Average Assistant Shipping Manager Salary in Bulgaria for 2026
An assistant shipping manager in Bulgaria earns about 36,800 BGN a year. That's 5% roughly in line with the national average of 38,700 BGN.
Pay ranges widely from country to country and from role to role. The lowest reported salaries in Bulgaria sit around 19,360 BGN a year, while the very top stretches to 55,320 BGN. Everything on this page is in Bulgarian lev (BGN, symbol лв), which lets you compare numbers like-for-like without worrying about exchange rates.
The numbers here are pulled together from official government wage data, large independent salary surveys, and aggregated worker-reported pay. Most reported salaries include the benefits that are common in Bulgaria, such as housing or transport allowances, which is worth keeping in mind if you're comparing against a country where those are usually paid on top.
How much does an assistant shipping manager make in Bulgaria?
A typical assistant shipping manager working in Bulgaria brings home around 3,066 BGN a month before tax. Entry-level pay starts near 19,360 BGN, and the top of the ladder reaches roughly 55,320 BGN for the most experienced and specialised people in the role.
The wide gap between low end and top end reflects how much pay can vary inside the same job title. A junior assistant shipping manager working at a small local employer earns very different money from a senior at a multinational. Skills, employer, city and years in the seat all push the number around.
How assistant shipping manager pay ranges in Bulgaria
A good way to think about salary in Bulgaria is to look at the distribution rather than the headline average. Half of all assistant shipping managers in Bulgaria earn less than 36,940 BGN a year, and the other half earn more. That middle number is the median, and it is usually more useful than the average for answering "is my pay normal here".
Looking at the quartiles fills in the picture. A quarter of earners take home less than 23,260 BGN (the 25th percentile), and a quarter clear 43,080 BGN (the 75th percentile). The middle 50% of assistant shipping managers sit somewhere inside that band, which is where the typical reader of this page probably lives.
The very lowest reported salaries sit around 19,360 BGN. The highest stretch to 55,320 BGN, though only a small fraction of earners ever reach that level. If you are deciding whether your own offer or current pay is reasonable, work out which of those four bands you would fall into and use that as your reference point.
Assistant shipping manager pay by experience in Bulgaria
Years of experience is the single biggest lever on pay for an assistant shipping manager in Bulgaria, ahead of education and almost any other single factor. The longer you have been in the role, the more your employer can trust you to handle complexity, mentor others and act independently, all of which command higher pay. The chart below shows how the typical assistant shipping manager salary changes as you move through the career ladder.
- 0-2 Years20,000 BGN
- 2-5 Years+35% from previous27,020 BGN
- 5-10 Years+38% from previous37,380 BGN
- 10-15 Years+17% from previous43,800 BGN
- 15-20 Years+10% from previous48,300 BGN
- 20+ Years+5% from previous50,540 BGN
The single largest jump on the ladder is from 2 - 5 Years to 5 - 10 Years, where pay rises by about 38%. That is the point at which a assistant shipping manager typically goes from "competent in the role" to "the person other people in the team learn from", and the market pays well for that step.
Assistant shipping manager pay by education in Bulgaria
Education sits alongside experience as one of the biggest factors driving assistant shipping manager pay in Bulgaria. Higher qualifications consistently pull higher salaries, but the size of the gap tends to be smallest at junior levels and widens as people move up. Two people in the same role with the same years of experience but different degrees can end up earning very different money once they reach mid-career.
Below is the average assistant shipping manager salary in Bulgaria broken down by the highest level of education a worker has completed.
- High School27,040 BGN
- Certificate or Diploma+7% from previous28,860 BGN
- Bachelor's Degree+51% from previous43,480 BGN
- Master's Degree+21% from previous52,460 BGN
Assistant shipping manager gender pay gap in Bulgaria
The gender pay gap is a stubborn feature of almost every labour market, and Bulgaria is no exception. Male assistant shipping managers in Bulgaria earn an average of 36,700 BGN a year, while female assistant shipping managers earn around 34,120 BGN. That works out to a 8% gap in favour of men, even when comparing people doing the same work.
A pay gap of this size has a real long-term cost. Over a typical thirty-year career it can add up to several years of pay, and it compounds through pensions, retirement contributions and bonus-linked stock. Some of the gap is explained by women being more likely to work part-time, take career breaks, or be steered toward lower-paying specialisations. Some of it is straightforward unequal pay for the same job, which is harder to defend.
Assistant Shipping Manager gender pay gap
7%
Men earn this much more than women on average in Bulgaria.
Pay raises for an assistant shipping manager in Bulgaria
Most countries hand out at least some kind of pay raise every year, typically when an employee's contract is reviewed or as a cost-of-living adjustment to keep wages roughly in step with inflation. The rhythm and size of those raises varies hugely between industries.
