Pay by Role
Technology · South Africa

Data Scientist Salary in South Africa

Data scientists turn raw data into insight using statistics, machine learning, and clear communication. The South Africa median is $63,598 per year. Pick a city below for a local breakdown.

Showing amounts in USD (USD default; source data is ZAR). FX as of Mon, 13 Jul 2026 00:02:31 +0000. Convert currencies

National median
$63,598
per year
Monthly (national)
$5,302
per month, before tax
Highest-paying city
$63,598
Cape Town, ZA
Hourly (national)
$30.58
varies by city

Data Scientist salary by city in South Africa

CityPer year
Cape Town, ZA$63,598
Durban, ZA$63,598
Pretoria, ZA$63,598
Gqeberha, ZA$63,598
Pietermaritzburg, ZA$63,598
Bloemfontein, ZA$63,598
East London, ZA$63,598
Vereeniging, ZA$63,598
Welkom, ZA$63,598
Newcastle, ZA$63,598
Krugersdorp, ZA$63,598
Johannesburg, ZA$44,519

Data Scientist salary in other countries

United States flagUnited StatesUnited Kingdom flagUnited KingdomCanada flagCanadaAustralia flagAustraliaGermany flagGermanyFrance flagFranceNetherlands flagNetherlandsSwitzerland flagSwitzerlandSingapore flagSingaporeIndia flagIndiaJapan flagJapanSouth Korea flagSouth KoreaPoland flagPolandBrazil flagBrazilUnited Arab Emirates flagUnited Arab EmiratesMexico flagMexicoIreland flagIrelandSpain flagSpainItaly flagItalySweden flagSwedenNorway flagNorwayDenmark flagDenmarkBelgium flagBelgiumAustria flagAustriaPortugal flagPortugalFinland flagFinlandChina flagChinaHong Kong flagHong KongNew Zealand flagNew ZealandIndonesia flagIndonesiaPhilippines flagPhilippinesVietnam flagVietnamThailand flagThailandMalaysia flagMalaysiaIsrael flagIsraelSaudi Arabia flagSaudi ArabiaTurkey flagTurkeyArgentina flagArgentinaColombia flagColombia

Related Technology salaries in South Africa

Software EngineerFrontend DeveloperBackend DeveloperDevOps EngineerProduct ManagerUX DesignerData AnalystIT Support SpecialistFull-Stack DeveloperWeb DeveloperData EngineerQA EngineerSite Reliability EngineerCloud ArchitectNetwork EngineerSystems AdministratorDatabase AdministratorAI Engineer

Frequently asked questions

How much does a data scientist make in South Africa?
The national median data scientist salary in South Africa is about R 1 040 000 per year (R 86 700 per month). Across 12 cities, pay ranges from about R 728 000 to R 1 040 000.
Which South Africa city pays data scientists the most?
Cape Town, ZA pays the most at about R 1 040 000 per year.
Which South Africa city pays data scientists the least?
Among cities we cover, Johannesburg, ZA is on the lower end at about R 728 000 per year for a data scientist.
What is the typical salary range for a data scientist in South Africa?
Across South Africa cities we cover, data scientist pay commonly spans from about R 483 000 at the entry end in lower-paying markets up to about R 1 520 500 for senior pay in higher-paying cities. Open a city page for the full local percentile band.
How many South Africa cities have data scientist salary data?
Pay by Role publishes data scientist pay for 12 cities in South Africa, all shown in ZAR.
Is data scientist in demand in South Africa?
Employment for this role is projected to change by about +35% over the next decade. Related technology roles on Pay by Role include Software Engineer, Frontend Developer, Backend Developer.