine Learning Engineer salaries in Arkansas grew approximately 520.0% year-over-year, from $22,210 in 2025 to $137,700 in 2026. This reflects the broader Technology sector's wage growth, driven by LLMs and PyTorch demand.
Which Arkansas cities pay Machine Learning Engineers the most?
Arkansas has no major metros in our database — fallback to the closest tracked city for detailed breakdowns.
What's the job outlook for Machine Learning Engineers in Arkansas?
ML engineering demand exploded 40%+ in 2025-2026 with the GenAI boom. Frontier labs paying $500K+ for senior roles. Arkansas's top industries include Retail (Walmart HQ), Logistics (J.B. Hunt), Agriculture, and the state's unemployment rate is 3.5% — a tight labor market favoring candidates.
Does Arkansas have state income tax?
Yes, Arkansas has state income tax. This affects take-home pay — at $137,700, expect 4-7% effective state tax depending on filing status. See city pages for detailed take-home calculations.
What skills are most in demand for Machine Learning Engineers in 2026?
Hottest 2026 skills: LLMs, PyTorch, RAG/fine-tuning, Distributed training, MLOps. ATS systems specifically scan for these. Adding them to your resume — naturally and in context — improves your match rate with Arkansas employers.
How can I increase my Machine Learning Engineer salary in Arkansas?
Based on levels.fyi data and what I'm seeing from comparable offers, total compensation for this level is closer to $X base plus equity. Can we close the gap on base or front-load the RSU grant? Beyond base, negotiate: Sign-on bonus ($25K-$100K is standard at Big Tech), RSU refreshers and accelerated vesting cliffs, Remote/hybrid flexibility and home-office stipend, Annual learning budget and conference allowance. Walk-away anchor for Arkansas: $119,739.
Methodology
Arkansas Machine Learning Engineer salary is the BLS national median ($162,000) adjusted by Arkansas's state multiplier (0.85×). YoY rate from BLS Employment Cost Index. Last reviewed April 29, 2026.
Machine Learning Engineer Salary in Other States
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