Skip to content
worldsalaries .com

Average Project Development Manager Salary in China for 2026

A project development manager in China earns about 437,300 CNY a year. That's 24% 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 228,500 CNY a year, while the very top stretches to 665,300 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 project development manager make in China?

Average salary
437,300 CNY
36,441 CNY per month
Lowest reported
228,500 CNY
19,041 CNY per month
Highest reported
665,300 CNY
55,441 CNY per month

A typical project development manager working in China brings home around 36,441 CNY a month before tax. Entry-level pay starts near 228,500 CNY, and the top of the ladder reaches roughly 665,300 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 project development manager 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 project development manager 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 project development managers in China earn less than 417,100 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 288,700 CNY (the 25th percentile), and a quarter clear 520,900 CNY (the 75th percentile). The middle 50% of project development managers sit somewhere inside that band, which is where the typical reader of this page probably lives.

The very lowest reported salaries sit around 228,500 CNY. The highest stretch to 665,300 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.

228,500
Low
417,100
Median
665,300
High
288,700
25th
520,900
75th
The middle 50% sit between the 25th and 75th percentile Tails are the lowest and highest reported All figures in CNY

Project development manager pay by experience in China

Years of experience is the single biggest lever on pay for a project development manager 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 project development manager salary changes as you move through the career ladder.

  • 0-2 Years
    257,700 CNY
  • 2-5 Years
    +34% from previous
    344,600 CNY
  • 5-10 Years
    +31% from previous
    451,000 CNY
  • 10-15 Years
    +21% from previous
    544,800 CNY
  • 15-20 Years
    +9% from previous
    596,100 CNY
  • 20+ Years
    +5% from previous
    625,000 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 project development manager 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.

Project development manager pay by education in China

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

  • High School
    312,400 CNY
  • Certificate or Diploma
    +13% from previous
    354,000 CNY
  • Bachelor's Degree
    +41% from previous
    500,100 CNY
  • Master's Degree
    +21% from previous
    605,700 CNY

Project development manager gender pay gap in China

The gender pay gap is a stubborn feature of almost every labour market, and China is no exception. Male project development managers in China earn an average of 457,300 CNY a year, while female project development managers earn around 420,100 CNY. That works out to a 9% 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.

Project Development Manager gender pay gap

8%

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

Men 457,300 CNY
Women 420,100 CNY

Pay raises for a project development manager 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 12% every 15 months, which works out to roughly 10% 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

Project development manager 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.

80%

80% of project development managers in China reported a bonus of some kind in the past twelve months. That makes a project development manager 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 6% to 8% of base salary. The remaining 20% of project development managers 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

Project development manager: 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

Project development manager salary by city and region in China

Project development manager 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.

