2026 Salary — South Dakota
Updated April 29, 2026
Machine Learning Engineer Salary in South Dakota: $151K Median
Machine Learning Engineers in South Dakota earn between $102K and $274K per year.
That's -7% below the US national median.
Quick Answer
As of April 2026, the median Machine Learning Engineer salary in South Dakota is $150,660 per year — -7% below the US national median of $162,000. Salaries range from $102,300 (entry, 25th percentile) to $274,350 (90th percentile). South Dakota's cost-of-living index is 93. South Dakota has no state income tax.
Median
$150,660
+520.0% YoY
Entry
$120,900
Experienced
$232,500
Top 10%
$274,350
About Machine Learning Engineers in South Dakota
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 South Dakota
Walk-away anchor: $131,009.
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 — South Dakota
What is the average Machine Learning Engineer salary in South Dakota?
The average Machine Learning Engineer salary in South Dakota is $150,660 per year as of April 2026. Salaries range from $102,300 (entry, 25th percentile) up to $274,350 (90th percentile). South Dakota has no state income tax — increasing take-home meaningfully.
How does Machine Learning Engineer pay in South Dakota compare to the US average?
Machine Learning Engineers in South Dakota earn approximately 7% less than the US national median ($162,000 nationally vs $150,660 in South Dakota). South Dakota's cost-of-living index of 93 amplifies the real purchasing power.
Did Machine Learning Engineer salaries in South Dakota increase in 2026?
Yes — Machine Learning Engineer salaries in South Dakota grew approximately 520.0% year-over-year, from $24,300 in 2025 to $150,660 in 2026. This reflects the broader Technology sector's wage growth, driven by LLMs and PyTorch demand.
Which South Dakota cities pay Machine Learning Engineers the most?
South Dakota 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 South Dakota?
ML engineering demand exploded 40%+ in 2025-2026 with the GenAI boom. Frontier labs paying $500K+ for senior roles. South Dakota's top industries include Finance (Credit Cards), Agriculture, Tourism, and the state's unemployment rate is 2.5% — a tight labor market favoring candidates.
Does South Dakota have state income tax?
No, South Dakota has no state income tax. This significantly boosts take-home pay vs comparable salaries in tax states like California or New York. At $150,660, you keep all of it (after federal + FICA).
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 South Dakota employers.
How can I increase my Machine Learning Engineer salary in South Dakota?
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 South Dakota: $131,009.
Methodology
South Dakota Machine Learning Engineer salary is the BLS national median ($162,000) adjusted by South Dakota's state multiplier (0.93×). YoY rate from BLS Employment Cost Index. Last reviewed April 29, 2026.
Machine Learning Engineer Salary in Other States
Land a $151K+ Machine Learning Engineer Role in South Dakota
CVCraft scans your resume against South Dakota ATS systems — free, 60 seconds.
Scan My Resume Free