Average Salaries ($K)
Richmond 2020-2024
Data Salary review
Richmond
2020 - 2024
- 14% Average Cost Of Living Rise
- #20/23 Cheapest City To Live
- 8% Average Salary Rise
- #22/23 Salary Growth - All Roles
- #20/23 Salary Growth For Heads Of Data
- #20/23 Salary Growth For Data Engineers
- #23/23 Salary Growth For Data Analyst
- #5/23 Salary Growth For Data Scientists
Overview
Richmond’s slower growth as a tech hub can be attributed to the city’s smaller market size and relatively modest startup ecosystem. Unlike cities such as Austin or Boston, Richmond lacks the density of venture capital firms and incubators that fuel rapid innovation. This has led to fewer high-growth startups and groundbreaking projects, which in turn limits the region’s appeal to tech professionals looking for career advancement in dynamic, fast-paced environments. The city’s major employers are the likes of Capital One, CarMax, and VCU Health and startups in FinTech, SaaS, and EdTech are also emerging, contributing to a dynamic, albeit smaller, ecosystem.
Richmond struggles with talent retention. While local universities produce skilled graduates in data science and related fields, many move to larger tech hubs for better salaries and more diverse opportunities. This “brain drain” has created a cycle where companies in Richmond face challenges in attracting experienced talent, further limiting the city’s ability to compete on a national or global level, but sadly this is compounded by low wage growth in the city. Whilst Richmond shows less volatility than most other places in the US, the trends are generally negative, ranking #22/23 in the tech hubs we evaluated. Richmond has been growing as a regional tech hub, and with its proximity to larger metropolitan areas, and a burgeoning ecosystem – it may yet turn the tables.
Heads Of Data
Unlike larger tech hubs, where innovation and cutting-edge technologies dominate the conversation, Richmond-based companies may place greater emphasis on stability, collaboration, and long-term strategic planning. Leaders in data are expected to integrate into cross-functional teams, work with business leaders, and deliver practical, actionable insights that have immediate business impact. This focus on pragmatic problem-solving and consensus-building is a key differentiator for Richmond compared to more fast-paced, high-growth environments.
Furthermore, the city values humility, community involvement, and a focus on work-life balance. Richmond’s smaller, close-knit professional community appreciates leaders who can mentor junior talent, build internal data capabilities, and contribute to the broader community outside of just technical leadership. Senior roles are more likely to go to individuals who can navigate these relational dynamics, understanding that leadership here often requires soft skills like communication, empathy, and the ability to connect with people from diverse professional backgrounds. Richmond ranked #20/23 for wage growth over the last five years only seeing a 12% rise at expert level.
Average Salaries ($K) By Experience
Data Engineers
Data engineering positions in Richmond often focus on building reliable data pipelines that connect various internal systems, which support broader business goals. The local market often emphasises a more hands-on, practical approach to data infrastructure. Companies in Richmond value engineers who can not only build systems but also work collaboratively across departments, taking ownership of data processes from start to finish. This may involve engaging with business analysts, data scientists, and even marketing or operations teams to ensure that the data infrastructure aligns with the organisation’s strategic needs. Despite the smaller size of Richmond’s tech community, companies still expect data engineers to have the same level of technical competence as in larger cities, but salaries are rarely matched.
The most noticeable feature in our graph is the sharp rise in beginner-level salaries in 2022, a huge 58.46% up from the previous year. The widespread shift to remote work during the pandemic had a bigger effect in Richmond than other tech hubs. Retaining talent from its larger neighbours was already a struggle, but remote working made the job market especially competitive that year. Typically across America we saw the opposite reaction to the pandemic, with senior roles being in demand, which highlights Richmond’s reliance on fresh engineering talent from universities. This will have no doubt caused friction with more experienced staff as their new co-workers will have been making similar figures to someone with 3-5 years of experience. Richmond ranked #20/23 for wage growth in our review.
