Average Commercial Horticulturist Salary in South Africa for 2024

In this article, we will look at the average Commercial Horticulturist salary for 2024 in South Africa and how that compares to other countries and professions. We'll also look at interesting salary data points like median salary, 25th and 75th percentile salaries, salary amounts based on experience, bonus ranges and more!

The data in this article has been compiled using official government salary data, salary surveys, and other sources such as job postings which contain salary information.

All salary information is in the local currency, which is the South African rand. To keep things simple, we are using the ZAR currency code instead of the currency symbol R.

How Much Does a Commercial Horticulturist Make in South Africa?

A Commercial Horticulturist working in South Africa will typically earn around 275,200 ZAR per year, and this can range from the lowest average salary of about 136,100 ZAR to the highest average salary of 428,400 ZAR.

Average Annual Salary
275,200 ZAR
Average Monthly Salary
22,933 ZAR

Lowest Annual Salary
136,100 ZAR
Lowest Monthly Salary
11,341 ZAR

Highest Annual Salary
428,400 ZAR
Highest Monthly Salary
35,700 ZAR

These are average salaries for a Commercial Horticulturist in South Africa and include benefits such as housing and transport. It's also possible for a Commercial Horticulturist to earn more or less than the average salaries shown above.

Commercial Horticulturist salaries will vary a lot based on your experience, location, skills, and gender. Keep reading below to research more data on each of these areas.

Distribution of Commercial Horticulturist Salaries in South Africa

So we've looked at the average salaries a Commercial Horticulturist will earn in South Africa. The next interesting data point is the distribution of salaries.

Salary ranges

We already know that a Commercial Horticulturist can earn between 136,100 ZAR and 428,400 ZAR on average in South Africa. This is known as the range in statistics.

The difference between the maximum and minimum values is a good indicator of variability in salaries, and can be used by employers to figure out how much they can expect to pay, and for employees to know how much they can earn.

Median salary

The median salary for a Commercial Horticulturist in South Africa is 279,400 ZAR. This is the middle value in the distribution of salaries.

What this means is that approximately 50% of the population earn less than 279,400 ZAR, and 50% of the population earn more than 279,400 ZAR.

If you are earning more than the median salary, that's a good indicator that you are being paid well.

If you're not earning more than the median salary, your objective should be to increase your earnings to be at least as high as the median salary (which you can do by asking for a pay rise, looking for a better paying job, etc).

Percentiles

Percentiles are similar to the median salary, but instead of looking at the middle value, they look at the values in the top and bottom half of the distribution.

For the average Commercial Horticulturist salary in South Africa, 25% of the population are earning less than 187,500 ZAR while 75% of the population earn more than 187,500 ZAR.

75% of the population earn less than 361,600 ZAR, and 25% of the population earn more than 361,600 ZAR.

Like the median salary, the 25th and 75th percentile salaries can be used to determine which quartile you fall into so that you know whether you are being paid well enough compared to others in your profession and location.

The difference between a median and an average salary

The median and average salary are both indicators you can use to see if you are being paid fairly based on the overall population.

  • If your salary is higher than the average and the median salary, you are earning well compared to others.
  • If your salary is lower than the average and the median salary, it could indicate you are not being paid well enough.
  • If you are somewhere in between then it's tricky to determine if you are being paid well enough and you might need to research more closely.

Commercial Horticulturist Salary by Experience Level in South Africa

The most important factor in determining your salary after the specific profession is the number of years experience you have. It stands to reason that more years of experience will result in a higher wage.

We have researched the average commercial horticulturist salary based on years of experience to give you an idea of how the average changes once you've worked for a certain amount of time.

  • 0 - 2 Years Experience. A Commercial Horticulturist in South Africa that has less than two years of experience can expect to earn somewhere in the region of 159,100 ZAR.
  • 2 - 5 Years Experience. With two to five years of experience the average Commercial Horticulturist salary would increase to 205,700 ZAR.
  • 5 - 10 Years Experience. From five to ten years of experience as a Commercial Horticulturist, the average salary would be 283,400 ZAR.
  • 10 - 15 Years Experience. Once you have more than ten years of experience the average salary reaches around 348,300 ZAR.
  • 15 - 20 Years Experience. A Commercial Horticulturist with 15 to 20 years of experience can earn an average of 375,200 ZAR.
  • 20+ Years Experience. For a Commercial Horticulturist with more than 20 years, the expected average salary increases to 397,900 ZAR.

