Agentic Engineering Jobs logoAgentic Engineering Jobs

LLM Engineer jobs

LLM Engineers build the systems that put large language models to work: retrieval-augmented generation, fine-tuning and adaptation, inference and serving, and the eval pipelines that keep quality high. It's a software-engineering role centered on LLMs rather than classical ML training — and it's the most common on-ramp into agent engineering.

Salary $125k–$270kSkills & stackRemote LLM Engineer jobs
Also called

LLM Engineer · Large Language Model Engineer · Generative AI Engineer · Applied LLM Engineer · GenAI Engineer

Key skills

RAG & embeddings · Fine-tuning / adaptation · Inference & serving · Python · Evals & quality

What a LLM Engineer does

  • •Build retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) systems: chunking, embeddings, retrieval
  • •Fine-tune or adapt models and evaluate whether it beats prompting
  • •Own inference and serving: latency, throughput, cost, caching
  • •Build eval pipelines and quality gates for LLM features
  • •Integrate LLMs into products via APIs, SDKs, and tool use

Leveling

Junior
Builds LLM features against clear specs (RAG, prompts, integrations).
Mid
Owns an LLM system end-to-end: retrieval, serving, evals, cost.
Senior
Designs LLM infrastructure and standards; often grows into agent engineering.

Salary by level

Full salary breakdown →
Junior
$125k–$165k
Mid
$160k–$210k
Senior
$195k–$270k

US total-cash ranges synthesized from aggregated public job postings and market data as of 2026. Individual offers vary widely by location, company stage, and equity; treat these as directional bands, not guarantees.

Open LLM Engineer roles (13)

Search & filter →

LLM Engineer FAQ

What is an LLM engineer?
An LLM engineer builds applications and infrastructure on top of large language models — RAG, fine-tuning/adaptation, inference and serving, and eval pipelines. It's a software-engineering role centered on LLMs rather than training models from scratch.
What's the difference between an LLM engineer and an AI agent engineer?
LLM engineering covers the broad set of LLM-powered systems (RAG, serving, fine-tuning). Agent engineering is the subset focused on autonomous, tool-using agents — planning loops, memory, and agent evals. LLM engineering is the most common on-ramp into agent work.
Is 'generative AI engineer' the same as 'LLM engineer'?
Largely yes — the titles are used interchangeably for roles building products on generative models. 'Generative AI engineer' sometimes implies broader media (image/audio) work, but for text/LLM products they're effectively the same role.
How much does an LLM engineer make?
In the US, total-cash ranges run roughly $125k–$165k (junior), $160k–$210k (mid), and $195k–$270k (senior), with top AI labs paying well above these bands.

Learn more

  • What Is an LLM Engineer?

    A clear definition of the LLM Engineer role: what they build, core skills, the typical stack, salary ranges, and how it differs from agent and prompt roles.

Related agentic roles

AI Agent EngineerPrompt EngineerAgentOps Engineer