Data science is one of the most frequently H-1B-sponsored roles in tech, second only to software engineering, and the companies sponsoring the most data scientists in 2026 are Walmart, Meta, Amazon, Capital One and Google. In Department of Labor data for October 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026, the Data Scientists occupation code had 17,773 certified H-1B Labor Condition Applications, more than any detailed occupation except software developers, and filings with data science job titles had a median offered salary of $139,500. This guide to H-1B data scientist jobs ranks the 40 companies with the most data scientist filings, shows their 2026 salary bands, and explains how to find these roles the day they post.

Why data science is H-1B-friendly

Several factors make data science roles particularly suitable for H-1B sponsorship:

Advanced degree alignment: H-1B requires a specialty occupation, and most data science roles require a degree in statistics, computer science or mathematics, often a master's or PhD, which clearly qualifies.
Talent scarcity: Demand for data scientists exceeds the domestic supply, which makes companies more willing to look internationally.
High salaries: Data science salaries comfortably exceed H-1B prevailing wage requirements.

Because data science degrees come in many forms, the petition has to tie the role to a specific field of study. A job description that requires a degree in statistics, computer science, mathematics or a closely related quantitative field makes that link clear, while a description that accepts any bachelor's degree makes it harder. You do not control that wording, since the employer's immigration lawyer writes the petition, but it is worth noticing when you read a posting.

Top H-1B sponsors for data scientists

Amazon sponsors applied scientists, research scientists and data scientists across AWS and retail, and it filed 246 certified LCAs with data science titles in the period; applied scientist titles are not in that count, so its real number is higher.
Google sponsors research scientists and data scientists in Search, Ads and Cloud, with 209 data science LCAs at a median offered salary of $200,000.
Meta sponsors data scientists and research scientists in feed ranking, integrity and ads, with 280 data science LCAs at a median of $208,000.
Microsoft sponsors data and applied scientists across Azure, Office and research, with 156 data science LCAs.
Netflix sponsors data science and analytics roles; it is selective, but it does sponsor.
Uber, DoorDash and Airbnb sponsor marketplace data science positions, with 32, 18 and 10 data science LCAs.
Walmart and Capital One lead the 2026 list, which surprises people who only look at tech companies: Walmart filed 285 data science LCAs at a median of $172,200, and Capital One filed 212 across its two filing entities.

40 companies sponsoring data scientists in 2026

I counted certified H-1B LCAs from October 1, 2025 to June 30, 2026 whose job title contains "data scientist" or "data science", combined entities that belong to one company (Capital One files under two names, and CVS Health files under CVS, Aetna and Caremark), and kept the 40 employers with the most filings. Each of them had at least 20. The salary column is the median annual wage offered, and the source is the DOL LCA disclosure file for FY 2026, quarter 3, downloaded on September 30, 2026.

Rank	Company	Certified data scientist LCAs	Median offered salary
1	Walmart	285	$172,200
2	Meta	280	$208,000
3	Amazon	246	$165,000
4	Capital One	212	$131,200
5	Google	209	$200,000
6	CVS Health	185	$139,500
7	Microsoft	156	$170,200
8	Infosys	102	$96,900
9	Apple	87	$163,300
10	Intuit	86	$180,500
11	TT Commerce and Global Services	86	$225,100
12	JPMorgan Chase	71	$147,000
13	PayPal	64	$175,300
14	Adobe	61	$184,000
15	FedEx	58	$141,100
16	Home Depot	51	$140,000
17	Intel	50	$129,900
18	RELX	47	$120,000
19	American Express	46	$148,100
20	LinkedIn	46	$182,600
21	TikTok	42	$243,000
22	Visa	37	$158,800
23	Uber	32	$165,400
24	Ford	32	$113,100
25	BNY	31	$145,000
26	Compunnel Software Group	30	$115,400
27	Fidelity Investments	29	$151,800
28	LexisNexis	28	$112,500
29	C3 AI	27	$170,000
30	Pinterest	26	$169,500
31	Wayfair	24	$135,200
32	Tiger Analytics	23	$157,000
33	Target	22	$137,100
34	Expedia	22	$129,700
35	Boston Consulting Group	22	$145,000
36	Deloitte	22	$118,300
37	Dell	22	$158,100
38	McKinsey	21	$197,100
39	eBay	21	$190,000
40	Tesla	20	$141,300

In total, 2,537 employers filed at least one certified H-1B LCA with a data science job title in those nine months, so the 40 above are the most active, not the only ones. The H-1B data scientist jobs page lists current openings at companies with H-1B sponsorship on record.

