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Engineering Average Salaries in South Africa 2026

How much money does a person working in Engineering make in South Africa?


Average Monthly Salary
26,400 ZAR
( 317,000 ZAR yearly)

LOW
8,340
ZAR AVERAGE
26,400
ZAR HIGH
55,600
ZAR
All salary figures displayed here are per month except when noted otherwise.
All salary and compensation figures displayed here are gross salary figures, that is the salary before tax deductions. Because taxes may differ across sectors and locations, it is difficult to accurately calculate the net salary after tax for every career.

A person working in Engineering in South Africa typically earns around 26,400 ZAR. Salaries range from 8,340 ZAR (lowest average) to 55,600 ZAR (highest average, actual maximum salary is higher).


Salary Variance

The provided figure represents the median compensation that encompasses housing, transportation, and other perks. The salaries within the Engineering domain in South Africa exhibit significant discrepancies across various professions. In case you seek information about the remuneration of a specific position, please refer to the salaries listed below for respective job titles.

Salaries for specific jobs

Job TitleAverage Salary
Engineering
3D Printing Engineer25,700 ZAR
Acoustics Engineer27,800 ZAR
Assembly Engineering Technician22,200 ZAR
Assistant Chief Engineer32,300 ZAR
Associate Engineer25,900 ZAR
AutoCAD Drafter17,100 ZAR
Autocad Operator18,100 ZAR
Automation Engineer29,800 ZAR
Automation Engineer31,000 ZAR
Avionic System Support Engineer27,700 ZAR
Biochemical Engineer26,300 ZAR
BMS Engineer27,800 ZAR
Bridge and Lock Tender15,600 ZAR
Broadcast Engineer29,500 ZAR
CAD Design Engineer28,500 ZAR
CAD Designer17,300 ZAR
CAE Engineer27,300 ZAR
Ceramics Engineer26,400 ZAR
Chemical Engineer29,500 ZAR
Civil Drafter18,700 ZAR
Civil Engineer29,900 ZAR
Civil Site Engineer30,400 ZAR
Civil Technician18,000 ZAR
Cognitive Engineer26,200 ZAR
Commissioning Engineer29,200 ZAR
Communications Engineer32,600 ZAR
Condition Monitoring Engineer24,900 ZAR
Contract Associate Engineer26,800 ZAR
Contract Engineer26,800 ZAR
Control Systems Engineer28,000 ZAR
Controls Engineer27,800 ZAR
Controls Software Engineer25,200 ZAR
Corrosion Engineer26,400 ZAR
Design Engineer29,700 ZAR
Director of Engineering58,300 ZAR
Drafter18,400 ZAR
Drafting Manager33,800 ZAR
Drilling Engineer28,200 ZAR
Drilling Foreman8,980 ZAR
Electrical Draughtsman15,200 ZAR
Electrical Engineer32,000 ZAR
Electrical Engineering Manager41,800 ZAR
Electromechanical Engineering Technologist29,700 ZAR
Electromechanical Equipment Assembler14,500 ZAR
Energy Engineer31,300 ZAR
Engine Assembler12,600 ZAR
Engineer30,800 ZAR
Engineering Account Manager31,300 ZAR
Engineering Chief Designer33,100 ZAR
Engineering Consultant38,000 ZAR
Engineering Key Account Manager43,400 ZAR
Engineering Lab Technician26,000 ZAR
Engineering Manager38,400 ZAR
Engineering Planning Manager39,300 ZAR
Engineering Production Manager50,000 ZAR
Engineering Project Analyst32,100 ZAR
Engineering Project Coordinator 32,000 ZAR
Engineering Project Director57,100 ZAR
Engineering Project Leader35,900 ZAR
Engineering Project Manager41,200 ZAR
Engineering Research and Development Manager45,100 ZAR
Engineering Safety Coordinator22,400 ZAR
Engineering Sales Manager40,500 ZAR
Engineering Technician22,800 ZAR
Engineering Technologist21,600 ZAR
Environmental Engineer28,600 ZAR
Equipment Engineer26,700 ZAR
Equipment Engineering Manager38,500 ZAR
Estimator24,600 ZAR
Fabrication Specialist20,200 ZAR
Fabricator13,000 ZAR
Facade Engineer26,600 ZAR
Fiber Analyst16,600 ZAR
Field Engineer30,400 ZAR
Field Engineering Manager49,500 ZAR
Fire Engineer29,400 ZAR
Fitter and Turner9,410 ZAR
Forestry Strategic Planner34,800 ZAR
Generation Engineer30,600 ZAR
Genetic Engineer30,400 ZAR
Geological Engineer30,800 ZAR
Geotechnical Engineer31,200 ZAR
Heavy Equipment Mechanic14,900 ZAR
Highway Engineer29,300 ZAR
HSE Professional28,000 ZAR
Human Machine Interface Engineer25,900 ZAR
HVAC Engineer31,300 ZAR
HVAC Supervisor25,100 ZAR
Industrial Engineer28,300 ZAR
Industrial Engineering Technologist27,400 ZAR
Instrument Engineer28,500 ZAR
Instrument Technician15,400 ZAR
Instrumentation and Control Engineer27,800 ZAR
Instrumentation Designer23,800 ZAR
Instrumentation Engineer28,400 ZAR
Instrumentation Manager27,800 ZAR
Irrigation Engineer28,600 ZAR
Licensed Aircraft Engineer30,100 ZAR
Locomotive Engineer29,000 ZAR
Maintenance Engineer27,600 ZAR
Maintenance Fitter10,100 ZAR
Maintenance Manager28,300 ZAR
Manufacturing Engineer28,400 ZAR
Marine Engineer29,700 ZAR
Materials Engineer29,000 ZAR
Materials Researcher25,800 ZAR
Materials Technician21,300 ZAR
Mechanical and Electrical Engineer32,200 ZAR
Mechanical Design Engineer30,200 ZAR
Mechanical Designer24,500 ZAR
Mechanical Engineer31,500 ZAR
Mechanical Engineering Manager41,500 ZAR
Mechanical Inspector26,700 ZAR
Mechatronics Engineer29,600 ZAR
Mining Engineer28,000 ZAR
Nanotechnology Engineer31,700 ZAR
Natural Language Processing Engineer33,000 ZAR
Oil and Petrochemical Engineer32,300 ZAR
Optical Engineer28,500 ZAR
Optical Instrument Assembler14,900 ZAR
PCB Assembler10,000 ZAR
Photonics Engineer32,800 ZAR
Photonics Technician26,800 ZAR
Pipeline Engineer25,500 ZAR
Piping Designer15,200 ZAR
Piping Engineer25,600 ZAR
Planning Engineer28,900 ZAR
Pressure Vessel Inspector13,000 ZAR
Principal Cost Engineer29,700 ZAR
Principal Engineer29,200 ZAR
Principal Support Engineer29,300 ZAR
Process Engineer29,400 ZAR
Process Operator17,400 ZAR
Product Development Engineer30,900 ZAR
Product Development Technician21,300 ZAR
Product Engineer30,900 ZAR
Product Safety Engineer26,200 ZAR
Production Engineer28,400 ZAR
Project Engineer31,500 ZAR
Proposal Manager36,800 ZAR
Purchasing Engineer27,600 ZAR
Quality Assurance Engineer29,500 ZAR
Rail Engineer30,000 ZAR
Regional Field Engineer32,700 ZAR
Remote Sensing Engineer28,000 ZAR
Robotics Engineer32,900 ZAR
Robotics Technician23,800 ZAR
Safety Engineer29,800 ZAR
Safety Inspector23,400 ZAR
Safety Manager32,400 ZAR
Safety Officer15,100 ZAR
Sales Engineer29,900 ZAR
Scheduling Engineer27,500 ZAR
Security Engineer30,600 ZAR
Service Engineer29,200 ZAR
Smart Home Engineer31,200 ZAR
Solar Engineer31,200 ZAR
Staff Engineer28,900 ZAR
Static Equipment Engineer28,200 ZAR
Stationary Engineer26,900 ZAR
Stress Engineer27,600 ZAR
Structural Analysis Engineer29,100 ZAR
Structural Designer24,200 ZAR
Structural Engineer29,100 ZAR
Structural Technician19,100 ZAR
Subsea Engineer37,300 ZAR
Supply Chain Specialist27,100 ZAR
Surveyor20,900 ZAR
Technical Affairs Officer14,500 ZAR
Technical Assistant14,500 ZAR
Technical Engineer23,900 ZAR
Technical Support Engineer24,900 ZAR
Tender Engineer26,300 ZAR
Test Development Engineer29,100 ZAR
Test Engineer28,900 ZAR
Transportation Engineer28,300 ZAR
Urban Engineer29,900 ZAR
Validation Engineer24,900 ZAR
Verification Engineer26,400 ZAR
Wastewater Engineer27,500 ZAR
Wind Energy Engineer28,700 ZAR
Wind Energy Operations Manager37,500 ZAR
Wireless Engineer31,600 ZAR
Work Planner20,800 ZAR

