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Average HSE Engineer Salary in China for 2026

An HSE engineer in China earns about 308,300 CNY a year. That's 12% below 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 159,500 CNY a year, while the very top stretches to 472,100 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 an HSE engineer make in China?

Average salary
308,300 CNY
25,691 CNY per month
Lowest reported
159,500 CNY
13,291 CNY per month
Highest reported
472,100 CNY
39,341 CNY per month

A typical HSE engineer working in China brings home around 25,691 CNY a month before tax. Entry-level pay starts near 159,500 CNY, and the top of the ladder reaches roughly 472,100 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 HSE engineer 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 HSE engineer 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 HSE engineers in China earn less than 299,500 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 207,800 CNY (the 25th percentile), and a quarter clear 369,900 CNY (the 75th percentile). The middle 50% of HSE engineers sit somewhere inside that band, which is where the typical reader of this page probably lives.

The very lowest reported salaries sit around 159,500 CNY. The highest stretch to 472,100 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.

159,500
Low
299,500
Median
472,100
High
207,800
25th
369,900
75th
The middle 50% sit between the 25th and 75th percentile Tails are the lowest and highest reported All figures in CNY

HSE engineer pay by experience in China

Years of experience is the single biggest lever on pay for an HSE engineer 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 HSE engineer salary changes as you move through the career ladder.

  • 0-2 Years
    183,600 CNY
  • 2-5 Years
    +34% from previous
    246,200 CNY
  • 5-10 Years
    +29% from previous
    317,700 CNY
  • 10-15 Years
    +21% from previous
    385,300 CNY
  • 15-20 Years
    +9% from previous
    420,800 CNY
  • 20+ Years
    +6% from previous
    445,100 CNY

The single largest jump on the ladder is from 0 - 2 Years to 2 - 5 Years, where pay rises by about 34%. That is the point at which a HSE engineer 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.

HSE engineer pay by education in China

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

  • Bachelor's Degree
    257,700 CNY
  • Master's Degree
    +39% from previous
    357,700 CNY

HSE engineer gender pay gap in China

The gender pay gap is a stubborn feature of almost every labour market, and China is no exception. Male HSE engineers in China earn an average of 325,800 CNY a year, while female HSE engineers earn around 297,000 CNY. That works out to a 10% 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.

HSE Engineer gender pay gap

9%

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

Men 325,800 CNY
Women 297,000 CNY

Pay raises for an HSE engineer 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 13% every 14 months, which works out to roughly 11% 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

HSE engineer 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.

54%

54% of HSE engineers in China reported a bonus of some kind in the past twelve months. That makes an HSE engineer 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 46% of HSE engineers 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

