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Q: What's a good salary in Chinese people's minds?

I'm completely content with my salary, but curious if it is impressive to Chinese or not.  What's a decent salary for a college-educated Chinese?  Or for a Chinese guy supporting a family?  Also, what's a decent salary for Chinese in Beijing/Shanghai as compared to lower-tiered cities?

11 years 40 weeks ago in  Money & Banking - China

 
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Posts: 264

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It depends on people.  Someone can't be happy with 50,000  per month and someone will just be happy for 5000 per month.

 

A decent salary for college-educated Chinese I'll say 4000 or 5000 to start, coz our school always get offer from companies that willing to pay sophomore interns 3000 per month, 5000 to start.

 

To support a family 50,000 per month will be good.

tmestep8:

50,000 yuan per month is $94,000 per year in America, a rich salary by most standards.  Cost of living is considerably lower in China.  I'm guessing most people out there aren't making 50,000 yuan per month.

11 years 40 weeks ago
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Thakkudu:

yes... but chinese need to buy LV / iphone etc etc.. buy house .. car... diamond.. oops

11 years 40 weeks ago
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EYN05:

50k a month???? are you nuts? 

totally untrue...

 

in gz most fresh college grads get 1600 starting work there way up after a few months to about 2000... 

girls usually get stuck around the 2500 a month salary so they can go find a husband...

big boss chinese after having some connections in a big company will someday get about 5,000rmb a month...

 

 

bonita is out of her mind and trying to make chinese look like big shots..

11 years 40 weeks ago
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bonita8187:

EYNO5: are you nut?? seriously?? chinese big boss only 5000???? LOLLLLL I bet you must be a loser.

11 years 40 weeks ago
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bonita8187:

and I am talking about shanghai, i have no idea about gz, but i'm SURE big boss in guang zhou don't only get 5000. coz even just teacher in shanghai can get 5000 even 10000-20000permonth! so, EYN05, you are nuts and loser.

11 years 40 weeks ago
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Jíliú.hé:

nice one tmestep8: ]growing up my family didn't even make half that.

11 years 40 weeks ago
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istri:

50.000/month--even for Shanghai??! Ckckck..

 

Bonita, what kind of job a chinese can do to make 50.000/month?

Im thinking..the closest job for that would might be businessman, diplomat, oil company employee, and dunno what else.. but for teacher making 20.000, is it for foreigners or locals? If that for locals, what kind of school will pay that much to a teacher? Being a teacher is a highly honored profession to me, it's not a 'just teacher' as you said--how superior your comment is!. Being teacher is beyond money, but I'm just curious and didn't expect school business these days are that generous to teachers.. if it is a fact, than great!

 

 

My husband is a teacher, and I am so proud of him since not only teaching is one of the very honest job in the world, but also he is a very responsible and dedicated one. Being paid 8000 a month to support his family--including me--is a luxury already to us. I wish this country allow me to get a job legally here as a spouse so I can financially help my husband and our little family better in planning our future retirement.

11 years 34 weeks ago
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11 years 40 weeks ago
 
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50,000 per month??? I'm so poor!!!! I was happy with my salary until now :(

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11 years 40 weeks ago
 
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Salaries are highly dependent on the type of job and amount of experience.  For new graduates between 3-5k per month is typical.  

 

If you are mid-management level, 10-20k is typical.  If you are senior level management, the salaries can be 25-300k plus.  

 

These are just averages that I am aware of.  The numbers can vary wildly.

Victoria1987:

Actually the salary standard what you are talking about is just the standard of big cities of China,like Shanghai,BeiJing.Or mostly 1500-2000 for new graducated student i typical in ZheJiang,and in Gansu,2000 rmb per month is a good salary,cause the lower living costs than S hanghai.

11 years 40 weeks ago
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11 years 40 weeks ago
 
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I personally believe it depends on the area,from the city where I come from,4,000rmb is a okay salary,but now I am working in Shanghai,things are more expensive than my howntown city(wenling city,Zhejiang province),so 10,000 will be a okay one.

cooter:

Haha, I have been to Wenling before.  I thought the Yan dang shan scenic area was beautiful :)

11 years 40 weeks ago
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Victoria1987:

Cool,that city is my hometown and has a lot of seafood,every night I misss them,yummy:)

11 years 40 weeks ago
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Victoria1987:

Even I come from Wenling,but I never been to yandang shan,I am not sure if that mountain belongs to wenling.I presonal think it is not.

