What is the real (cost-adjusted) Data Scientist salary in Georgia?

After BEA RPP adjustment (regional price parity index 96.5 for Georgia), the real-wage equivalent is $106,359 — what the $102,630 nominal salary actually buys. Quartiles in real terms: $83,860 to $138,278.

What does the top of the Data Scientist pay scale look like in Georgia?

The 90th percentile lands at $165,980. That tier typically reflects senior roles, specialty certifications, high-cost-of-living metros within the state, or union-negotiated rate cards. Below that, the P75 quartile is $133,430.

How many Data Scientists does Georgia employ?

BLS OES counts 7,730 Data Scientists employed in Georgia in the most recent release. Employment density relative to population determines whether wage tiers reflect a robust competitive market or a thinner labor pool.

Why is the BEA RPP for Georgia different from a single CPI number?

BEA splits regional price parity into three components — goods, services, and rents — reweighted to the BEA's national consumption basket. Georgia's overall index of 96.5 reflects rents 88.3, services 92.3, and goods 97.7.

What are the limits of these Data Scientist salary numbers?

BLS OES is an employer survey of W-2 wages — it excludes contractor pay, bonuses outside the base wage definition, equity compensation, and tip income. Self-employed practitioners and gig workers are not represented. For occupations with significant non-W-2 income, the BLS figure is a floor, not a complete picture.

When does this data update?

BLS OES releases a new May reference set roughly each spring; we re-run the ETL pipeline within two weeks of release. BEA RPP refreshes annually. The last-synced timestamp at the top of this page reflects the most recent build.

Data scientist vs data analyst pay in Georgia — what's the gap?

BLS reports them under different SOC codes (15-2051 for data scientists, 13-1161 for market/data analysts). In Georgia, the data scientist median typically runs 30-60% above the data analyst median, reflecting heavier ML/statistics requirements, deeper SQL/Python depth expectations, and stronger industry placement in tech and finance.

Georgia Data Scientist Salary: BLS $103K Median, Real $106K (2026)

TL;DR

Data Scientists in Georgia earn a BLS median of $102,630, with real take-home of $106,359 after BEA RPP adjustment.
Cost adjustment is small — neither an arbitrage state nor a high-cost penalty.
BLS percentile breakdown: P10 $63,320 · P25 $80,920 · P75 $133,430 · P90 $165,980.
On a real-wage basis, this state sits at #29 of 51; nominal rank is #28.

Wage breakdown — Georgia

Percentile	Nominal (BLS)	Real (BEA RPP-adjusted)
P10 (entry tier)	$63,320	$65,621
P25 (lower quartile)	$80,920	$83,860
P50 (median)	$102,630	$106,359
P75 (upper quartile)	$133,430	$138,278
P90 (top tier)	$165,980	$172,011
Mean	$111,020	$115,054
Employment	7,730 Data Scientists in Georgia

Cost of living — BEA Regional Price Parity

Component	Georgia index (US = 100)
All-items RPP	96.5
Goods	97.7
Services	92.3
Rents	88.3

Georgia's overall RPP (96.5) is close to the national 100 baseline; nominal and real wage move roughly together.

After-tax take-home — Georgia (2024 BLS · 2024 tax year, single filer)

Layer-by-layer take-home math at the BLS median

Layer	Amount	Note
Gross BLS P50 (Data Scientist)	$102,630	nominal median
Federal income tax	−$13,826	13.5% effective; std deduction $15,750 applied
State income tax	−$4,704	5.19% flat (2026)
FICA (SS 6.2% + Medicare 1.45%)	−$7,851	SS capped at $183,600 wage base
Take-home (after-tax)	$76,250	74.3% of gross
Real take-home (RPP-adjusted)	$79,020	÷ (96.5 / 100) BEA cost-of-living

What the Georgia state-tax burden means for Data Scientist take-home

Mid-band state-tax burden at 4.6% effective. Combined with federal and FICA, take-home is $76,250 (74.3% of gross). After the 96.5 RPP, real take-home is $79,020.

Computed from 2026 IRS federal brackets (Rev. Proc. 2025-32), 2026 state DOR brackets, and 2026 FICA rates. Single filer, standard deduction, no other adjustments. See methodology · tax for limitations (married filers, ITM/SALT itemizers, retirement deferrals, HSA, dependent credits, etc.).

National context

Across the United States, BLS reports a national median of $112,590 for Data Scientists with mean pay of $124,590 and total employment of 233,440. Georgia sits at #28 on nominal pay and #29 on real (cost-adjusted) pay among the 51 states and DC. After cost adjustment, Georgia falls 1 positions — the cost premium eats into the headline wage.

Frequently asked questions

What is the real (cost-adjusted) Data Scientist salary in Georgia?: After BEA RPP adjustment (regional price parity index 96.5 for Georgia), the real-wage equivalent is $106,359 — what the $102,630 nominal salary actually buys. Quartiles in real terms: $83,860 to $138,278.
What does the top of the Data Scientist pay scale look like in Georgia?: The 90th percentile lands at $165,980. That tier typically reflects senior roles, specialty certifications, high-cost-of-living metros within the state, or union-negotiated rate cards. Below that, the P75 quartile is $133,430.
How many Data Scientists does Georgia employ?: BLS OES counts 7,730 Data Scientists employed in Georgia in the most recent release. Employment density relative to population determines whether wage tiers reflect a robust competitive market or a thinner labor pool.
Why is the BEA RPP for Georgia different from a single CPI number?: BEA splits regional price parity into three components — goods, services, and rents — reweighted to the BEA's national consumption basket. Georgia's overall index of 96.5 reflects rents 88.3, services 92.3, and goods 97.7.
What are the limits of these Data Scientist salary numbers?: BLS OES is an employer survey of W-2 wages — it excludes contractor pay, bonuses outside the base wage definition, equity compensation, and tip income. Self-employed practitioners and gig workers are not represented. For occupations with significant non-W-2 income, the BLS figure is a floor, not a complete picture.
When does this data update?: BLS OES releases a new May reference set roughly each spring; we re-run the ETL pipeline within two weeks of release. BEA RPP refreshes annually. The last-synced timestamp at the top of this page reflects the most recent build.
Data scientist vs data analyst pay in Georgia — what's the gap?: BLS reports them under different SOC codes (15-2051 for data scientists, 13-1161 for market/data analysts). In Georgia, the data scientist median typically runs 30-60% above the data analyst median, reflecting heavier ML/statistics requirements, deeper SQL/Python depth expectations, and stronger industry placement in tech and finance.

Sources & methodology

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES), SOC 15-2051, 2024 reference period.
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis — Regional Price Parities, 2023 vintage (all-items, goods, services, rents).
Real-wage figures = nominal BLS wage ÷ (state RPP / 100).
See the methodology page for full computation details and limitations.

By Marcus Liang · Founder & Editor · Last synced 2026-05-05.

Cross-comparison: see how Georgia Data Scientist pay ranks against the other 254 state × occupation pages on the Real Wage Atlas → — four-way ranking by real wage, after-tax take-home, state-tax savings, and cost-of-living arbitrage.