Data Scientist vs LLM Engineer

Head-to-head comparison of salary, required skills, and career outlook for two of the most in-demand AI roles.

Quick Verdict

Both roles pay similarly, so compensation shouldn't be the deciding factor. Choose Data Scientist if you want more open positions (161 vs 116 currently listed). Data Scientist focuses on extracting insights and building predictive models, while LLM Engineer centers on building LLM-powered applications and infrastructure.

Side-by-Side Comparison

Dimension	Data Scientist	LLM Engineer
Open Positions	161	116
Avg Salary Range	$151K–$224K	$144K–$233K
Median Salary	$222K	$223K
75th Percentile	$258K	$258K
Remote %	23%	25%
Experience Mix	Senior 95%, Mid 5%	Senior 88%, Mid 12%
Top Skill	RAG	RAG

Skills Comparison

Data Scientist Top Skills

RAGPythonAWSRustPyTorchGCPAzureTensorFlow

LLM Engineer Top Skills

RAGAWSRustAI AgentsPythonGCPAzureJavaScript

Skills You'd Need for Both Roles

These skills appear in top-8 for both Data Scientist and LLM Engineer: AWS, Azure, GCP, Python, RAG, Rust. If you have these skills, you're well-positioned for either path.

Salary Deep Dive

Data Scientist LLM Engineer

25th Percentile

$184K

$202K

Median

$222K

$223K

Average

$224K

$233K

75th Percentile

$258K

LLM Engineer pays 3% more on average than Data Scientist.

Based on 130 and 95 job postings with disclosed compensation, respectively.

Top Hiring Companies

Data Scientist

Microsoft12 jobs

Amazon.com11 jobs

Information Technology Senior Management Forum10 jobs

Amazon Web Services10 jobs

GEICO5 jobs

Capital One5 jobs

LLM Engineer

Amazon.com21 jobs

Google15 jobs

Microsoft13 jobs

Scribd6 jobs

Amazon Web Services4 jobs

Lilt- Lega Italiana per la Lotta contro i Tumori4 jobs

Career Path

Data Scientist Career Path

Typical progression: Senior Data Scientist, Lead Data Scientist, Head of Data Science. Focuses on extracting insights and building predictive models.

LLM Engineer Career Path

Typical progression: Senior LLM Engineer, AI Architect, Head of AI. Focuses on building LLM-powered applications and infrastructure.

Switching Between Roles

With 6 overlapping skills (75% of top skills), transitioning between these roles is feasible with targeted upskilling.

Data Scientist vs LLM Engineer FAQ

LLM Engineer pays more on average, with a mean salary ceiling of $233K compared to $224K for Data Scientist — a 3% difference. However, top Data Scientist roles at leading companies can match or exceed average LLM Engineer compensation.

Yes, there is meaningful skill overlap. Both roles share these top skills: AWS, Azure, GCP, Python, RAG, Rust. You would need to develop expertise in LLM Engineer-specific skills like domain-specific tools. Lateral moves are common in the AI industry.

Data Scientist roles are 23% remote, while LLM Engineer roles are 25% remote. Both offer comparable remote flexibility.

Shared top skills include: AWS, Azure, GCP, Python, RAG, Rust. These transferable skills make it easier to pivot between the two roles. Python and general ML knowledge are common foundations for both.

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