Average Salaries ($K) By Experience
Data Analysts
Data analyst roles in Richmond have seen steady but moderate growth, with demand primarily driven by industries such as finance, healthcare, and government contracting. Unlike larger tech hubs, Richmond’s data job market is not oversaturated, but it is also not experiencing the same explosive demand seen in cities with a stronger startup presence. Many businesses in the area prioritise operational efficiency over large-scale data innovation, meaning the need for data analysts is often tied to sustaining existing reporting and analytics functions rather than pushing the boundaries of data science. Entry-level roles are available, but competition can be strong due to the number of local graduates from institutions like Virginia Commonwealth University. Upward mobility into senior analyst roles is often limited unless professionals expand their technical skill set into areas such as data engineering or business intelligence development.
Salaries for data analysts in Richmond have been growing, but not at the accelerated rates seen in larger metro areas. This aligns with a broader trend where analyst roles are becoming more technically demanding, blurring the lines between traditional analysis and more advanced data science tasks. However, in Richmond, companies tend to maintain clear role distinctions, which can make career progression slower compared to cities where analysts are expected to take on more complex, data science-adjacent responsibilities.
Looking at expert level, we do see an overall growth of 21.79% comparing 2020 to 2024 but if we look at 2022 to 2024 average salaries actually decrease -5.94%. Unfortunately, Richmond is ranked last #23/23 for wage growth in our review.
Average Salaries ($K) By Experience
Data Scientists
Demand for data science expertise is rising as businesses increasingly rely on machine learning and predictive analytics to drive efficiency and decision-making. Financial institutions and insurance firms are particularly active in hiring, seeking data scientists for risk modelling, fraud detection, and customer analytics. Similarly, healthcare organisations are leveraging data science for patient outcome analysis and operational improvements. Unlike larger markets where tech startups dominate hiring, Richmond’s data science opportunities tend to be within established corporations and government-related entities, offering stable, long-term career prospects.
While Richmond does not see the same rapid wage growth as cities like New York or California, salaries have been increasing in line with growing demand for AI and automation expertise. However, many local companies still struggle to attract highly specialised data scientists, particularly those with deep expertise in deep learning, NLP, and large-scale cloud-based data solutions. For employers, this means either investing in upskilling existing teams or looking outside the local market to fill these advanced roles. One noticeable feature in our review is a clear distinction of salary between experience levels which typically indicates a more structured career path and less fuzziness in terms of role responsibilities.
Average Salaries ($K) By Experience
Hiring Data Roles For Richmond Companies
Richmond’s data talent market is growing steadily, with finance, insurance, and healthcare driving demand for skilled professionals. For employers, hiring conditions are relatively favourable compared to larger tech hubs, with moderate competition and a stable talent pool. Salaries have been rising gradually rather than surging, making it a more cost-effective location for hiring data professionals. Employers looking to scale data-driven initiatives must consider how to attract candidates with more advanced technical expertise, either through competitive compensation, professional development programs, or flexible hiring strategies that include remote talent.
For businesses needing advanced data capabilities or looking to accelerate complex projects, partnering with a data agency like 173tech can be a strategic move as Richmond’s local talent market has a limited supply of advanced data modelling expertise. Additionally, companies that are just beginning to build out their data infrastructure may lack in-house expertise to set up scalable data pipelines, cloud architectures, or sophisticated analytics frameworks. Engaging a data agency allows businesses to access top-tier talent without the lengthy hiring process, making it an ideal solution for short-term projects.
173tech Direct Comparison
Working with 173tech is effortless – wake up, log in, and instantly tap into a full data team at your fingertips. From strategy to implementation, we make leveraging data for growth easy and hassle-free.
We deploy a full team to every project and give you direct access through weekly syncs and shared slack. We work with the tools and processes you have already established or can set up from scratch.
We provide a fully flexible resource to tap into when you need to fast-track data projects and represent not only great value, but are passionate about creating value from data. Get in touch today to see how we can help you!
- Head Of Data (5+ yrs) $280k
- Data Engineer (5+ yrs) $130k
- Data Engineer (0-3 yrs) $75k
- Data Analyst (3-5 yrs) $73k
- $558k per yr + Tax + Pension + Holidays
- Candice (15+ yrs) Ruben (8+ yrs) Oliver (10+ yrs)
- Adrian (15+ yrs)
- Oscar (2+ yrs)
- Emeric (3+ yrs) Mai (4+ yrs) Noel (2+ yrs) Amy (2+ yrs) Poppy (2+ yrs)
- $240k
