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Average Business Development Executive Salary in China for 2026

A business development executive in China earns about 459,700 CNY a year. That's 31% above the national average of 351,900 CNY.

Pay ranges widely from country to country and from role to role. The lowest reported salaries in China sit around 233,600 CNY a year, while the very top stretches to 707,600 CNY. Everything on this page is in Chinese yuan (CNY, symbol ¥), 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 China, 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 a business development executive make in China?

Average salary
459,700 CNY
38,308 CNY per month
Lowest reported
233,600 CNY
19,466 CNY per month
Highest reported
707,600 CNY
58,966 CNY per month

A typical business development executive working in China brings home around 38,308 CNY a month before tax. Entry-level pay starts near 233,600 CNY, and the top of the ladder reaches roughly 707,600 CNY 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 business development executive 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 business development executive pay ranges in China

A good way to think about salary in China is to look at the distribution rather than the headline average. Half of all business development executives in China earn less than 451,000 CNY 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 308,900 CNY (the 25th percentile), and a quarter clear 565,100 CNY (the 75th percentile). The middle 50% of business development executives sit somewhere inside that band, which is where the typical reader of this page probably lives.

The very lowest reported salaries sit around 233,600 CNY. The highest stretch to 707,600 CNY, 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.

233,600
Low
451,000
Median
707,600
High
308,900
25th
565,100
75th
The middle 50% sit between the 25th and 75th percentile Tails are the lowest and highest reported All figures in CNY

Business development executive pay by experience in China

Years of experience is the single biggest lever on pay for a business development executive in China, 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 business development executive salary changes as you move through the career ladder.

  • 0-2 Years
    263,100 CNY
  • 2-5 Years
    +30% from previous
    341,900 CNY
  • 5-10 Years
    +41% from previous
    480,600 CNY
  • 10-15 Years
    +20% from previous
    576,500 CNY
  • 15-20 Years
    +9% from previous
    626,800 CNY
  • 20+ Years
    +8% from previous
    675,200 CNY

The single largest jump on the ladder is from 2 - 5 Years to 5 - 10 Years, where pay rises by about 41%. That is the point at which a business development executive 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.

Business development executive pay by education in China

Education sits alongside experience as one of the biggest factors driving business development executive pay in China. 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 business development executive salary in China broken down by the highest level of education a worker has completed.

  • High School
    315,700 CNY
  • Certificate or Diploma
    +15% from previous
    362,200 CNY
  • Bachelor's Degree
    +41% from previous
    510,000 CNY
  • Master's Degree
    +29% from previous
    656,800 CNY

Business development executive gender pay gap in China

The gender pay gap is a stubborn feature of almost every labour market, and China is no exception. Male business development executives in China earn an average of 485,300 CNY a year, while female business development executives earn around 433,800 CNY. That works out to a 12% 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.

Business Development Executive gender pay gap

11%

Men earn this much more than women on average in China.

Men 485,300 CNY
Women 433,800 CNY

Pay raises for a business development executive in China

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 China sees a raise of about 14% every 14 months, which works out to roughly 12% 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 China, the national average raise is around 9% every 15 months.

By industry

Industries with the highest pay raises in China:

  • Banking
  • Energy
  • Information Technology
  • Healthcare
  • Travel
  • Construction
  • Education
    2%

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 Level
    3% - 5%
  • Mid-Career
  • Senior Level
  • Top Management

Business development executive bonus rates in China

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.

81%

81% of business development executives in China reported a bonus of some kind in the past twelve months. That makes a business development executive a high-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 6% to 8% of base salary. The remaining 19% of business development executives reported no bonus at all over the same period.

Which careers pay bonuses in China

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

Business development executive: public vs private sector pay

Public-sector pay in China is about 6% 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

6%

Public-sector workers earn this much more than private-sector workers in China on average.

Public sector 362,200 CNY
Private sector 341,400 CNY

Business development executive salary by city and region in China

Business development executive pay is not even across China. The chart below shows the highest-paying cities and regions in the dataset, followed by the full location table.

