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Average Physician - Sports Medicine Salary in China for 2026

A sports medicine physician in China earns about 965,000 CNY a year. That's 174% 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 483,400 CNY a year, while the very top stretches to 1,487,200 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 sports medicine physician make in China?

Average salary
965,000 CNY
80,416 CNY per month
Lowest reported
483,400 CNY
40,283 CNY per month
Highest reported
1,487,200 CNY
123,933 CNY per month

A typical sports medicine physician working in China brings home around 80,416 CNY a month before tax. Entry-level pay starts near 483,400 CNY, and the top of the ladder reaches roughly 1,487,200 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 sports medicine physician 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 sports medicine physician 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 sports medicine physicians in China earn less than 965,000 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 649,700 CNY (the 25th percentile), and a quarter clear 1,224,800 CNY (the 75th percentile). The middle 50% of sports medicine physicians sit somewhere inside that band, which is where the typical reader of this page probably lives.

The very lowest reported salaries sit around 483,400 CNY. The highest stretch to 1,487,200 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.

483,400
Low
965,000
Median
1,487,200
High
649,700
25th
1,224,800
75th
The middle 50% sit between the 25th and 75th percentile Tails are the lowest and highest reported All figures in CNY

Sports medicine physician pay by experience in China

Years of experience is the single biggest lever on pay for a sports medicine physician 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 sports medicine physician salary changes as you move through the career ladder.

  • 0-2 Years
    578,500 CNY
  • 2-5 Years
    +33% from previous
    767,000 CNY
  • 5-10 Years
    +33% from previous
    1,023,000 CNY
  • 10-15 Years
    +20% from previous
    1,224,800 CNY
  • 15-20 Years
    +8% from previous
    1,320,500 CNY
  • 20+ Years
    +7% from previous
    1,417,600 CNY

The single largest jump on the ladder is from 0 - 2 Years to 2 - 5 Years, where pay rises by about 33%. That is the point at which a sports medicine physician 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.

Sports medicine physician pay by education in China

Education lifts pay across almost every role, but the size of the lift varies enormously. The biggest premiums show up in licensed professions like medicine, law and accounting, where extra years of formal study open up seniority that isn't available without the qualification. The smallest premiums show up in skilled trades and creative work, where practical experience often beats academic credentials.

As a rough cross-industry guide for China: a post-secondary certificate or diploma adds around 17% over a high-school-only baseline. A bachelor's degree typically adds another 25% on top of that. A master's lifts pay a further 30%, and a PhD adds about 22% more in fields that value research-level qualifications. These are averages across many different professions, so the real number for your specific job could easily be twice as high or close to zero. The per-job pages below have the real numbers for individual roles.

Sports medicine physician gender pay gap in China

The gender pay gap is a stubborn feature of almost every labour market, and China is no exception. Male sports medicine physicians in China earn an average of 988,600 CNY a year, while female sports medicine physicians earn around 934,900 CNY. That works out to a 6% 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.

Physician - Sports Medicine gender pay gap

5%

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

Men 988,600 CNY
Women 934,900 CNY

Pay raises for a sports medicine physician 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

Sports medicine physician 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.

85%

85% of sports medicine physicians in China reported a bonus of some kind in the past twelve months. That makes a sports medicine physician 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 5% to 8% of base salary. The remaining 15% of sports medicine physicians 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