11 years 40 weeks ago
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cooter:

Yeah, I just remember taking the train to Wenling station.  Maybe Yueqing is the correct location of Yan Dang Shan.  Anyways, nice place.

11 years 40 weeks ago
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LAR:

"I.................area." Well said. So, figure in cost of living (food,housing,transportation,etc.),medical care,utilities (electricity,gas,water),taxes,etc.

11 years 36 weeks ago
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11 years 40 weeks ago
 
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Mostly the old generation will buy house for their sons,so actually guys in the east of china dont nee to worry too much about this,they have  rich life.

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11 years 40 weeks ago
 
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If you consider than in China, those with monthly income over 12,000 Rmb are consider "rich" by their economic standards,  you will realize that average salaries for recent college graduates, whenever they manage to land a job, with no previous experience, and depending on location, will run between 1500 and 5000 Rmb per month.

 

A good friend just graduated with a Bus Adm degree, and managed a job with China Telecom as supervisor of a store selling phones, her salary is 1500 Rmb per month.  And she is happy with it, she claims there are still 1/2 million graduates looking for work.

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11 years 40 weeks ago
 
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Shifu

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Bonita, you sound like my wife. 50K per month is more than a doctor in the states. Maybe you meant per year, I hope. I average 45k per month and my wife always, always, says, that's just spending money for the rich. OH MY GOD

EYN05:

pshhh your wife is out of her mind!!!

 

I see this all the time... some chinese girl whos husband is making money trys to make him feel low about himself so she can controll him but actually all of her friends envy her..

 

tell her 45k a month is just spending money??? ok go find someone else than...

 

Sorry to say but your wife is a biotch!

11 years 40 weeks ago
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istri:

Gosh! *shaking heads vigorously*

 

Some people they just don't easily feel grateful for what they get.. Lucky her she got your love no matter what! I feel bad for you in that matter, techzee.. hope your wife will get her heart and mind open on that.. 

11 years 34 weeks ago
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Shifu

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it all depends where you live i think 20000 yuan in beijing would not be very much money but 20000 in xi an would be a fortune

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Shifu

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You would have to make six figures a year to make it a good salary especially in the top tier cities like Shanghai and Beijing. Afterall they were put on the top 25 most expenses to iive in the world. Six Figure salary a year!

emilychen:

i agree with mattaya. if you want a good life in top cities, that figure is a must.

11 years 40 weeks ago
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11 years 40 weeks ago
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11 years 40 weeks ago
 
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I'm so poor...

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11 years 40 weeks ago
 
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I barely survive on 40,000

Jnusb416:

That's just you. I survive on less than 1,000 a month. Of course, I don't have to pay for rent or any bills, just food and necessities. I saved 6,000+ USD these past 10 months, and that's even after spending several thousand in Japan.

11 years 40 weeks ago
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bonita8187:

yea, in shanghai are like that.

11 years 40 weeks ago
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Quinn68:

Jeez Ted, what are you blowing it all on? I make 23,000 and am able to save approximately half of that each month. Could save more but I like to eat well.

 

 

11 years 40 weeks ago
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I'd say 60,000 per month is about right.

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I have a friend who graduated from college in Nanning and he makes 1,500 yuan a month and thinks that is pretty good

istri:

Yes, it's all about perspective and gratitude.. in most asian countries people mostly compare to others who are struggling for job/living, when it comes to unsatisfying salary. Basically, any amount could be enough when your mind and soul say it could. Your deed will just follow. Well, otherwise you have other options/opportunity of course.

 

The more money-driven you are, the more any amount won't make it to your happiness, the more greed grow healthily.. 

11 years 34 weeks ago
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11 years 40 weeks ago
 
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lol u guys r insane. even in foreign countries, how can u make 60 grant a month and call it a decent salary? for a foreigner 20 K rmb is already pretty sweet in cities like shanghai, but for chinese i would say 10000 in 1st tier cities.

 

the average salary in shanghai is 80K per YEAR, so with 10K+ per month u r pretty well off i think...