HSE engineer: 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

HSE engineer salary by city and region in China

HSE engineer 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
  • Henan
  • Guangzhou
  • Shanghai (city)
  • Chongqing (city)
  • Guangdong
  • Sichuan
  • Jiangsu
  • Anhui
  • Hunan
LocationTypeAverageMedianRange
ShandongRegion385,300 CNY369,300 CNY200,000-590,200 CNY
HenanRegion383,300 CNY414,000 CNY174,000-606,400 CNY
GuangzhouCity378,800 CNY365,400 CNY195,200-581,300 CNY
Shanghai (city)City378,300 CNY385,300 CNY187,500-590,200 CNY
Chongqing (city)City378,300 CNY407,300 CNY172,200-598,600 CNY
GuangdongRegion371,100 CNY401,300 CNY172,200-592,600 CNY
SichuanRegion369,900 CNY353,600 CNY192,600-563,300 CNY
JiangsuRegion366,200 CNY394,300 CNY167,100-580,600 CNY
AnhuiRegion363,000 CNY371,100 CNY180,300-566,900 CNY
HunanRegion361,500 CNY349,300 CNY189,300-553,400 CNY
HubeiRegion359,900 CNY366,200 CNY174,000-558,300 CNY
ChengduCity359,900 CNY366,200 CNY176,800-559,000 CNY
Tianjin (city)City357,300 CNY382,600 CNY161,600-565,100 CNY
WuhanCity354,000 CNY361,500 CNY172,200-553,400 CNY
JinanCity351,900 CNY378,800 CNY161,300-558,300 CNY
HangzhouCity345,100 CNY330,700 CNY180,300-525,700 CNY
Beijing (city)City345,100 CNY351,900 CNY169,000-535,900 CNY
HebeiRegion341,900 CNY348,300 CNY167,100-535,800 CNY
ShenzhenCity341,400 CNY327,800 CNY175,900-524,400 CNY
ShenyangCity339,100 CNY363,000 CNY154,700-537,300 CNY
NanjingCity335,800 CNY322,600 CNY174,000-516,100 CNY
JiangxiRegion335,800 CNY341,900 CNY163,800-524,700 CNY
GuangxiRegion335,800 CNY341,900 CNY163,800-524,700 CNY
FujianRegion332,500 CNY340,400 CNY161,600-519,300 CNY
Xi anCity332,500 CNY359,900 CNY152,000-528,600 CNY
ZhejiangRegion332,100 CNY340,400 CNY161,600-522,700 CNY
YunnanRegion330,900 CNY357,700 CNY152,000-524,300 CNY
LiaoningRegion327,800 CNY351,200 CNY151,800-518,900 CNY
ShanxiRegion322,600 CNY327,300 CNY159,100-501,400 CNY
HarbinCity322,600 CNY349,300 CNY150,000-514,300 CNY
SuzhouCity318,800 CNY325,800 CNY157,600-496,100 CNY
QingdaoCity315,900 CNY341,400 CNY146,200-501,400 CNY
DongguanCity315,700 CNY340,400 CNY146,200-500,100 CNY
WenzhouCity313,700 CNY340,400 CNY146,200-502,200 CNY
Chongqing (region)Region313,700 CNY340,400 CNY146,200-502,200 CNY
ChangchunCity312,400 CNY318,800 CNY152,000-485,200 CNY
ShantouCity311,700 CNY339,100 CNY142,300-496,100 CNY
FoshanCity309,800 CNY315,700 CNY152,100-480,300 CNY
ShaanxiRegion307,400 CNY311,700 CNY151,800-476,600 CNY
Shanghai (region)Region305,600 CNY330,700 CNY138,800-485,200 CNY
FuzhouCity305,600 CNY327,300 CNY138,800-483,800 CNY
GuizhouRegion305,600 CNY294,700 CNY159,100-464,900 CNY
DalianCity305,600 CNY330,700 CNY138,800-485,300 CNY
JilinRegion301,700 CNY292,000 CNY159,100-464,900 CNY
GansuRegion301,700 CNY292,000 CNY158,700-466,300 CNY
HeilongjiangRegion301,600 CNY288,700 CNY158,700-464,400 CNY
KunmingCity301,600 CNY325,900 CNY138,200-480,300 CNY
Beijing (region)Region299,500 CNY283,700 CNY154,700-454,900 CNY
Nei MonggolRegion294,700 CNY299,500 CNY143,200-454,900 CNY
ChangshaCity294,700 CNY297,000 CNY142,300-457,300 CNY
Xinjiang UygurRegion292,000 CNY299,500 CNY143,200-455,400 CNY
Tianjin (region)Region286,400 CNY312,400 CNY130,400-457,300 CNY
QuanzhouCity283,400 CNY305,600 CNY128,500-447,700 CNY
WuxiCity275,500 CNY297,000 CNY125,700-442,200 CNY
HainanRegion275,200 CNY294,700 CNY127,700-433,800 CNY
NingxiaRegion272,800 CNY261,300 CNY138,800-413,900 CNY
XiamenCity272,800 CNY261,300 CNY138,800-413,900 CNY
ZhengzhouCity271,300 CNY273,000 CNY130,400-421,400 CNY
Xizang [Tibet]Region271,300 CNY259,100 CNY138,800-414,000 CNY
QinghaiRegion265,000 CNY288,100 CNY123,400-420,100 CNY

HSE Engineer in China: FAQs

  • How much does an HSE engineer make per month in China?

    An HSE engineer in China earns about 25,691 CNY a month before tax, based on an annual average of 308,300 CNY.

  • What's the salary range for an HSE engineer in China?

    Entry-level HSE engineers in China start near 159,500 CNY. Top-end pay reaches around 472,100 CNY. The middle 50% of earners sit between 207,800 and 369,900 CNY.

  • Is the median HSE engineer salary in China higher or lower than the average?

    The median is 299,500 CNY, lower than the average of 308,300 CNY. Half of HSE engineers in China earn below the median, half earn above it.

  • What's the gender pay gap for HSE engineers in China?

    Men working as an HSE engineer in China earn around 10% more than women on average (325,800 vs 297,000 CNY a year).

  • Do HSE engineers in China get bonuses?

    About 54% of HSE engineers in China reported a bonus in the past 12 months. Reported bonuses ranged from 3% to 5% of base salary.

  • Do HSE engineers earn more in the public or private sector in China?

    In China, the public sector pays an HSE engineer about 6% more on average. Public-sector pay tends to be steadier; private-sector pay tends to offer bigger upside.

  • How often do HSE engineers in China get a pay raise?

    An HSE engineer in China sees a raise of around 13% every 14 months, equivalent to roughly 11% a year.