They don't at all. At typical companies, their salaries are maybe a bit higher than software engineers. At top companies though, their base and bonus is the s

They don't at all. At typical companies, their salaries are maybe a bit higher than software engineers. At top companies though, their base and bonus is the same, but stock is about half (unless you're a core DS or have an AI/ML PhD). Also, 4-5 years working on a PhD could have been spent gaining experience as a software engineer, which means that all total a data scientist at FANG will make $100k to $250k per year less than a software engineer at the same age.