 

i think the people here in the forum who shout the loudest, actually cannot even afford their daily milk...

mike695ca:

dude you are hella right!!  everyone in the forum is making 40,000 plus but every guy in the bar is counting jiao to pay the bill. Either this is a forum for old white dudes working in embassies, or teachers making 8-10 but think they deserve alot more so freely write about it here. Besides, anyone who posts there salaries on a forum is a complete douche

11 years 36 weeks ago
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tmestep8:

Good answer.  Thanks!

11 years 36 weeks ago
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11 years 40 weeks ago
 
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well yeah ummmm i make uhhh 80,000 a month and can hardly survive...yeah and uhh if you dont make 80,000 a month than your a douchbag.

 

This is common for Chinese. Didn't you stupid foreigners know that?

 

Do you really believe that we only make 1500-3000 a month?

bill8899:

I really believe that my students have no reason to lie to me and the recent grads say they make from 1,800 to maybe 3,000. Yes of course we are aware that all Chinese people don't make 3,000 RMB per month, you dumbass.

11 years 40 weeks ago
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EYN05:

haha... no shit.. almost all the chinese make that amount.. thats my point.. if you would have read my other comments above...

 

sorry i forgot to put sarcasm on the main post.

11 years 40 weeks ago
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EYN05:

yeah you know us normal chinese folk just do this kind of stuff... we make 80,000 a month and all I do is sit around all day and sleep for 2 hours in the afternoon.

 

after i finish work i usually go down and find some foreigners and shit on them... like yeah actually pull down my pants and take a dump on them.. because thats just like how us guys in china roll.. 80K and month? pshhh thats chump change... THIS IS CHINA!! didnt you know? 75k for mcdonalds workers now adays.

you foreign english teachers are my bitchy.. and I take a dump on your faces too!

11 years 40 weeks ago
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im from Norway and live in Norway ofc, but i want to try live in china, been to Beijing 2 times.

 

anyway here in Norway, you dont even need a job to get by, i might sound lazy (and i am) but i get 12000 Norwegian Kroners a month for free, that is about 14000 RMB.

 

yes for free, i get it from a goverment thing, dont really care enough to bother with it to know all about it, im just happy i get free money every month.

 

im 22 years old and still in school,and cant bother getting a job in between, to much stress, so free money is allways nice.

so Norway to me is perfect that way ;) 

cooter:

Agree with pogger.  There's no such thing as free money.  Someone else is busting their ass working so you can mooch off the system. 

11 years 36 weeks ago
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Delirium:

cooter, no there isnt anyone busting their ass to give me free money, it is Norways policy, anyone in Norway can get this offer. 

 

but Pogger, i kinda agree with you, but i dont complain :P  

11 years 36 weeks ago
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Delirium:

true that Pogger :P this is more fun than a job lol .

 

but i have created my own job, the money i get, i use about half of that each month to invest in items, i buy stuff from a site in china, import it to Norway and sell it on Norwegian sites that are much like Ebay.

 

i also sell virtual gold from MMORPG games, so that is also easy money, since i got pretty good wasy to earn gold on those games.

 

anyway,i get money for another 6 months, then its stop, but since i got my 2 (hobby jobs or whatever) i can still make money

11 years 36 weeks ago
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11 years 36 weeks ago
 
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  Dunno about the coastal cities but in mainland China a person's doing pretty well if they're making 3000 a month.

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11 years 36 weeks ago
 
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Shifu

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they would prefer to have their own business than getting a salary but 3000 is quiet fair in their opinion.........not a lot of them can have their own business

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11 years 36 weeks ago
 
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Im working just outside of Guangzhou in a Top 20 Chinese company.

Graduates get 3-3.5K

 Average is around 6K

Mid -management is 8-10K

Senior levels are rich beyong my imagination.

Everyone here thats pushin 30 or above has a house and a car. Im sure that their families play a large role but it seems to be a good barometer for average people.