  • Shandong
  • Guangzhou
  • Henan
  • Guangdong
  • Jiangsu
  • Wuhan
  • Hunan
  • Hebei
  • Shanghai (city)
  • Chengdu
LocationTypeAverageMedianRange
ShandongRegion533,100 CNY552,400 CNY254,800-832,300 CNY
GuangzhouCity513,300 CNY501,400 CNY263,200-790,300 CNY
HenanRegion504,400 CNY516,100 CNY246,500-788,000 CNY
GuangdongRegion502,200 CNY480,300 CNY261,300-767,400 CNY
JiangsuRegion502,200 CNY480,300 CNY261,300-767,400 CNY
WuhanCity500,100 CNY529,600 CNY233,900-791,200 CNY
HunanRegion491,000 CNY510,300 CNY233,900-769,500 CNY
HebeiRegion487,600 CNY487,600 CNY243,000-754,900 CNY
Shanghai (city)City485,300 CNY514,300 CNY227,600-767,000 CNY
ChengduCity485,200 CNY485,200 CNY240,500-752,600 CNY
Chongqing (city)City483,800 CNY524,400 CNY221,500-768,900 CNY
JinanCity483,400 CNY464,400 CNY249,600-737,000 CNY
HubeiRegion480,600 CNY450,300 CNY254,700-727,100 CNY
SichuanRegion476,600 CNY467,100 CNY243,000-736,700 CNY
HangzhouCity475,700 CNY492,700 CNY227,600-745,000 CNY
Beijing (city)City475,700 CNY504,400 CNY221,500-751,100 CNY
HarbinCity472,100 CNY453,200 CNY245,300-721,600 CNY
ShenzhenCity471,700 CNY460,500 CNY239,000-724,000 CNY
NanjingCity466,900 CNY431,100 CNY253,400-706,200 CNY
Xi anCity466,900 CNY504,400 CNY214,000-743,100 CNY
LiaoningRegion466,900 CNY504,400 CNY214,000-743,300 CNY
JiangxiRegion466,900 CNY496,100 CNY221,500-737,000 CNY
ZhejiangRegion462,300 CNY433,400 CNY245,300-702,800 CNY
ShantouCity462,300 CNY445,100 CNY239,000-707,700 CNY
AnhuiRegion460,500 CNY460,500 CNY231,000-714,300 CNY
GuangxiRegion459,300 CNY487,600 CNY215,100-727,400 CNY
ShaanxiRegion459,300 CNY430,500 CNY243,000-699,700 CNY
Tianjin (city)City455,400 CNY464,400 CNY221,500-709,600 CNY
SuzhouCity453,200 CNY425,100 CNY239,000-688,900 CNY
ShenyangCity451,000 CNY485,200 CNY207,800-713,900 CNY
QingdaoCity450,300 CNY487,600 CNY207,700-717,900 CNY
YunnanRegion450,300 CNY460,500 CNY218,900-705,500 CNY
FujianRegion437,300 CNY411,400 CNY232,900-663,100 CNY
HeilongjiangRegion433,800 CNY399,900 CNY233,900-659,400 CNY
ChangchunCity430,500 CNY459,700 CNY204,700-683,400 CNY
WenzhouCity430,000 CNY442,200 CNY209,500-674,100 CNY
JilinRegion426,700 CNY421,400 CNY217,900-658,300 CNY
Shanghai (region)Region425,100 CNY409,000 CNY222,300-650,700 CNY
Nei MonggolRegion420,800 CNY420,800 CNY209,500-653,200 CNY
GuizhouRegion420,100 CNY414,000 CNY214,000-650,800 CNY
KunmingCity417,200 CNY397,900 CNY215,100-638,700 CNY
DongguanCity415,900 CNY398,300 CNY215,100-633,300 CNY
QuanzhouCity414,000 CNY447,300 CNY190,500-659,400 CNY
FoshanCity414,000 CNY437,300 CNY194,600-650,700 CNY
FuzhouCity414,000 CNY420,100 CNY204,700-643,800 CNY
ShanxiRegion412,000 CNY437,300 CNY191,600-650,700 CNY
Chongqing (region)Region409,000 CNY417,200 CNY200,000-638,700 CNY
XiamenCity407,100 CNY375,200 CNY221,500-614,600 CNY
WuxiCity404,600 CNY389,200 CNY209,500-620,300 CNY
ChangshaCity403,100 CNY378,800 CNY212,500-615,000 CNY
GansuRegion403,100 CNY421,400 CNY191,600-632,400 CNY
DalianCity397,900 CNY430,000 CNY183,700-633,300 CNY
QinghaiRegion394,800 CNY399,900 CNY191,600-615,000 CNY
NingxiaRegion394,500 CNY363,000 CNY212,500-597,800 CNY
Xinjiang UygurRegion386,400 CNY386,400 CNY191,600-598,600 CNY
Beijing (region)Region383,300 CNY352,000 CNY207,800-574,200 CNY
HainanRegion382,600 CNY413,900 CNY176,800-608,500 CNY
Tianjin (region)Region377,200 CNY407,100 CNY172,200-598,600 CNY
ZhengzhouCity367,900 CNY389,200 CNY172,400-581,300 CNY
Xizang [Tibet]Region361,500 CNY332,100 CNY196,800-548,500 CNY

Business Development Executive in China: FAQs

  • How much does a business development executive make per month in China?

    A business development executive in China earns about 38,308 CNY a month before tax, based on an annual average of 459,700 CNY.

  • What's the salary range for a business development executive in China?

    Entry-level business development executives in China start near 233,600 CNY. Top-end pay reaches around 707,600 CNY. The middle 50% of earners sit between 308,900 and 565,100 CNY.

  • Is the median business development executive salary in China higher or lower than the average?

    The median is 451,000 CNY, lower than the average of 459,700 CNY. Half of business development executives in China earn below the median, half earn above it.

  • What's the gender pay gap for business development executives in China?

    Men working as a business development executive in China earn around 12% more than women on average (485,300 vs 433,800 CNY a year).

  • Do business development executives in China get bonuses?

    About 81% of business development executives in China reported a bonus in the past 12 months. Reported bonuses ranged from 6% to 8% of base salary.

  • Do business development executives earn more in the public or private sector in China?

    In China, the public sector pays a business development executive about 6% more on average. Public-sector pay tends to be steadier; private-sector pay tends to offer bigger upside.

  • How often do business development executives in China get a pay raise?

    A business development executive in China sees a raise of around 14% every 14 months, equivalent to roughly 12% a year.