2026 Salary — Rhode Island
Updated April 29, 2026
Machine Learning Engineer Salary in Rhode Island: $167K Median
Machine Learning Engineers in Rhode Island earn between $113K and $304K per year.
That's +3% above the US national median.
Quick Answer
As of April 2026, the median Machine Learning Engineer salary in Rhode Island is $166,860 per year — +3% above the US national median of $162,000. Salaries range from $113,300 (entry, 25th percentile) to $303,850 (90th percentile). Rhode Island's cost-of-living index is 110. State income tax applies.
Median
$166,860
+520.0% YoY
Entry
$133,900
Experienced
$257,500
Top 10%
$303,850
About Machine Learning Engineers in Rhode Island
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 Rhode Island
Walk-away anchor: $145,096.
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 — Rhode Island
What is the average Machine Learning Engineer salary in Rhode Island?
The average Machine Learning Engineer salary in Rhode Island is $166,860 per year as of April 2026. Salaries range from $113,300 (entry, 25th percentile) up to $303,850 (90th percentile). State income tax applies.
How does Machine Learning Engineer pay in Rhode Island compare to the US average?
Machine Learning Engineers in Rhode Island earn approximately 3% more than the US national median ($162,000 nationally vs $166,860 in Rhode Island). Rhode Island's cost-of-living index of 110 is close to the national average.
Did Machine Learning Engineer salaries in Rhode Island increase in 2026?
Yes — Machine Learning Engineer salaries in Rhode Island grew approximately 520.0% year-over-year, from $26,913 in 2025 to $166,860 in 2026. This reflects the broader Technology sector's wage growth, driven by LLMs and PyTorch demand.
Which Rhode Island cities pay Machine Learning Engineers the most?
Rhode Island 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 Rhode Island?
ML engineering demand exploded 40%+ in 2025-2026 with the GenAI boom. Frontier labs paying $500K+ for senior roles. Rhode Island's top industries include Healthcare, Education, Defense (Naval), and the state's unemployment rate is 4.5% — steady demand for skilled workers.
Does Rhode Island have state income tax?
Yes, Rhode Island has state income tax. This affects take-home pay — at $166,860, 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 Rhode Island employers.
How can I increase my Machine Learning Engineer salary in Rhode Island?
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 Rhode Island: $145,096.
Methodology
Rhode Island Machine Learning Engineer salary is the BLS national median ($162,000) adjusted by Rhode Island's state multiplier (1.03×). YoY rate from BLS Employment Cost Index. Last reviewed April 29, 2026.
Machine Learning Engineer Salary in Other States
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