How Much Do Forward Deployed Engineers Make? We Read All 89 AI Postings (Sept. 2026)
Short answer: at the AI companies hiring for it on September 19, 2026, a forward deployed engineer in the US is posted at a median of $185,000 to $300,000 a year. We read all 89 forward deployed postings on 20 AI company job boards this morning; 25 of them print a US range, from a low of $153,000 to a ceiling of $445,000. That is well above the $178,578 US average Indeed reports for the title. The price of that pay is written further down each posting: up to half your working time on the road.
Salary sites average thousands of self-reports and old ads. We did the opposite: one morning, one job title, every posting read in full on the employer’s own board. Here is what the ranges are, who hides them, how much travel and experience the postings actually ask for, and what the numbers do not include.
What does a forward deployed engineer do?
A forward deployed engineer, or FDE, is a software engineer who works inside a customer’s organization instead of only on the company’s own product. OpenAI’s US postings describe it as embedding “deeply with strategic customers” to build and ship what they need. In plain terms: you take a powerful AI model and make it do a real job for a bank, a hospital or a government agency, on their systems and their deadlines.
The title was popularized by Palantir, which put engineers on site with intelligence and defense clients. Palantir is not one of the 20 boards we scan, so its numbers are not in this count. The AI labs borrowed the model because the same problem came back: the technology only pays off once someone wires it into a messy, real workplace.
How much do forward deployed engineers make at AI companies?
Eight of the 20 companies we track had forward deployed postings open today. Four print US pay ranges and four print none. Anthropic posts the highest median range, $280,000 to $365,000, across three US postings. OpenAI posts the most: 13 US ranges, eight of them the identical $185,000 to $300,000 band.
| Company | FDE postings (US-based) | Median posted range | Travel the postings state |
|---|---|---|---|
| OpenAI | 21 (14) | $185K–$300K | Up to 50% (17 postings) |
| Scale AI | 18 (8) | $213K–$296K | Mostly not stated |
| ElevenLabs | 18 (2) | Not published | Required, no share given |
| Cohere | 17 (2) | Not published | 20–40% (16 postings) |
| Anthropic | 7 (3) | $280K–$365K | 25–50% (5 postings) |
| Cursor | 6 (2) | Not published | Not stated |
| Replit | 1 (1) | $180K–$300K | Not stated |
| Physical Intelligence | 1 (1) | Not published | Not stated |
Counted September 19, 2026, from the 20 AI company boards we scan every morning. “US-based” means the posting’s location is in the United States; the other 56 are in London, Paris, Tokyo, Riyadh, Ottawa and other cities abroad, or give no country.
Every posted range, one line each:
| Role · company | Location | Posted US range | First posted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forward Deployed Security Engineer OpenAI |
Washington, DC | $266K–$445K | May 21, 2026 |
| Manager, Forward Deployed Engineering Anthropic |
New York City, NY | $320K–$405K | Feb 5, 2026 |
| Pre-Sales Program Lead, Forward Deployed Engineering Anthropic |
San Francisco, CA + 1 more | $270K–$365K | Aug 19, 2026 |
| Sr. Director, (Applied AI) Forward Deployed Engineering Scale AI |
New York, NY | $285.2K–$356.5K | Aug 10, 2026 |
| Forward Deployed Product Manager, Public Sector Scale AI |
New York, NY + 1 more | $210K–$345K | Jul 14, 2026 |
| Forward Deployed Software Engineer – SF OpenAI |
San Francisco | $185K–$325K | Nov 15, 2025 |
| Forward Deployed Software Engineer – NYC OpenAI |
New York City | $153K–$325K | Dec 10, 2025 |
| Forward Deployed Software Engineer – Seattle OpenAI |
Seattle | $153K–$325K | Mar 4, 2026 |
| Forward Deployed Engineer Anthropic |
New York City, NY + 2 more | $280K–$320K | Aug 12, 2026 |
| Staff Frontier Agents Engineer (Forward Deployed Engineering) Scale AI |
San Francisco, CA + 1 more | $252K–$315K | May 15, 2026 |
| Physical Design Engineer, Forward Deployed Engineering OpenAI |
San Francisco | $260K–$302K | Sept 9, 2026 |
| Forward Deployed Product Manager, Enterprise Scale AI |
New York, NY | $240K–$300K | Mar 13, 2026 |
| Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE), Healthcare – Seattle OpenAI |
Seattle | $185K–$300K | Aug 6, 2026 |
| Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE), Healthcare – NYC OpenAI |
New York City | $185K–$300K | Aug 6, 2026 |
| Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE), Healthcare – SF OpenAI |
San Francisco | $185K–$300K | Aug 6, 2026 |
| Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE), Legal-NYC OpenAI |
New York City | $185K–$300K | Aug 26, 2026 |
| Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE), Legal-SF OpenAI |
New York City | $185K–$300K | Aug 27, 2026 |
| Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) – Seattle OpenAI |
Seattle | $185K–$300K | Sept 11, 2026 |
| Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE) – SF OpenAI |
San Francisco | $185K–$300K | Sept 11, 2026 |
| Forward Deployed Engineer (FDE), Financial Services- NYC OpenAI |
New York City | $185K–$300K | Sept 18, 2026 |
| Forward Deployed Engineer Replit |
Foster City, CA | $180K–$300K | Aug 24, 2026 |
| Forward Deployed Software Engineer, Public Sector Scale AI |
Austin, TX + 5 more | $184K–$292.6K | Oct 9, 2024 |
| Senior Frontier Agents Engineer (Forward Deployed Engineering) Scale AI |
San Francisco, CA + 1 more | $216K–$270K | May 15, 2026 |
| Frontier Agents Engineer (Forward Deployed Engineering) Scale AI |
San Francisco, CA + 1 more | $180K–$225K | May 15, 2026 |
| Forward Deployed Engineer, GenAI Scale AI |
San Francisco, CA + 1 more | $179.4K–$224.2K | Aug 5, 2025 |
All 25 forward deployed postings that print a US pay range, read on each employer’s own job board on September 19, 2026, highest ceiling first. Ranges are the annual figures the employer publishes. “First posted” is the board’s original date, not its last refresh.
Three things the ranges do not tell you. First, these are the figures employers print, not offers; why the ranges are so wide explains how to read a $153,000-to-$325,000 spread. Second, equity sits on top at most of these companies: OpenAI’s board labels its FDE postings “Offers Equity,” and Scale AI states that packages “include base salary, equity, and benefits.” Third, Anthropic’s postings carry a line saying that for sales roles the range is on-target earnings, meaning it includes commission. The postings do not say whether an FDE counts as a sales role, so ask the recruiter before you compare offers.
For how these numbers stack up against other roles, see which AI company pays the most and why so many postings hide pay.
How much do forward deployed engineers travel?
This is the second most common thing people search about the job, and the postings answer it more plainly than any salary site. 63 of the 89 postings mention travel. Forty put a number on it: 23 say up to 50%, and 17 say up to 40%.
The pattern is company by company. OpenAI’s US postings say “Travel up to 50% is required” alongside a hybrid model of three office days a week. Anthropic’s say “Travel frequently (25-50%) to customer sites.” Cohere’s 16 postings say 20 to 40%. ElevenLabs requires travel in all 18 postings without giving a share, and 16 of Scale AI’s 18 do not mention it at all.
Half your time traveling is roughly two and a half days a week away from home. If that does not fit your life, it is better to learn it from the posting than from the offer letter. Our note on what “remote-friendly” means at Anthropic covers the office side of the same trade-off.
Can you be a forward deployed engineer without years of experience?
Rarely. None of the 89 postings is an entry-level role. Thirty-eight state a minimum number of years, and the typical minimum is five. Only four accept two years.
The rest describe what they want instead: shipping production software, talking to executives, and debugging a customer’s system under pressure. Eight postings mention security clearance, all on government, public sector or security teams at OpenAI, Scale AI and Cohere.If you are early in your career, the roles in entry-level AI jobs with no experience and AI jobs that do not require coding are the realistic starting point, and do you need a PhD to work in AI answers the degree question (for this job, no).
Is a forward deployed engineer job remote?
Mostly not. Of the 33 US-based postings, four are remote: two at ElevenLabs and two at Cohere. Twelve of OpenAI’s 13 paid US postings are hybrid and one is fully on-site, all in San Francisco, New York City, Seattle or Washington, DC.Remote here does not mean home all week; the travel still applies. We looked at the wider picture in are AI engineer jobs remote.
The part salary sites miss: the job is holding steady while ranges drift
Because we snapshot the same 20 boards every morning, we can watch this title over time. On August 22 there were 84 forward deployed postings. Today there are 89. Over the same four weeks all 20 boards grew from 3,652 roles to 3,851. In other words, FDE hiring is growing roughly in step with AI hiring overall, not faster. Search interest suggests a gold rush; the postings show a steady, specialized job at about 2% of openings.