A typical worker doing this role in Bulgaria sees a raise of about 9% every 22 months, which works out to roughly 5% on an annual basis. That figure is the typical underlying rate; in years where inflation runs high you can usually expect a bit more, and in flat-economy years a bit less.
Across all jobs in Bulgaria, the national average raise is around 7% every 20 months.
By industry
Industries with the highest pay raises in Bulgaria:
- Banking
- Energy
- Information Technology
- Healthcare
- Travel
- Construction
- Education
By experience level
Experienced workers tend to see larger raises. Retaining a senior is cheaper than replacing them, so employers fight harder for them.
- Junior Level3% - 5%
- Mid-Career
- Senior Level
- Top Management
Assistant shipping manager bonus rates in Bulgaria
Bonuses are the other half of total compensation, and they vary a lot between jobs and industries. Some roles are paid almost entirely in base salary; others lean heavily on bonus structures tied to revenue, project completion or company performance. Whether a job pays a bonus, how big it is, and how often it lands all factor into whether the headline salary is actually a good offer.
50% of assistant shipping managers in Bulgaria reported a bonus of some kind in the past twelve months. That makes an assistant shipping manager a moderate-bonus role overall, which is useful context when you're weighing up a job offer where the base is below market.
Among those who did receive a bonus, the size of the payment varied substantially. Reported bonuses ranged from 3% to 5% of base salary. The remaining 50% of assistant shipping managers reported no bonus at all over the same period.
Which careers pay bonuses in Bulgaria
Revenue-facing roles tend to pay the biggest bonuses. Operational and support roles tend toward smaller, more predictable ones.
- Finance
- Architecture
- Sales
- Business Development
- Marketing / Advertising
- Information Technology
- Healthcare
- Insurance
- Customer Service
- Human Resources
- Construction
- Transport
- Hospitality
Assistant shipping manager: public vs private sector pay
Public-sector pay in Bulgaria is about 2% more than private-sector pay for similar work. The private sector typically offers stronger upside and bigger bonuses; the public sector typically offers better benefits and stability.
Public vs private pay gap
2%
Public-sector workers earn this much more than private-sector workers in Bulgaria on average.
Assistant shipping manager salary by city in Bulgaria
Assistant shipping manager pay is not even across Bulgaria. The chart below shows the highest-paying cities in the dataset, followed by the full location table.
- Sofia
- Plovdiv
- Varna
- Rousse
- Stara Zagora
- Burgas
| Location | Type | Average | Median | Range |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sofia | City | 41,700 BGN | 41,560 BGN | 19,020-63,320 BGN |
| Plovdiv | City | 39,080 BGN | 35,420 BGN | 19,380-57,820 BGN |
| Varna | City | 37,380 BGN | 39,560 BGN | 16,140-57,820 BGN |
| Rousse | City | 36,160 BGN | 40,140 BGN | 17,540-57,080 BGN |
| Stara Zagora | City | 35,340 BGN | 35,340 BGN | 18,780-51,900 BGN |
| Burgas | City | 35,260 BGN | 35,340 BGN | 16,980-55,320 BGN |
Assistant Shipping Manager in Bulgaria: FAQs
-
How much does an assistant shipping manager make per month in Bulgaria?
An assistant shipping manager in Bulgaria earns about 3,066 BGN a month before tax, based on an annual average of 36,800 BGN.
-
What's the salary range for an assistant shipping manager in Bulgaria?
Entry-level assistant shipping managers in Bulgaria start near 19,360 BGN. Top-end pay reaches around 55,320 BGN. The middle 50% of earners sit between 23,260 and 43,080 BGN.
-
Is the median assistant shipping manager salary in Bulgaria higher or lower than the average?
The median is 36,940 BGN, higher than the average of 36,800 BGN. Half of assistant shipping managers in Bulgaria earn below the median, half earn above it.
-
What's the gender pay gap for assistant shipping managers in Bulgaria?
Men working as an assistant shipping manager in Bulgaria earn around 8% more than women on average (36,700 vs 34,120 BGN a year).
-
Do assistant shipping managers in Bulgaria get bonuses?
About 50% of assistant shipping managers in Bulgaria reported a bonus in the past 12 months. Reported bonuses ranged from 3% to 5% of base salary.
-
Do assistant shipping managers earn more in the public or private sector in Bulgaria?
In Bulgaria, the public sector pays an assistant shipping manager about 2% more on average. Public-sector pay tends to be steadier; private-sector pay tends to offer bigger upside.
-
How often do assistant shipping managers in Bulgaria get a pay raise?
An assistant shipping manager in Bulgaria sees a raise of around 9% every 22 months, equivalent to roughly 5% a year.