Sports medicine physician: 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

Sports medicine physician salary by city and region in China

Sports medicine physician 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
  • Guangdong
  • Guangzhou
  • Jiangsu
  • Henan
  • Hunan
  • Chengdu
  • Jinan
  • Shanghai (city)
  • Sichuan
LocationTypeAverageMedianRange
ShandongRegion1,129,700 CNY1,057,700 CNY596,800-1,716,600 CNY
GuangdongRegion1,113,100 CNY1,134,800 CNY545,300-1,741,800 CNY
GuangzhouCity1,109,600 CNY1,109,600 CNY553,400-1,716,600 CNY
JiangsuRegion1,092,200 CNY1,114,700 CNY537,300-1,703,200 CNY
HenanRegion1,069,800 CNY1,028,300 CNY556,000-1,645,600 CNY
HunanRegion1,059,800 CNY996,600 CNY562,200-1,606,100 CNY
ChengduCity1,050,100 CNY1,030,200 CNY537,300-1,621,400 CNY
JinanCity1,043,600 CNY1,065,800 CNY513,300-1,632,100 CNY
Shanghai (city)City1,042,000 CNY957,800 CNY562,200-1,570,900 CNY
SichuanRegion1,041,900 CNY1,041,900 CNY520,900-1,621,400 CNY
GuangxiRegion1,032,400 CNY948,900 CNY556,000-1,560,800 CNY
Chongqing (city)City1,031,200 CNY1,113,100 CNY472,100-1,645,600 CNY
HubeiRegion1,028,300 CNY1,067,500 CNY493,000-1,606,100 CNY
YunnanRegion1,021,800 CNY979,300 CNY529,600-1,560,800 CNY
HebeiRegion1,014,700 CNY995,200 CNY519,300-1,560,800 CNY
WuhanCity999,500 CNY918,500 CNY538,600-1,510,400 CNY
ShenzhenCity999,500 CNY999,500 CNY498,000-1,547,500 CNY
Beijing (city)City993,600 CNY917,200 CNY535,900-1,500,800 CNY
HangzhouCity988,600 CNY927,000 CNY524,400-1,500,800 CNY
HarbinCity987,200 CNY1,006,300 CNY485,300-1,537,500 CNY
Tianjin (city)City985,700 CNY945,400 CNY510,200-1,500,800 CNY
ShenyangCity979,600 CNY1,057,100 CNY451,000-1,560,800 CNY
AnhuiRegion978,900 CNY962,300 CNY500,100-1,510,400 CNY
ShaanxiRegion966,100 CNY1,004,500 CNY466,300-1,524,300 CNY
ShantouCity964,000 CNY985,700 CNY472,000-1,500,800 CNY
Xi anCity958,700 CNY1,035,500 CNY442,200-1,524,300 CNY
WenzhouCity954,900 CNY917,200 CNY496,100-1,464,200 CNY
FujianRegion954,900 CNY991,100 CNY459,700-1,500,800 CNY
ZhejiangRegion953,200 CNY990,700 CNY457,300-1,500,800 CNY
LiaoningRegion946,000 CNY1,023,000 CNY433,800-1,500,800 CNY
JiangxiRegion931,900 CNY854,300 CNY501,400-1,405,700 CNY
NanjingCity931,900 CNY986,700 CNY437,300-1,464,200 CNY
SuzhouCity919,700 CNY956,200 CNY442,200-1,440,700 CNY
HeilongjiangRegion919,700 CNY971,200 CNY430,000-1,450,700 CNY
QingdaoCity908,200 CNY983,700 CNY417,100-1,450,700 CNY
KunmingCity890,700 CNY906,000 CNY433,800-1,391,600 CNY
ShanxiRegion890,100 CNY819,000 CNY480,300-1,345,400 CNY
GansuRegion889,400 CNY836,500 CNY472,100-1,357,900 CNY
Chongqing (region)Region887,100 CNY849,200 CNY460,500-1,357,900 CNY
DalianCity885,000 CNY955,800 CNY407,300-1,405,700 CNY
FuzhouCity885,000 CNY849,200 CNY460,500-1,357,900 CNY
FoshanCity884,700 CNY812,900 CNY476,600-1,333,900 CNY
DongguanCity883,500 CNY899,900 CNY430,500-1,380,400 CNY
Nei MonggolRegion864,900 CNY848,200 CNY440,200-1,333,900 CNY
ChangchunCity864,700 CNY795,700 CNY467,100-1,306,100 CNY
GuizhouRegion862,400 CNY862,400 CNY430,500-1,345,400 CNY
JilinRegion861,300 CNY861,300 CNY430,000-1,333,900 CNY
Xinjiang UygurRegion861,300 CNY844,100 CNY437,900-1,320,500 CNY
XiamenCity849,200 CNY902,100 CNY397,900-1,345,400 CNY
ChangshaCity849,200 CNY884,700 CNY407,300-1,333,900 CNY
QuanzhouCity847,000 CNY917,700 CNY388,100-1,345,400 CNY
ZhengzhouCity840,100 CNY772,900 CNY455,400-1,273,300 CNY
WuxiCity839,500 CNY855,200 CNY411,400-1,306,100 CNY
Tianjin (region)Region832,100 CNY896,700 CNY383,300-1,320,500 CNY
Shanghai (region)Region824,800 CNY843,600 CNY406,300-1,283,600 CNY
QinghaiRegion818,100 CNY788,000 CNY425,100-1,259,300 CNY
Beijing (region)Region816,900 CNY866,900 CNY384,500-1,296,900 CNY
NingxiaRegion816,900 CNY866,900 CNY384,500-1,296,900 CNY
Xizang [Tibet]Region812,900 CNY862,100 CNY384,200-1,283,600 CNY
HainanRegion791,600 CNY858,100 CNY363,000-1,259,300 CNY

Physician - Sports Medicine in China: FAQs

  • How much does a sports medicine physician make per month in China?

    A sports medicine physician in China earns about 80,416 CNY a month before tax, based on an annual average of 965,000 CNY.

  • What's the salary range for a sports medicine physician in China?

    Entry-level sports medicine physicians in China start near 483,400 CNY. Top-end pay reaches around 1,487,200 CNY. The middle 50% of earners sit between 649,700 and 1,224,800 CNY.

  • Is the median sports medicine physician salary in China higher or lower than the average?

    The median is 965,000 CNY, higher than the average of 965,000 CNY. Half of sports medicine physicians in China earn below the median, half earn above it.

  • What's the gender pay gap for sports medicine physicians in China?

    Men working as a sports medicine physician in China earn around 6% more than women on average (988,600 vs 934,900 CNY a year).

  • Do sports medicine physicians in China get bonuses?

    About 85% of sports medicine physicians in China reported a bonus in the past 12 months. Reported bonuses ranged from 5% to 8% of base salary.

  • Do sports medicine physicians earn more in the public or private sector in China?

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

  • How often do sports medicine physicians in China get a pay raise?

    A sports medicine physician in China sees a raise of around 14% every 14 months, equivalent to roughly 12% a year.