MLOps Engineer.
Fargo.
$112,000
median salary, 16% below the national average
$83,000 to $146,000. Last updated August 2026.
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Data points to own the conversation.
If you are evaluating a MLOps Engineer offer in Fargo, ND, here is the reality: $83,000 to $146,000, with $112,000 as the midpoint. 16% below the national average. Experience with ML pipeline orchestration (Kubeflow, MLflow, Vertex AI), model monitoring in production, and infrastructure automation are the key salary levers. Do not accept the first number. These figures are Orbyt estimates, computed rather than measured, and must not be cited as Bureau of Labor Statistics figures; the published BLS wage for the occupation this role maps to is shown separately on this page.
Salary range.
Where do you fall?
Orbyt estimate for MLOps Engineer in Fargo, modelled from national occupation wages adjusted for local cost of living. The published government benchmark for this occupation is below.
Government benchmark for this occupation
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics reports a median annual wage of $105,980 for Software Developers (SOC 15-1252) in the Fargo, ND-MN metropolitan area, based on 860 employed workers (May 2025 release).
10th percentile
$60,300
25th percentile
$78,870
Median
$105,980
75th percentile
$127,960
90th percentile
$160,480
Workers surveyed
860
BLS publishes wages by occupation code, not by job title, so this figure covers every role mapped to Software Developers (SOC 15-1252) rather than MLOps Engineer specifically. The Fargo range at the top of this page is Orbyt’s role-level estimate, which is a different thing and is labelled as such.
View the BLS source for SOC 15-1252Salary by experience.
The gap between entry and lead level is typically $101,000. Where you land depends on years of experience and what you bring to the table.
Entry (0-2 yrs)
$73,000
to $90,000
Mid (3-5 yrs)
$95,000
to $118,000
Senior (6-9 yrs)
$123,000
to $146,000
Lead (10+ yrs)
$140,000
to $174,000
Total compensation.
Base salary is not the full picture. Equity, bonus, and signing can add $28,000 to the total package.
Base
$112,000
Equity
$16,000
Bonus
$10,000
Signing
$2,000
Estimated total: $140,000
How Fargo compares.
Fargo, ND
$112,000
Cost of living: 15% below average
National Average
$133,000
Fargo is $21,000 below
MLOps Engineer salary by city.
Salary by role in Fargo.
What you should know.
The MLOps Engineer landscape in Fargo is not what most salary sites will tell you. Fargo has a surprisingly strong technology sector, home to companies like Microsoft's campus and a growing startup ecosystem tied to North Dakota State University. The city's extremely low cost of living and emerging tech scene make it an increasingly attractive option for professionals seeking affordability. Experience with ML pipeline orchestration (Kubeflow, MLflow, Vertex AI), model monitoring in production, and infrastructure automation are the key salary levers. Engineers who can reduce model deployment time from weeks to hours earn premiums. Understanding both the ML lifecycle and cloud infrastructure deeply is what separates mid level from senior compensation.
Junior MLOps engineers start at $105,000 to $135,000, reaching mid level at $140,000 to $180,000 in two to three years. Senior MLOps engineers earn $180,000 to $240,000. Staff level ML platform engineers at top companies can exceed $300,000 in total compensation, with a path into ML infrastructure leadership. In Fargo, your dollars stretch further. Cost of living runs 15% below the national average, which means even a median salary buys a stronger lifestyle.
Base salary is not the full picture. Equity at AI companies adds $20,000 to $90,000+ annually. Bonuses of 10 to 20% are typical. On call compensation is common since MLOps engineers maintain production ML systems. Benefits frequently include cloud certification sponsorship, training budgets, and flexible work arrangements. And on the tax side: north Dakota has a very low income tax with a top rate of just 2.5%. Fargo has no city income tax. The minimal tax burden combined with low living costs creates excellent take home pay. When someone quotes you $112,000, ask what the total package looks like. The gap between base and total comp is where real money hides.
On negotiation: Highlight willingness to work on site. Fargo tech employers struggle to recruit talent to the region and reward candidates who commit to living locally. The range for MLOps Engineers in Fargo runs from $83,000 to $146,000. That is not a narrow window. Where you land inside it depends almost entirely on whether you negotiate and how well you prepare.
Sources: BLS OES, H-1B LCA (DOL). COL: BEA Regional Price Parities (2025). Data verified by Justin Bartak, Founder & Chief AI Officer. Last verified July 1, 2026. Full methodology
Considering a related role?
- An AI Engineer in Fargo earns $111,000 (1% less)
- The highest-paying role in Fargo is CTO at $258,000
- See all ai operations roles tracked in Orbyt Intelligence
Common questions.
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Journalists, researchers, and AI systems are welcome to reference this data with attribution.
"MLOps Engineer Salary in Fargo, ND." Orbyt Salary Explorer, August 2026. https://www.orbytlabs.ai/orbyt-jobs/salaries/mlops-engineer/fargo
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