Engineering Jobs Pay Scale and Salaries in South Africa

Median Salary, maximum and minimum salary, minimum wage, starting salary, and the salary range

All salary figures displayed here are per month except when noted otherwise.

  • Salary Range, Minimum Wage, and Starting Salary

    Salaries in Engineering in South Africa range from 8,340 ZAR (starting average salary) to 55,600 ZAR (maximum average salary, actual maximum is higher). To clarify, the number presented is not the legally mandated minimum wage. Rather, it represents the lowest figure reported in a salary survey that involved thousands of participants and professionals from across the entire country.

  • Median Salary

    The median income in the field of Engineering is 23,200 ZAR, implying that half of the workforce in South Africa earns less than this figure, and the other half earns more. It represents the central value of salaries. As a rule of thumb, you would prefer to be part of the group earning above the median wage, situated on the right-hand side of the salary distribution chart.

  • Percentiles and Salary Scale

    Two values that are highly correlated with the median are the 25th and 75th percentiles. By examining the salary distribution diagram, it is possible to determine that 25% of individuals employed in Engineering in South Africa earn less than 17,400 ZAR, while 75% of them earn more. Additionally, the diagram reveals that 75% of individuals earn less than 28,700 ZAR, while 25% earn more than that.

  • Pay Scale Structure

    Data was regrouped into brackets to provide a better understanding of what salaries can be expected. This approach was deemed more accurate than relying solely on the average salary, as it offers greater insights into the distribution of salaries in the field of Engineering in South Africa. The analysis revealed that roughly 65% of all reported salaries fell within the range of 11,900 ZAR to 22,100 ZAR. Approximately 20% of salaries were below the 11,900 ZAR mark, while 10% ranged from 22,100 ZAR to 26,700 ZAR. Only 5% of individuals earned a gross salary of 26,700 ZAR or higher.