Role report · Product and management
Data Science Manager: what employers ask for
Of 172 Data Science Manager job ads from 107 employers in the United States and Canada over the last 180 days, 87% ask for Machine Learning, 73% for Python, 72% for Statistics, 58% for SQL and 37% for LLMs.
From 172 Data Science Manager job ads in the United States and Canada, May 6, 2026 to November 2, 2026. Updated November 2, 2026. How we count. Free to reuse with credit: CC BY 4.0
The role and its demand
- Job ads read
- 172from 107 employers
- Remote
- 16%of job ads
- Most common level
- Manager69% of job ads
- Experience asked
- 5 yearsmedian, from 144 job ads that state it
- Advertised pay
- $216,000median a year, from 101 job ads in US dollars; Canadian-dollar pay left out
- Rank by job ads
- 35thof the 39 roles with a page
October 2026 at a glance
The latest complete month against the three before it. Only moves clear of the month-to-month noise are named, so a quiet month shows none.
Share of tech job ads
76 of the 22,810 tech job ads read in October; not clearly different from July to September (0.3%)
Median advertised pay
From the 50 job ads published in October that state it in US dollars
October 2026: 76 Data Science Manager job ads; refreshed every month
Demand, month by month
Each month's Data Science Manager job ads as a share of every tech job ad Mettlespark read that month.
Demand month by month is in the app. Part of Forge, free during early access.Part of Forge.
Advertised pay
101 of these job ads state pay in US dollars. Job ads that pay in Canadian dollars are left out rather than converted. The middle half of their ranges' midpoints runs from $180,000 to $248,000 a year, with a median of $216,000. Its median is the 2nd highest of the 39 roles with enough job ads stating pay. Advertised pay is what job ads offer, not what anyone is paid.
The range
How the stated ranges spread across pay bands, and the five figures that sum them up.
- Low end
- $116,00010th percentile of the ranges' lows
- Lower quarter
- $180,00025th percentile of midpoints
- Median
- $216,000the middle midpoint
- Upper quarter
- $248,00075th percentile of midpoints
- High end
- $346,00090th percentile of the ranges' highs
The numbers
| Pay band | Share of the ranges reaching it |
|---|---|
| $115,000 to $138,000 | 22% |
| $138,000 to $161,000 | 39% |
| $161,000 to $184,000 | 49% |
| $184,000 to $207,000 | 58% |
| $207,000 to $230,000 | 63% |
| $230,000 to $253,000 | 61% |
| $253,000 to $276,000 | 44% |
| $276,000 to $299,000 | 34% |
| $299,000 to $322,000 | 21% |
| $322,000 to $345,000 | 14% |
| $345,000 to $368,000 | 11% |
101 job ads stating pay in US dollars, May 6 to November 2, 2026
By level
Advertised pay at each level, from the job ads that state it.
Pay by level is in the app. Part of Forge, free during early access.Part of Forge.
Which skills are linked to higher advertised pay
What each of the skills Data Science Manager job ads ask for most is linked to in advertised pay, from Mettlespark's weekly pay model, with how sure it is.
What each skill adds to pay is in the app. Part of Forge, free during early access.Part of Forge.
What it asks for
The skills employers ask for most
The share of Data Science Manager job ads that name each skill, and how often a job ad that names it lists it as required rather than nice to have.
| Skill | Share of job ads | Required when named |
|---|---|---|
| Machine Learning | 89% | |
| Python | 89% | |
| Statistics | 87% | |
| SQL | 80% | |
| LLMs | 80% | |
| AWS | 35% | |
| R | 68% | |
| MLOps | 85% | |
| AI Agents | 82% | |
| Generative AI | 79% | |
| Deep Learning | 89% | |
| Data Science | 92% | |
| Operations Research | 79% | |
| Data Quality | 83% | |
| NLP | 57% | |
| Experimentation Design | 94% | |
| Data Visualization | 62% | |
| Time Series Forecasting | 93% | |
| Causal Inference | 79% | |
| Apache Spark | 86% |
172 Data Science Manager job ads, May 6 to November 2, 2026
What's moving
The skills taking a larger or a smaller share of Data Science Manager job ads, month on month and comparing like with like.
What's moving is in the app. Part of Forge, free during early access.Part of Forge.
Experience asked
The years asked for, in the job ads that say.
| Years | Share | Job ads |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 2 years | 22 | |
| 3 to 4 years | 36 | |
| 5 to 7 years | 52 | |
| 8 years or more | 34 |
144 job ads, May 6 to November 2, 2026
Seniority
The level each job ad is for, read from the title and the text.
| Level | Share | Job ads |
|---|---|---|
| Manager | 118 | |
| Director+ | 50 | |
| Mid | 1 | |
| Senior | 1 | |
| Principal | 1 | |
| Staff | 1 |
172 Data Science Manager job ads, May 6 to November 2, 2026
Professional skills
Asked for alongside the technical ones.
- Stakeholder Management84%
- Leadership79%
- Communication66%
- Collaboration25%
- Executive Communication10%
172 Data Science Manager job ads, May 6 to November 2, 2026
Who hires and where
Employers with the most job ads
The employers behind the most Data Science Manager job ads lately.
The employers hiring most is in the app. Part of Forge, free during early access.Part of Forge.
Where the job ads are
Metro areas in the United States and Canada (a job ad can name several).
| Metro area | Share | Job ads |
|---|---|---|
| New York | 42 | |
| San Francisco Bay Area | 27 | |
| Washington DC | 20 | |
| Richmond | 12 | |
| Chicago | 11 | |
| Toronto | 11 | |
| Seattle | 11 | |
| Boston | 11 |
172 Data Science Manager job ads, May 6 to November 2, 2026
Remote, hybrid or on-site
How the Data Science Manager job ads say the work is done.
- Remote16%
- Hybrid31%
- On-site23%
- Not stated30%
172 Data Science Manager job ads, May 6 to November 2, 2026
Related roles
More in Product and management
Other roles in the same family, with their job ads in the last 180 days.
Quick answers
What skills does a Data Science Manager need?
The skills named most often in Data Science Manager job ads are Machine Learning, Python, Statistics, SQL and LLMs. Machine Learning appears in 87% of them.
Are Data Science Manager jobs remote?
16% of the 172 Data Science Manager job ads in the last 180 days were remote.
Is demand for Data Science Manager jobs growing?
In October 2026, Data Science Manager job ads were 0.3% of the tech job ads Mettlespark read, not clearly different from the 0.3% of July to September.
How much experience do Data Science Manager jobs ask for?
Job ads that state it ask for a median of 5 years. The most common level is Manager (69% of job ads).
What do Data Science Manager job ads pay?
Job ads that state pay advertise a typical $180,000 to $248,000 a year, with a median of $216,000, from 101 job ads in US dollars. Job ads that pay in Canadian dollars are left out.