Unveiling Apple And Microsoft's Salary Secrets — Is iPhone Money Better Than AI Paychecks?

Apple Inc AAPL and Microsoft Corp MSFT have a long competitive history in the personal computer space, but as technology has evolved, so have the pair of tech giants. Apple has become the king of smartphones and Microsoft looks to be leading the way in the early stages of the AI revolution.

In order to take the crown in a given space, you need to pay up for the best talent. So which of the Silicon Valley juggernauts offers the most substantial salaries?

What To Know: Apple and Microsoft don't make salary information public, but the tech giants are required to disclose offers in work-visa applications submitted to the U.S. Office of Foreign Labor Certification. 

According to data collected by Business Insider, various positions at the two tech companies come with similar pay ranges, but one pays just a little bit more. 

Here's a look at some of the base salary ranges Apple offered to prospective workers for open positions last year. 

• Financial Analyst: $110,000 - $181,406
• Global Supply Manager: $145,000 - $185,000
• Engineering Project Manager: $144,912 - $185,203
• Data Scientist: $119,000 - $186,929
• HI Graphics Designer: $140,000 - $201,764
• Manufacturing Design Engineer: $124,200 - $203,335
• Machine Learning Engineer: $155,000 - $205,000
• Hardware Development Engineer: $135,000 - $210,000
• Software Development Engineer: $138,762 - $216,300
• ASIC Design Engineer: $105,080 - $217,680
• Systems Design Engineer: $134,307 - $217,990
• Legal Counsel: $210,000 - 225,000
• AR/VR Development Engineer: $127,000 - $230,000
• Application Development Engineer: $131,808 - $255,000
• Architectural/Engineering Manager: $200,750 - $286,874
• Software Development Engineer Manager: $178,000 - $322,000

And here's a look at the base salary ranges Microsoft offered to prospective workers for some of its open positions.

• Support Engineer: $77,000 - $135,000
• Data Analyst: $104,000 - $140,000
• Data Scientist: $106,000 - $152,000
• Technology Consulting: $98,000 - $153,000
• Content Developer: $133,000 - $156,000
• Technical Writer: $94,000 - $158,000
• Marketing Technology: $136,000 - $161,000
• Product Marketing: $106,000 - $164,000
• Business Analytics Specialist: $101,000 - $166,000
• Business Program Manager: $145,000 - $166,000
• Financial Analysis: $100,000 - $184,000
• Customer Success Account Manager: $86,000 - $186,000
• Cloud Solutions Architecture: $116,000 - $200,000
• Product Designer: $110,000 - $201,000
• Product Manager: $110,000 - $225,000
• Hardware Engineer: $115,000 - $239,000
• Software Engineer: $175,000 - $250,000
• Data Manager: $133,000 - $270,000
• Business Planner: $135,000 - $310,000

Apple made offers ranging from approximately $102,000 to $322,000, while Microsoft made offers ranging from $77,000 to $310,000.

Although the pay ranges at Apple are just ahead of Microsoft, the data doesn't tell the whole story. It doesn't include stock-based compensation and grants that can significantly increase overall pay. It also excludes individual performance rewards, bonuses and benefits. 

As previously reported by Benzinga, these factors can make a huge difference. Due to Tesla stock's historic run in 2020, multiple executives saw their pay grow by more than 150x. 

Read Next: Elon Musk Money: How Much Does The Richest Person On The Planet Pay Employees At Tesla?

Photos: courtesy of Apple & Microsoft.