Salary ranges

These are the base salary bands I use for planning:

Entry-level data scientists with an MS typically earn $110K to $140K base.
Data scientists with a PhD typically earn $130K to $170K base.
Senior data scientists typically earn $160K to $210K base.
Staff and principal data scientists typically earn $200K to $280K base.
Research scientists with a PhD typically earn $150K to $250K base.

2026 salary bands by wage level

These are the offered salaries on certified H-1B LCAs with data science job titles from October 1, 2025 to June 30, 2026, by prevailing wage level. Level I is meant for entry-level work and level IV for the most experienced.

Wage level	Filings	25th percentile	Median	75th percentile
Level I	999	$79,300	$97,400	$126,000
Level II	2,670	$96,700	$115,900	$145,000
Level III	1,765	$124,500	$147,000	$178,500
Level IV	1,530	$150,000	$175,000	$207,000

The overall median was $139,500, and the middle half of offers fell between $110,000 and $174,300. The top of the market is well above those medians: TikTok ($243,000), TT Commerce and Global Services ($225,100), Meta ($208,000) and Google ($200,000) offered the highest medians among the 40 companies. Wage level also affects your lottery odds now, because starting with FY 2027, USCIS gives a registration one to four entries depending on the wage level the offered salary meets.

Skills that maximize H-1B chances

Causal inference and experimentation: A/B testing methodology and causal machine learning are in steady demand.
Deep learning and NLP: Skills related to large language models are in especially high demand.
Published research: Papers in top venues such as NeurIPS, ICML and KDD also strengthen the O-1 as an alternative pathway.
Production ML experience: Models deployed at scale count for more than work that stayed in notebooks.

Finding H-1B data science roles, and applying first

Data science positions at sponsoring companies are posted on their career pages first. Scoutify monitors 70,000+ company career pages and sends alerts within minutes when new positions open, including data science and research roles.

Scoutify is AI job search that applies for you first. If you would rather not apply by hand, Sniper applies for you: you set your roles (data scientist, applied scientist, machine learning engineer), your experience, locations and job type, and you turn on the visa sponsorship toggle, which is a filter for companies with a sponsorship record. Sniper applies where USCIS data shows the company has sponsored H-1B workers or where the posting says it sponsors, and it skips postings that say they do not. It fills in the employer's real application on Workday, Greenhouse or SmartRecruiters (Ashby and Lever are rolling out), usually minutes after the job posts, and it runs around the clock, so it keeps applying while you sleep. It never logs in to your LinkedIn account, and most employers' confirmation emails land in Scoutify Mail.

You can auto-apply with a visa sponsorship filter on Sniper for $25 a week (up to 500 applications) or on Auto Apply for $15 a week (up to 200), and your first 25 applications are free, with no card required. A sponsorship record is evidence and not a promise, so confirm sponsorship with each recruiter early. Sniper is the better choice when you want to be among the first applicants to data roles at companies with real career sites; it does not apply through LinkedIn Easy Apply or Indeed. The visa sponsorship auto-apply playbook explains the setup in more detail.

Bottom line

Data science is one of the most H-1B-friendly roles in tech because of its advanced degree requirements and talent scarcity, and the 2026 filings show sponsorship well beyond big tech, at retailers, banks and insurers. Focus on companies with strong sponsorship histories, use your research background, and apply early when target companies post new positions.

Frequently asked questions

Do companies sponsor H-1B visas for data scientists?

Yes. Data scientist is the second most sponsored detailed occupation after software developer: the Data Scientists code had 17,773 certified H-1B Labor Condition Applications from October 1, 2025 to June 30, 2026, and 2,537 employers filed at least one LCA with a data science job title.

Which companies sponsor the most H-1B data scientists?

Walmart (285 certified LCAs with data science job titles), Meta (280), Amazon (246), Capital One (212), Google (209), CVS Health (185) and Microsoft (156) filed the most from October 2025 to June 2026.

What is the H-1B salary for a data scientist?

The median offered salary on certified H-1B LCAs with data science job titles from October 2025 to June 2026 was $139,500, and the middle half fell between $110,000 and $174,300. Medians ran from $97,400 at wage level I to $175,000 at level IV.

Is data science a specialty occupation for H-1B?

Usually, yes, because most data science roles require at least a bachelor's degree in a specific quantitative field such as statistics, computer science or mathematics. The petition is strongest when the job description ties the role to that field rather than accepting any degree.

Related resources

The H-1B sponsors list ranks the top 50 companies across all roles in the latest USCIS data.
The H-1B software engineer jobs guide covers the 80 companies sponsoring the most SWEs.
The H-1B job search guide lays out the 10-month plan and the OPT clock.
All H-1B visa sponsorship jobs are organized by role, salary and location.

H-1B Data Scientist Jobs: 40 Sponsoring Companies and Their 2026 Salary Bands