The other thing a salary average hides is how often the title is posted abroad. More than half of today’s FDE postings, 56 of 89, are outside the US or give no country, many in the Gulf, Asia and Europe, and none of those print pay. Our AI jobs tracker records the full daily count, and our note on old postings explains why a fresh-looking date can mislead.
What to do with this today
- Open the posting from the table above, not from a repost, and read the travel line before the pay line.
- Compare offers on base salary alone first, then ask whether the range includes commission and how equity is valued.
- Count your years of shipped, customer-facing work honestly. Five is the typical minimum.
- If you hold a clearance, the public sector postings are where it is worth the most.
- Browse every other open role and apply on the employer’s own site at our AI jobs board.
If you want to go deeper
How do you get hired at one of these labs? See how to get a job at OpenAI or Anthropic, whether OpenAI is still hiring and whether Anthropic is hiring right now. Should AI tools go on your resume? Here is our answer. When should you apply? What day of the week most jobs are posted. Clearance route? Start with how to get a federal job.
Cite this
On September 19, 2026, Prof H Lab read all 89 open forward deployed engineer postings on the job boards of 20 AI companies. Twenty-five printed a US pay range; the median range was $185,000 to $300,000 a year. Forty postings stated a travel share of up to 40% or 50%, and the typical minimum experience, where stated, was five years. Source: profhlab.com/ai-jobs-tracker.
We are not recruiters. We take no money from employers and we are not paid for any link on this page. Every posting above links to the employer’s own board. Postings close without notice — the official page always wins. Never pay anyone for a job, never deposit a check you are asked to forward, and a text message is not an offer. Have a question about your own search? Ask the Jobs Desk.
Questions readers ask about forward deployed engineer pay
How much do forward deployed engineers make?
At the AI companies hiring for the role on September 19, 2026, the 25 forward deployed engineer postings that print a US pay range had a median range of $185,000 to $300,000 a year, with a lowest low of $153,000 and a highest ceiling of $445,000. Indeed reports a US average of $178,578 for the title. Equity is offered on top at several of these companies.
How much do forward deployed engineers travel?
Of 89 forward deployed postings read on September 19, 2026, 63 mention travel. Twenty-three say up to 50% travel, including OpenAI’s US postings; 17 say up to 40%, mostly Cohere’s 20 to 40%. Anthropic’s postings say 25 to 50% travel to customer sites. Twenty-six postings do not mention travel.
What is a forward deployed engineer?
A forward deployed engineer is a software engineer who works directly inside a customer’s organization to build and ship what that customer needs, usually on top of the employer’s AI models. The title was popularized by Palantir and is now used by OpenAI, Anthropic, Scale AI, Cohere, ElevenLabs, Cursor and others.
Which AI company pays forward deployed engineers the most?
On September 19, 2026, Anthropic had the highest median posted US range for forward deployed roles, $280,000 to $365,000 across three postings. The single highest ceiling was OpenAI’s Forward Deployed Security Engineer in Washington, DC, at $266,000 to $445,000. ElevenLabs, Cohere, Cursor and Physical Intelligence print no ranges.
Is a forward deployed engineer an entry-level job?
No. None of the 89 forward deployed postings open on September 19, 2026 was entry level. Of the 38 that state a minimum, the typical requirement was five years of experience, and only four accepted two years.
Are forward deployed engineer jobs remote?
Mostly not. Of 33 US-based forward deployed postings on September 19, 2026, four were remote, at ElevenLabs and Cohere. Twelve of OpenAI’s 13 paid US postings were hybrid, with three office days a week, and one was on-site; travel still applies to remote roles.
Do forward deployed engineers get equity?
At several AI companies, yes. OpenAI’s job board lists its forward deployed postings as offering equity, and Scale AI states that its compensation packages include base salary, equity and benefits. Anthropic notes that for sales roles its posted range includes commission, so ask how an offer is split before comparing.
We count AI hiring every morning and publish what the boards actually say. Next we will check whether the FDE count keeps pace with overall AI hiring through October 1, and whether any of the four silent companies starts printing pay. See also which AI companies are hiring right now, whether the xAI AI tutor job is legit, the Jobs Desk, and will AI take my job. One short email a month.
Prof.’s H Newsletter
One short email a month, with the numbers in it
What actually moved in AI hiring, AI prices, and the scams aimed at older Americans. Counted here, dated, and linked to the source. One email a month, and your address goes nowhere else.
