Highest-Paying Jobs in South Korea
The 75 best-paid careers in South Korea we track, ranked by average annual salary. Radiologist tops the list at $341,863 per year.
Showing amounts in USD (USD default; source data is KRW). FX as of Mon, 13 Jul 2026 00:02:31 +0000. Convert currencies
| # | Job | Average / yr | Monthly |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Radiologist | $341,863 | $28,489/mo |
| 2 | Surgeon | $331,259 | $27,605/mo |
| 3 | Psychiatrist | $309,319 | $25,777/mo |
| 4 | Dentist | $216,974 | $18,081/mo |
| 5 | Corporate Attorney | $200,169 | $16,681/mo |
| 6 | Cloud Architect | $194,827 | $16,236/mo |
| 7 | Investment Banker | $193,355 | $16,113/mo |
| 8 | Site Reliability Engineer | $177,922 | $14,827/mo |
| 9 | Product Manager | $170,036 | $14,170/mo |
| 10 | Lawyer | $163,295 | $13,608/mo |
| 11 | Physician Assistant | $161,763 | $13,480/mo |
| 12 | Pharmacist | $160,717 | $13,393/mo |
| 13 | Actuary | $160,511 | $13,376/mo |
| 14 | DevOps Engineer | $160,398 | $13,366/mo |
| 15 | Nurse Practitioner | $158,899 | $13,242/mo |
| 16 | Aerospace Engineer | $155,922 | $12,993/mo |
| 17 | Data Engineer | $154,729 | $12,894/mo |
| 18 | Optometrist | $153,857 | $12,821/mo |
| 19 | Management Consultant | $143,752 | $11,979/mo |
| 20 | Sales Manager | $139,749 | $11,646/mo |
| 21 | Veterinarian | $130,877 | $10,906/mo |
| 22 | Chemical Engineer | $130,191 | $10,849/mo |
| 23 | Electrical Engineer | $128,592 | $10,716/mo |
| 24 | School Principal | $128,299 | $10,692/mo |
| 25 | UX Designer | $124,829 | $10,402/mo |
| 26 | Marketing Manager | $121,945 | $10,162/mo |
| 27 | Project Manager | $121,878 | $10,157/mo |
| 28 | Physician | $121,699 | $10,142/mo |
| 29 | Financial Advisor | $121,625 | $10,135/mo |
| 30 | Biomedical Engineer | $119,954 | $9,996/mo |
| 31 | Database Administrator | $117,456 | $9,788/mo |
| 32 | Professor | $117,416 | $9,785/mo |
| 33 | Psychologist | $117,416 | $9,785/mo |
| 34 | Network Engineer | $113,646 | $9,470/mo |
| 35 | Industrial Engineer | $112,520 | $9,377/mo |
| 36 | Operations Manager | $111,767 | $9,314/mo |
| 37 | Civil Engineer | $111,361 | $9,280/mo |
| 38 | Architect | $111,288 | $9,274/mo |
| 39 | Web Developer | $111,095 | $9,258/mo |
| 40 | Environmental Engineer | $109,276 | $9,106/mo |
| 41 | Physical Therapist | $108,903 | $9,075/mo |
| 42 | QA Engineer | $108,384 | $9,032/mo |
| 43 | Business Analyst | $104,527 | $8,711/mo |
| 44 | Occupational Therapist | $104,374 | $8,698/mo |
| 45 | HR Manager | $103,475 | $8,623/mo |
| 46 | Data Analyst | $101,410 | $8,451/mo |
| 47 | Dental Hygienist | $100,664 | $8,389/mo |
| 48 | Systems Administrator | $96,181 | $8,015/mo |
| 49 | Recruiter | $93,517 | $7,793/mo |
| 50 | Real Estate Agent | $89,174 | $7,431/mo |
| 51 | Auditor | $89,014 | $7,418/mo |
| 52 | Chef | $80,116 | $6,676/mo |
| 53 | Copywriter | $77,731 | $6,478/mo |
| 54 | Electrician | $76,918 | $6,410/mo |
| 55 | Plumber | $76,812 | $6,401/mo |
| 56 | Paralegal | $73,721 | $6,143/mo |
| 57 | Social Media Manager | $73,581 | $6,132/mo |
| 58 | Video Editor | $73,441 | $6,120/mo |
| 59 | HVAC Technician | $71,596 | $5,966/mo |
| 60 | Graphic Designer | $71,563 | $5,964/mo |
| 61 | Teacher | $67,806 | $5,651/mo |
| 62 | IT Support Specialist | $67,340 | $5,612/mo |
| 63 | Carpenter | $65,309 | $5,442/mo |
| 64 | Financial Analyst | $64,549 | $5,379/mo |
| 65 | Photographer | $63,477 | $5,290/mo |
| 66 | Welder | $62,531 | $5,211/mo |
| 67 | Data Scientist | $62,058 | $5,172/mo |
| 68 | AI Engineer | $62,058 | $5,172/mo |
| 69 | Software Engineer | $57,203 | $4,767/mo |
| 70 | Frontend Developer | $57,203 | $4,767/mo |
| 71 | Backend Developer | $57,203 | $4,767/mo |
| 72 | Full-Stack Developer | $57,203 | $4,767/mo |
| 73 | Mechanical Engineer | $54,818 | $4,568/mo |
| 74 | Accountant | $54,099 | $4,508/mo |
| 75 | Registered Nurse | $43,814 | $3,651/mo |
Frequently asked questions
- What is the highest-paying job in South Korea?
- Of the roles we track, Radiologist is the highest paid in South Korea, with an average salary of about ₩513,250,000 per year.
- What are the top 3 highest-paying jobs in South Korea?
- The top three on this list are Radiologist (₩513,250,000), Surgeon (₩497,330,000), and Psychiatrist (₩464,390,000) per year.
- How many high-paying careers are covered for South Korea?
- This ranking covers 75 careers with real salary data in South Korea, all shown in KRW and refreshed automatically.
- What does a typical top career pay in South Korea?
- The median of this ranked list is Architect at roughly ₩167,080,000 per year — a useful midpoint for the better-paid roles in South Korea.
- How wide is the pay gap among high-paying jobs in South Korea?
- Radiologist at the top earns about ₩513,250,000 while Registered Nurse at the bottom of this list averages ₩65,780,000 — roughly a 680% spread across the ranked roles.
- Are these salaries before or after tax?
- Figures are gross (pre-tax) annual averages in KRW. Use the Pay by Role salary calculator for a simplified take-home estimate.