Local Salaries · South Africa
What is a good salary in 🇿🇦 South Africa (Cape Town)?
The median is about $364/month; top-10% earners clear $1,734/month.
The local wage ladder
| Band | Monthly | Annual | Local currency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Survival floorsingle-person essentials | $809 | $9,708 | 14,472 ZAR/mo |
| Statutory minimumILOSTAT statutory monthly minimum wage, 2024 (USD). | $261 | $3,132 | 4,669 ZAR/mo |
| Median (p50)typical earner | $364 | $4,368 | 6,512 ZAR/mo |
| Comfortable (p75)upper-middle | $828 | $9,936 | 14,812 ZAR/mo |
| Top 10% (p90)high earner | $1,734 | $20,808 | 31,020 ZAR/mo |
| Top 1% (p99)elite | $6,192 | $74,304 | 110,769 ZAR/mo |
Modeled from World Bank GNI $6,270 (2025) and Gini 54.1 (consumption-based, widened to 61.1). Check where you stand in the interactive benchmarker.
Countries with similar median pay
- 🇨🇴 Colombia — median $358/mo
- 🇹🇭 Thailand — median $403/mo
- 🇪🇬 Egypt — median $291/mo
- 🇮🇩 Indonesia — median $265/mo
See also: what everyday life costs in South Africa · a fair US → South Africa salary
Frequently asked questions
- What is a good salary in South Africa?
- The median wage is about $364/month ($4,368/year). A "comfortable" p75 salary is around $828/month, and you'd be a top-10% earner above $1,734/month.
- What is a top 10% salary in South Africa?
- Roughly $1,734/month ($20,808/year) puts you in the top 10%; the top 1% starts near $6,192/month.
- What is the minimum wage in South Africa?
- About $261/month. ILOSTAT statutory monthly minimum wage, 2024 (USD).
- How are these South Africa salary figures calculated?
- A log-normal wage model calibrated from World Bank GNI per capita ($6,270, 2025) and the Gini index (54.1, consumption-based — widened to 61.1 income-equivalent). Estimates for benchmarking, not payroll data.