Average General Counsel Salary in Netherlands for 2024

In this article, we will look at the average General Counsel salary for 2024 in Netherlands 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 Euro. To keep things simple, we are using the EUR currency code instead of the currency symbol โ‚ฌ.

How Much Does a General Counsel Make in Netherlands?

A General Counsel working in Netherlands will typically earn around 139,100 EUR per year, and this can range from the lowest average salary of about 66,180 EUR to the highest average salary of 214,000 EUR.

Average Annual Salary
139,100 EUR
Average Monthly Salary
11,591 EUR

Lowest Annual Salary
66,180 EUR
Lowest Monthly Salary
5,515 EUR

Highest Annual Salary
214,000 EUR
Highest Monthly Salary
17,833 EUR

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

General Counsel 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 General Counsel Salaries in Netherlands

So we've looked at the average salaries a General Counsel will earn in Netherlands. The next interesting data point is the distribution of salaries.

Salary ranges

We already know that a General Counsel can earn between 66,180 EUR and 214,000 EUR on average in Netherlands. 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 General Counsel in Netherlands is 138,800 EUR. This is the middle value in the distribution of salaries.

What this means is that approximately 50% of the population earn less than 138,800 EUR, and 50% of the population earn more than 138,800 EUR.

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 General Counsel salary in Netherlands, 25% of the population are earning less than 95,620 EUR while 75% of the population earn more than 95,620 EUR.

75% of the population earn less than 181,600 EUR, and 25% of the population earn more than 181,600 EUR.

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.

General Counsel Salary by Experience Level in Netherlands

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 general counsel 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 General Counsel in Netherlands that has less than two years of experience can expect to earn somewhere in the region of 78,260 EUR.
  • 2 - 5 Years Experience. With two to five years of experience the average General Counsel salary would increase to 101,980 EUR.
  • 5 - 10 Years Experience. From five to ten years of experience as a General Counsel, the average salary would be 142,300 EUR.
  • 10 - 15 Years Experience. Once you have more than ten years of experience the average salary reaches around 176,800 EUR.
  • 15 - 20 Years Experience. A General Counsel with 15 to 20 years of experience can earn an average of 189,300 EUR.
  • 20+ Years Experience. For a General Counsel with more than 20 years, the expected average salary increases to 201,100 EUR.

Average Salary by Experience Chart

0-2 Years
78,260 EUR
2-5 Years +29%
101,980 EUR
5-10 Years +38%
142,300 EUR
10-15 Years +24%
176,800 EUR
15-20 Years +7%
189,300 EUR
20+ Years +7%
201,100 EUR

General Counsel Salary by Education Level in Netherlands

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 General Counsel in Netherlands based on the education level of the employees in order to find out whether a better education level would increase your salary.

  • Bachelor's Degree. A General Counsel in Netherlands with a bachelor's degree education can earn an average salary of 100,580 EUR.

  • Master's Degree. A General Counsel in Netherlands with a master's degree education can earn an average salary of 159,500 EUR.

Average Salary by Education Chart

Bachelor's Degree
100,580 EUR
Master's Degree +60%
159,500 EUR

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 Netherlands is around 24,400 to 73,300 EUR 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.

General Counsel 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 Netherlands, a male general counsel will earn an average of 138,800 EUR, while a female general counsel will earn around 136,100 EUR.

This means that a male general counsel earns approximately 2% more than a female general counsel for performing the same job.

Average Salary by Gender Chart in Netherlands

Male
138,800 EUR
Female -2%
136,100 EUR

General Counsel Average Pay Raise in Netherlands

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 General Counsel in Netherlands is around 13% every 16 months.

The national average pay raise across all professions and industries in Netherlands is around 9% every 15 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 = ( 13 ÷ 16 ) × 12  = 10%

What this means is that a General Counsel in Netherlands can expect to receive an average pay raise of around 10% every 12 months.

Annual Pay Raise by Industry in Netherlands for 2024

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

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

Banking
8%
Energy
7%
Information Technology
6%
Healthcare
5%
Travel
4%
Construction
3%
Education
2%

General Counsel Bonus and Incentive Rates in Netherlands

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 General Counsel is a low bonus based job, with 35% of employees reporting at least one bonus in the last 12 months.

65% 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
35%
No Bonus
65%

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 Netherlands earn approximately 4% more than private sector employees in the same role.

Public Sector
58,720 EUR
Private Sector -4%
56,640 EUR

Salaries for Jobs Similar to a General Counsel

In the table below, we have salary information for jobs that are similar to a General Counsel in Netherlands.

Job Title Category Salary
Administrative Law Judge Legal 158,700 EUR
Arbitrator Legal 75,040 EUR
Associate Attorney Legal 71,280 EUR
Attorney Legal 115,260 EUR
Bailiff Legal 37,620 EUR
Barrister Legal 30,220 EUR
Candidate Attorney Legal 66,820 EUR
Conciliator Legal 53,320 EUR
Contracts Associate Legal 35,260 EUR
Contracts Manager Legal 61,760 EUR
Contracts Negotiator Legal 51,900 EUR
Contracts Specialist Legal 38,680 EUR
Conveyancing Secretary Legal 29,160 EUR
Corporate Counsel Legal 85,460 EUR
Counsel Legal 79,240 EUR
Court Clerk Legal 26,780 EUR
Court Judicial Assistant Legal 46,160 EUR
Court Liaison Specialist Legal 50,340 EUR
Court Reporter Legal 45,580 EUR
Court Representative Legal 32,420 EUR
Crown Prosecution Service Lawyer Legal 154,700 EUR
Immigration Executive Legal 80,180 EUR
In House Counsel Legal 78,940 EUR
Intellectual Property Specialist Legal 52,880 EUR
Judge Advocate Legal 124,400 EUR
Law Clerk Legal 27,040 EUR
Lawyer Legal 114,940 EUR
Legal Administrative Assistant Legal 30,220 EUR
Legal Advisor Legal 70,880 EUR
Legal Assistant Legal 31,400 EUR
Legal Associate Legal 55,220 EUR
Legal Consultant Legal 66,840 EUR
Legal Consultant Legal 69,400 EUR
Legal Counsel Legal 80,060 EUR
Legal Editor Legal 54,280 EUR
Legal Executive Legal 101,920 EUR
Legal Executive Secretary Legal 34,160 EUR
Legal IP Officer Legal 29,320 EUR
Legal Officer Legal 38,140 EUR
Legal Secretary Legal 34,240 EUR
Legal Services Director Legal 130,400 EUR
Legal Services Manager Legal 127,700 EUR
Legal Support Worker Legal 22,420 EUR
Legislative Liaison Legal 52,300 EUR
Litigation Attorney Legal 142,300 EUR
Litigation Paralegal Legal 70,840 EUR
Magistrate Judge Legal 161,600 EUR
Paralegal Legal 46,840 EUR
Patent Attorney Legal 82,200 EUR
Staff Attorney Legal 84,880 EUR

Salary Comparison by City

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

City Average Salary
Almere 143,200 EUR
Amsterdam 152,100 EUR
Breda 128,500 EUR
Eindhoven 138,800 EUR
Groningen 136,200 EUR
Nijmegen 137,400 EUR
Rotterdam 159,500 EUR
s-Gravenhage 152,300 EUR
Tilburg 150,000 EUR
Utrecht 148,300 EUR

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