How much you should be earning in your 40s in South Africa

·24 Jan 2016

Data from salary research group PayScale shows what South Africans with enough experience in their 40s are earning.

PayScale conducted research in 2014 which showed that the biggest jump in salary happened when people were leaving their 20s and entering their 30s.

From 20 to 30, on average, men and women both saw salaries increase by 60%.

Looking at PayScale’s available salary data for South Africa, the country fared a bit better, seeing a 72% jump from an average starting salary of R151,000 at 21, to R360,000 at 29.

According to the research, the jump from 30 to 40 is different for men and women, but still smaller for both.

Women see their salaries slow down to under 20% by the time they’re in their 40s, while men see healthier average salary growth at 45%.

In South Africa, with up to 19 years of experience – thus for people in their 30s entering their 40s – the average salary increases 42% to R510,000.

Your salary after 40 – R600,000

PayScale’s research showed that heading into the 50s, salaries continue to slow down significantly – but luckily most people are financially savvy at that age and know how to manage their money.

It is important to note that salaries are mostly determined by years of experience, and not by age. However, it can be assumed that experience and age are closely aligned if most employees leave university at age 21.

In South Africa, employees with over 20 years of experience (thus in their 40s), draw an average salary of R600,000 – an over 17% increase from their 30s.

This is based on the reported salaries of 11,400 South Africans across all careers.

According to the group, these are the most popular positions held by people in their 40s with this experience level, as well as the median salary as reported.

Most popular jobs: 20+ years experience