Average Salary by Experience Chart

0-2 Years
159,100 ZAR
2-5 Years +29%
205,700 ZAR
5-10 Years +38%
283,400 ZAR
10-15 Years +24%
348,300 ZAR
15-20 Years +7%
375,200 ZAR
20+ Years +7%
397,900 ZAR

Commercial Horticulturist Salary by Education Level in South Africa

As well as experience in a job, your education plays a big role in how much you can earn. A lot of higher paying positions require a high level of education, but how much can a degree increase your salary?

In our research we have compared the salaries of employees in the same job and career level with different levels of education to see how much more you can earn at each education level.

The salary you can earn based on your education is very specific to both your location and the career path you choose.

In our research, we looked at the average salary for a Commercial Horticulturist in South Africa based on the education level of the employees in order to find out whether a better education level would increase your salary.

  • High School. A Commercial Horticulturist in South Africa with a high school education can earn an average salary of 205,700 ZAR.

  • Certificate or Diploma. A Commercial Horticulturist in South Africa with a certificate or diploma education can earn an average salary of 292,000 ZAR.

  • Bachelor's Degree. A Commercial Horticulturist in South Africa with a bachelor's degree education can earn an average salary of 403,100 ZAR.

Average Salary by Education Chart

High School
205,700 ZAR
Certificate or Diploma +43%
292,000 ZAR
Bachelor's Degree +38%
403,100 ZAR

How Much is a Master's Degree or MBA Program?

The approximate cost of a master's degree or post-graduate program like an MBA in South Africa is around 156,000 to 467,000 ZAR and takes two years to complete.

As you can see above, there are financial benefits from reaching master's degree level, but don't expect to see much of a salary increase until you have completed the degree.

It's common for people to pursue an MBA or other post-graduate program in order to switch to a a job that pays more. On average, you can expect to earn around 10% more when switching to a new company.

Whether you decide to pursue a master's degree depends on many factors. If you are able to afford it, the numbers suggest that the return on investment is worth it and you could recover the costs in a few years from the salary increase you would receive.

Commercial Horticulturist Salary Compared by Gender

In the modern age, we know that there should never be a pay gap between men and women. Unfortunately, in many professions, there is still a significant difference between the salaries earned by men when compared to the salary of women in the same job.

In South Africa, a male commercial horticulturist will earn an average of 283,400 ZAR, while a female commercial horticulturist will earn around 263,200 ZAR.

This means that a male commercial horticulturist earns approximately 8% more than a female commercial horticulturist for performing the same job.

Average Salary by Gender Chart in South Africa

Male
283,400 ZAR
Female -8%
263,200 ZAR

Commercial Horticulturist Average Pay Raise in South Africa

In many countries, an annual pay raise is often given to employees to reward their service with a salary increase.

From our research, we can see that the average pay raise for a Commercial Horticulturist in South Africa is around 8% every 21 months.

The national average pay raise across all professions and industries in South Africa is around 8% every 18 months.

In this case, we can see that the number of months between the average pay raise is higher than the typical 12 months.

To make the data more meaningful, we can calculate what the approximate annual pay raise would be using a simple formula:

Annual Increase = ( Increase Rate ÷ Months ) × 12

So for this example, it would be:

Annual Increase = ( 8 ÷ 21 ) × 12  = 5%

What this means is that a Commercial Horticulturist in South Africa can expect to receive an average pay raise of around 5% every 12 months.

Annual Pay Raise by Industry in South Africa for 2024

In the chart below, you can see the average annual pay raise percentages for each of the major industries in South Africa.

You will see that companies in bigger and more lucrative industries tend to have the higher annual pay raises.

Banking
3%
Energy
6%
Information Technology
9%
Healthcare
3%
Travel
6%
Construction
9%
Education
3%

Commercial Horticulturist Bonus and Incentive Rates in South Africa

Another part of your overall compensation in a job is how much bonus you receive. Some job roles will be more likely to pay a bonus than others and also more likely to have higher bonus rates.

