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Average Instrumentation Technician Salary in North Korea for 2026

An instrumentation technician in North Korea earns about 915,100 KPW a year. That's 61% below the national average of 2,327,100 KPW.

Pay ranges widely from country to country and from role to role. The lowest reported salaries in North Korea sit around 426,700 KPW a year, while the very top stretches to 1,440,700 KPW. Everything on this page is in North Korean won (KPW, 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 North Korea, 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 instrumentation technician make in North Korea?

Average salary
915,100 KPW
76,258 KPW per month
Lowest reported
426,700 KPW
35,558 KPW per month
Highest reported
1,440,700 KPW
120,058 KPW per month

A typical instrumentation technician working in North Korea brings home around 76,258 KPW a month before tax. Entry-level pay starts near 426,700 KPW, and the top of the ladder reaches roughly 1,440,700 KPW 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 instrumentation technician 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 instrumentation technician pay ranges in North Korea

A good way to think about salary in North Korea is to look at the distribution rather than the headline average. Half of all instrumentation technicians in North Korea earn less than 966,100 KPW 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 627,900 KPW (the 25th percentile), and a quarter clear 1,273,300 KPW (the 75th percentile). The middle 50% of instrumentation technicians sit somewhere inside that band, which is where the typical reader of this page probably lives.

The very lowest reported salaries sit around 426,700 KPW. The highest stretch to 1,440,700 KPW, 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.

426,700
Low
966,100
Median
1,440,700
High
627,900
25th
1,273,300
75th
The middle 50% sit between the 25th and 75th percentile Tails are the lowest and highest reported All figures in KPW

Instrumentation technician pay by experience in North Korea

Years of experience is the single biggest lever on pay for an instrumentation technician in North Korea, 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 instrumentation technician salary changes as you move through the career ladder.

  • 0-2 Years
    492,700 KPW
  • 2-5 Years
    +38% from previous
    681,500 KPW
  • 5-10 Years
    +43% from previous
    972,200 KPW
  • 10-15 Years
    +22% from previous
    1,182,400 KPW
  • 15-20 Years
    +6% from previous
    1,249,900 KPW
  • 20+ Years
    +9% from previous
    1,357,900 KPW

The single largest jump on the ladder is from 2 - 5 Years to 5 - 10 Years, where pay rises by about 43%. That is the point at which a instrumentation technician 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.


Instrumentation technician pay by education in North Korea

Education sits alongside experience as one of the biggest factors driving instrumentation technician pay in North Korea. 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 instrumentation technician salary in North Korea broken down by the highest level of education a worker has completed.

  • High School
    592,600 KPW
  • Certificate or Diploma
    +51% from previous
    893,500 KPW
  • Bachelor's Degree
    +51% from previous
    1,345,400 KPW

Instrumentation technician gender pay gap in North Korea

The gender pay gap is a stubborn feature of almost every labour market, and North Korea is no exception. Male instrumentation technicians in North Korea earn an average of 979,300 KPW a year, while female instrumentation technicians earn around 861,300 KPW. That works out to a 14% 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.

Instrumentation Technician gender pay gap

12%

Men earn this much more than women on average in North Korea.

Men 979,300 KPW
Women 861,300 KPW

Pay raises for an instrumentation technician in North Korea

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 North Korea sees a raise of about 4% every 31 months, which works out to roughly 2% 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 North Korea, the national average raise is around 4% every 29 months.

By industry

Industries with the highest pay raises in North Korea:

  • Banking
  • Energy
    1%
  • Information Technology
  • Healthcare
    2%
  • 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 Level
    3% - 5%
  • Mid-Career
  • Senior Level
  • Top Management

Instrumentation technician bonus rates in North Korea

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.

14%

14% of instrumentation technicians in North Korea reported a bonus of some kind in the past twelve months. That makes an instrumentation technician a low-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 0% to 4% of base salary. The remaining 86% of instrumentation technicians reported no bonus at all over the same period.

Which careers pay bonuses in North Korea

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

Instrumentation technician: public vs private sector pay

Public-sector pay in North Korea is about 8% 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

7%

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

Public sector 2,401,300 KPW
Private sector 2,230,100 KPW


Instrumentation Technician in North Korea: FAQs

  • How much does an instrumentation technician make per month in North Korea?

    An instrumentation technician in North Korea earns about 76,258 KPW a month before tax, based on an annual average of 915,100 KPW.

  • What's the salary range for an instrumentation technician in North Korea?

    Entry-level instrumentation technicians in North Korea start near 426,700 KPW. Top-end pay reaches around 1,440,700 KPW. The middle 50% of earners sit between 627,900 and 1,273,300 KPW.

  • Is the median instrumentation technician salary in North Korea higher or lower than the average?

    The median is 966,100 KPW, higher than the average of 915,100 KPW. Half of instrumentation technicians in North Korea earn below the median, half earn above it.

  • What's the gender pay gap for instrumentation technicians in North Korea?

    Men working as an instrumentation technician in North Korea earn around 14% more than women on average (979,300 vs 861,300 KPW a year).

  • Do instrumentation technicians in North Korea get bonuses?

    About 14% of instrumentation technicians in North Korea reported a bonus in the past 12 months. Reported bonuses ranged from 0% to 4% of base salary.

  • Do instrumentation technicians earn more in the public or private sector in North Korea?

    In North Korea, the public sector pays an instrumentation technician about 8% more on average. Public-sector pay tends to be steadier; private-sector pay tends to offer bigger upside.

  • How often do instrumentation technicians in North Korea get a pay raise?

    An instrumentation technician in North Korea sees a raise of around 4% every 31 months, equivalent to roughly 2% a year.