Jobs that pay over R1 million in South Africa

The highest-paying jobs in South Africa include C-level executives, senior actuaries, engineering managers, head of operations or sales, financial managers, and senior solutions architects.

This was revealed in CareerJunction’s latest Employment Insights Report, which highlighted the top-paid job roles in the country. 

The jobs and associated salaries are based on comprehensive data from The Stepstone Group’s South African platforms.

These platforms include around 5,000 of the country’s top recruiters, including agencies and employers, which advertise their positions to job seekers in South Africa.

Looking deeper into the professions that pay the highest salaries, CareerJunction highlighted several factors influencing the pay scales for specific jobs. 

These factors include supply and demand for a specific skill in the job market, with those in less supply garnering higher salary offers. 

It added that experience in the respective job role and level of education are also significant factors influencing an individual’s salary. 

Other factors determining salaries included the industry or sector the job is related to, such as medicine, corporate, or engineering, as well as location, including the province and city.

Considering these factors, the report looked at the highest-paying roles in South Africa – specifically, those offering salaries exceeding R1 million per annum (CTC). 

CareerJunction noted that the analysis was based on data from job offers posted over the last 12 months.

According to the data, C-level executives and senior managers in several industries command the highest salaries in South Africa. 

CareerJunction highlighted that executive positions earn the most due to their high level of responsibility and seniority.

This responsibility includes the company’s overall success, with decisions that can affect the company’s financial performance, operational efficiency, and risk management. 

The report also noted that the talent pool for highly qualified executives is very limited in South Africa. 

This pushes companies to offer competitive pay to attract and keep the best leaders, which puts upward pressure on salaries.

The 10 highest-paid jobs in South Africa 

According to the report, key positions such as CEOs, MDs, COOs, and CFOs consistently receive offers exceeding R100,000 per month.

For chief executive officers (CEOs), this can reach over R200,000 per month or R1.9 million per annum. 

This is followed by chief operating officers (COOs), who earn up to R178,000 per month or R1.85 million a year. 

Managing directors (MDs) are third on the highest-paying jobs list, receiving an average of just over R1.5 million. 

The report noted that when looking at other high-paying jobs, the word “senior” often comes up, indicating that expertise and seniority matter.

CareerJuntion pointed out that senior managerial job roles like ‘head of operations’, ‘sales directors’ or ‘senior financial managers’ fall under the top earners in South Africa.

In addition, senior experts like ‘senior actuary’, ‘engineering manager’, and ‘senior solutions architect’ are highly sought after and have very high salary packages.

These professionals in these senior roles earn between R83,000 and R121,500 per month, or R1.1 million and R1.25 million per year. 

CareerJuntion stressed that it must be noted that the analysis reflects only roles with representative data. 

It added that some high-paying roles may not be listed due to a lack of a recent, representative data sample.

Highest paying jobs in South Africa

The chart below ranks the 10 highest-paid jobs in South Africa, including average monthly and yearly salaries.

Average monthly salaries for senior managers and senior experts