Generally speaking, jobs that are more involved with direct revenue generation will receive higher bonuses based on the performance towards revenue goals.

A Commercial Horticulturist is a low bonus based job, with 30% of employees reporting at least one bonus in the last 12 months.

70% reported that they had not received any bonuses in the previous 12 months.

For the employees that did receive a bonus in the previous 12 months, the reported bonuses ranged from 0% to 4%.

Received Bonus
30%
No Bonus
70%

What are the Types of Bonus?

There are a number of difference types of bonus you can receive in a job. Including:

  • Individual performance bonus - This is a bonus that is awarded to an individual employee for general performance in the job. It's the most common type of bonus.
  • Company performance bonus - This is a bonus that is awarded to a company employees to share profit with the staff.
  • Goal based bonus - This is a bonus that is awarded to an individual employee (or a team) for achieving specific goals, objectives, or milestones.
  • Holiday bonus - This type of bonus is usually paid around the holidays, often the end of the year, and is a token of appreciation for the hard work throughout the year.

Government vs Private Sector Salaries

Another commonly asked question is whether you get paid a higher salary working in the public (government) sector or the private sector.

Public sector employees in South Africa earn approximately 7% more than private sector employees in the same role.

Public Sector
386,400 ZAR
Private Sector -7%
361,500 ZAR

Salaries for Jobs Similar to a Commercial Horticulturist

In the table below, we have salary information for jobs that are similar to a Commercial Horticulturist in South Africa.

Job Title Category Salary
Agricultural and Food Science Technician Gardening / Farming / Fishing 238,900 ZAR
Agricultural and Food Scientist Gardening / Farming / Fishing 553,400 ZAR
Agricultural Consultant Gardening / Farming / Fishing 556,000 ZAR
Agricultural Engineer Gardening / Farming / Fishing 352,000 ZAR
Agricultural Inspector Gardening / Farming / Fishing 332,100 ZAR
Agricultural Manager Gardening / Farming / Fishing 588,500 ZAR
Agronomist Gardening / Farming / Fishing 516,100 ZAR
Animal Attendant Gardening / Farming / Fishing 169,000 ZAR
Animal Nutritionist Gardening / Farming / Fishing 339,100 ZAR
Animal Trainer Gardening / Farming / Fishing 197,600 ZAR
Aquaculture and Seafood Farmer Gardening / Farming / Fishing 191,600 ZAR
Bee Keeper Gardening / Farming / Fishing 111,240 ZAR
Diver Gardening / Farming / Fishing 176,800 ZAR
Farm Manager Gardening / Farming / Fishing 464,900 ZAR
Farmer Gardening / Farming / Fishing 117,600 ZAR
Floral Designer Gardening / Farming / Fishing 143,200 ZAR
Foreman Gardening / Farming / Fishing 101,860 ZAR
Forestry and Logging Worker Gardening / Farming / Fishing 98,120 ZAR
Garden Center Helper Gardening / Farming / Fishing 103,900 ZAR
Garden Centre Manager Gardening / Farming / Fishing 294,700 ZAR
Gardener Gardening / Farming / Fishing 106,980 ZAR
General Farm Assistant Gardening / Farming / Fishing 108,080 ZAR
Greenhouse Assistant Gardening / Farming / Fishing 104,920 ZAR
Greenhouse Manager Gardening / Farming / Fishing 254,800 ZAR
Groundsman Gardening / Farming / Fishing 104,600 ZAR
Grower Gardening / Farming / Fishing 112,660 ZAR
Horticultural Worker Gardening / Farming / Fishing 106,960 ZAR
Tree Pruner Gardening / Farming / Fishing 102,160 ZAR
Tree Specialist Gardening / Farming / Fishing 172,200 ZAR

Salary Comparison by City

If you want to compare salaries with different cities in South Africa, you can use the links below to explore the data for each specific city we have researched.

City Average Salary
Bloemfontein 239,000 ZAR
Cape Town 288,100 ZAR
Durban 272,800 ZAR
Johannesburg 257,700 ZAR
Port Elizabeth 261,300 ZAR
Pretoria 251,500 ZAR

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