Anyone over 10 is doing quite good,  and i would bet that if your at 20K a month youd be classified as RICH! 

that being said, theres countless people we meet and see everyday that piss on 20K.  With soooo many Uber rich everywhere it can kinda cloud what "normal" actually is.

tmestep8:

good answer!  Thanks

11 years 36 weeks ago
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11 years 36 weeks ago
 
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MONTHLY - In south of China, grads often get intern-like offers for 1,500. 1,500-2,500 is the salary for many restaurants you see advertised. This is a hard job with continual tasks and little room for rest, so a hard job.

Everyone needs to understand that unlike the west, most jobs come with free housing and free food. This needs to be factored in. I know girls that have gotten jobs for 2,000 with free house (stay in company rented or owned housing) and free food. Young or non-grads will take this barely, and stress how hard life is. 2,500 they are more likely to take, 3,000 and life is okay, manageable and they can afford some of life's treats and send money back home. There are few jobs above this level, you really need some special skills. English speaker, executive, business-building skills or skills that bring money into the business that justify paying you more than a worker. Even working for international trading companies as a salesperson will only get you 2,000-3,000+small commissions, but very very few at 3,000.

Most adults 22-24 I talk to think 3,500 with or without house but with free food, is a damn good salary and they would be willing to jump ship to get it. Anything above this they think is awesome. Costs of living are far far higher than in the west. 17-28 for a maccas meal, petrol at 8 per liter, movies out at 20-80, mobile costs at 500 vs 40, internet for 100, tv for 100-200, rent for a 30sq m 2 bed type motel 6-like apartment is from 800 for shabby older 1910's buildings to 2,800 for newer downtown style highrises. (budget range) you pretty much can not find a meal under 10 of any kind even if your looking hard, but can at 10. An ice cream at maccas is 3. Bottle of 300ml water is 2 but you can get a 20L cooler jug for 15. Clothing is above western prices and for nice clothing, far far far higher. Iphone is 4,000 not just 500-700 like in the west. Laptop is 3,000-4,000 not like 300-500 in the west.

Cars are the same price. For local Chinese its a hard life and I think the government is doing a fantastic job making a lot more accessible in big cities and by ripping down all the old and replacing it all with world class buildings and infrastructure. There is so much to do in China still, so much more room for growth, anyone that says China has no room left to grow and might easily be classified as some as a complete mouthpiece ignoramus who has never stepped foot in China and if have, likely have never stepped foot out of 5 star hotels in downtown cores.

This place is raw raw raw even in city outskirts and the amount of replacing, refurbishing, knocking down to modernize that still needs to happen, is massive beyond imagination of any westerner. The amount of sprawl chaos in the countryside with 4 times the population of the usa lingering out there all over in dingy, junky housing and makeshift old ww2 bombed out lookalike 4-7 storey 'cities' (we would call it that although you have to see it to understand) is massive.

They need to knock it all down and free up agriculture, replace this with western style apartment towers in cities with world class subways, malls, attractions, schools and unis, and they are doing it at a breakneck pace, but to say there is any end to the demand is plain eyeball stretching when you are standing out in any of these places seeing "Times square street crossing chaos on top of a rubbish tip in the middle of ww2 bombed to oblivion berlin 4-6 story close quarters towns. The countryside is FULL of this mess countrywide, this needs to be vaccummed into big cities and knocked down to make room for commerical farming. Google satellite for 2 hours should be a pre-requisite education for anyone to be allowed to comment on such I think.

giadrosich:

Lots of great information, but, um...try making it more than one paragraph next time. That way, people may actually read past the first 12 sentences.

11 years 34 weeks ago
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11 years 34 weeks ago
 
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I have not seen ANY salaries above 8,000 for Chinese, UNLESS it's a special skilled position. I'm taking Doctorate level degrees in English with extensive overseas travel and complete fluency, or high level executives in smaller companies. State employees top pay ranges up to 4,500 a month + many incentives. There is little unemployment benefits and barely any social network like welfare or pensions. You save for your retirement or your finished, not like the west. I have seen however "worth based pay" up to 20,000 a month. Worth based pay is sales or business development. Basically if you can bring business into the company via sales, going out and getting customers, or selling them to keep coming back again and again at high profits, you will get paid extra as these people are harder to find and are the #1 skill worth base of any company (of course) Westerners can still earn US-dollar denominated salaries at western levels for the big western companies here, but good luck getting in, these people are usually internal transfers from overseas, and rarely hired locally.

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