53 jobs in South Africa that pay over R160,000 a month

Professional recruitment firm Michael Page has published its 2024 salary guide for South Africa, outlining the salary ranges professionals in the country can expect.

The guide covers professional services in South Africa, including banking, information technology, sales and marketing, finance, engineering, manufacturing and procurement.

According to the group’s operating director for South Africa, Paul Newman, despite economic headwinds, South Africa’s economy has shown significant resilience, which has also filtered through to business operations.

While growth has been slow—and the country only managed to narrowly avoid a recession in Q1 with 0.1% GDP growth—businesses still have demand for professional skills and are willing to pay a premium for them.

“Considering the higher cost of living and depleting disposable income, candidates are prioritising higher salary increases above all else when considering new job offers,” Newman said.

“Amidst these economic dynamics, the market is increasingly need in of seasoned professionals with strong technical skills.”

He said the demand for technical expertise, especially within the technology and renewable energy sectors, remains robust, while there has been a growing “hunger” for adept sales and general business leaders.

While demand is there, job opportunities are not.

“The first quarter of 2024 has seen a slow start to the year from a hiring point of view. We anticipate the industry is taking a ‘wait and see’ approach, with an anticipated uptake in recruitment demand in the second half of the year,” Newman said.

This should be boosted by added investor and market confidence in the country following the 2024 elections and the establishment of the Government of National Unity.

“We have already seen the market respond positively to the new government and anticipate this to continue for the rest of 2024,” Newman said.

Top-paying jobs

Professional positions in South Africa are some of the highest-paying jobs in the country—something that has already been noted on a national level through the Stats SA Quarterly Employment Survey.

In the latest QES, those working in the finance sector were identified as having the highest average earnings over the first quarter of the year, pulling in an average of R90,000 a month (R1 million a year).

According to Michael Page’s salary data, however, there are professional jobs that pay well over this across the categories it covers.

The group identified at least 50 professional roles where salaries have the potential to hit R160,000 per month (R2 million a year) and beyond.

While most of these positions are senior roles, it shows the significant earning potential skilled professionals in South Africa can have.

The top pay is also reserved for those who are working at multinational groups (MNC), but the earning potential in SMEs is also significant and well over R1 million for similar positions.

The tables below outline over 50 of the top-earning professional roles across the fields of banking, IT, sales and marketing, engineering, procurement and supply chain in South Africa.

Read: The one job sector paying R1 million salaries in South Africa