  • Guangzhou
  • Guangdong
  • Henan
  • Hunan
  • Beijing (city)
  • Sichuan
  • Chengdu
  • Hangzhou
  • Shandong
  • Guangxi
LocationTypeAverageMedianRange
GuangzhouCity539,800 CNY518,300 CNY279,400-823,400 CNY
GuangdongRegion535,900 CNY581,300 CNY246,500-855,200 CNY
HenanRegion518,900 CNY562,200 CNY238,900-824,800 CNY
HunanRegion516,100 CNY492,700 CNY267,100-786,600 CNY
Beijing (city)City516,100 CNY524,300 CNY253,400-805,900 CNY
SichuanRegion513,300 CNY492,400 CNY266,000-783,800 CNY
ChengduCity510,300 CNY522,700 CNY251,500-794,900 CNY
HangzhouCity500,100 CNY480,600 CNY261,300-765,100 CNY
ShandongRegion500,100 CNY480,600 CNY261,300-767,000 CNY
GuangxiRegion498,500 CNY504,500 CNY243,000-773,400 CNY
JinanCity498,500 CNY537,300 CNY228,000-790,300 CNY
Shanghai (city)City498,000 CNY510,000 CNY245,300-778,900 CNY
HubeiRegion498,000 CNY510,000 CNY245,300-778,500 CNY
HebeiRegion492,400 CNY502,200 CNY239,300-767,400 CNY
Tianjin (city)City483,800 CNY520,900 CNY222,300-767,500 CNY
Chongqing (city)City483,800 CNY520,900 CNY222,300-768,900 CNY
JiangsuRegion480,300 CNY518,900 CNY222,300-767,000 CNY
WuhanCity475,700 CNY485,300 CNY232,400-743,300 CNY
ShantouCity472,100 CNY510,000 CNY216,800-748,600 CNY
ZhejiangRegion472,100 CNY480,600 CNY231,000-735,500 CNY
AnhuiRegion471,700 CNY480,600 CNY231,000-733,300 CNY
LiaoningRegion462,300 CNY499,300 CNY210,500-735,500 CNY
FujianRegion459,700 CNY467,100 CNY225,700-718,000 CNY
HarbinCity457,300 CNY492,700 CNY209,700-725,700 CNY
YunnanRegion454,900 CNY492,400 CNY209,700-724,000 CNY
JiangxiRegion454,300 CNY462,300 CNY222,300-707,600 CNY
NanjingCity454,300 CNY433,400 CNY233,900-695,200 CNY
Xi anCity453,200 CNY489,600 CNY207,700-719,100 CNY
ShenyangCity451,000 CNY485,200 CNY207,800-713,900 CNY
SuzhouCity448,500 CNY457,300 CNY221,500-699,700 CNY
ShenzhenCity445,100 CNY425,100 CNY231,000-679,200 CNY
HeilongjiangRegion445,100 CNY428,400 CNY232,900-681,900 CNY
WenzhouCity442,200 CNY475,700 CNY204,700-698,200 CNY
ShanxiRegion436,200 CNY447,300 CNY214,000-684,900 CNY
QingdaoCity431,300 CNY467,100 CNY197,600-691,200 CNY
ChangchunCity430,500 CNY442,200 CNY209,500-674,100 CNY
DongguanCity428,400 CNY462,300 CNY195,200-681,900 CNY
FoshanCity426,700 CNY436,200 CNY209,700-669,100 CNY
ShaanxiRegion426,700 CNY437,300 CNY209,700-669,100 CNY
GansuRegion426,700 CNY412,000 CNY221,500-656,800 CNY
Chongqing (region)Region425,100 CNY459,300 CNY196,800-677,100 CNY
Xinjiang UygurRegion424,300 CNY430,500 CNY207,700-660,500 CNY
JilinRegion421,400 CNY403,100 CNY217,900-643,400 CNY
Nei MonggolRegion420,800 CNY430,000 CNY207,800-658,300 CNY
FuzhouCity420,100 CNY455,400 CNY191,600-670,600 CNY
GuizhouRegion419,400 CNY399,900 CNY216,800-639,100 CNY
WuxiCity409,000 CNY440,200 CNY189,300-649,700 CNY
ChangshaCity407,300 CNY415,900 CNY197,600-637,500 CNY
Tianjin (region)Region407,300 CNY440,200 CNY189,300-650,800 CNY
XiamenCity407,100 CNY390,000 CNY209,500-623,200 CNY
KunmingCity406,300 CNY437,300 CNY187,500-643,400 CNY
QuanzhouCity404,600 CNY436,200 CNY187,500-643,800 CNY
Shanghai (region)Region404,600 CNY436,200 CNY187,500-643,800 CNY
DalianCity403,100 CNY433,800 CNY187,500-641,900 CNY
QinghaiRegion399,900 CNY431,300 CNY185,100-638,700 CNY
NingxiaRegion397,900 CNY382,600 CNY207,700-610,100 CNY
Beijing (region)Region394,800 CNY378,300 CNY205,700-600,000 CNY
ZhengzhouCity394,800 CNY401,300 CNY191,600-614,600 CNY
HainanRegion382,600 CNY413,900 CNY176,800-608,500 CNY
Xizang [Tibet]Region361,500 CNY349,300 CNY189,300-553,400 CNY

Project Development Manager in China: FAQs

  • How much does a project development manager make per month in China?

    A project development manager in China earns about 36,441 CNY a month before tax, based on an annual average of 437,300 CNY.

  • What's the salary range for a project development manager in China?

    Entry-level project development managers in China start near 228,500 CNY. Top-end pay reaches around 665,300 CNY. The middle 50% of earners sit between 288,700 and 520,900 CNY.

  • Is the median project development manager salary in China higher or lower than the average?

    The median is 417,100 CNY, lower than the average of 437,300 CNY. Half of project development managers in China earn below the median, half earn above it.

  • What's the gender pay gap for project development managers in China?

    Men working as a project development manager in China earn around 9% more than women on average (457,300 vs 420,100 CNY a year).

  • Do project development managers in China get bonuses?

    About 80% of project development managers in China reported a bonus in the past 12 months. Reported bonuses ranged from 6% to 8% of base salary.

  • Do project development managers earn more in the public or private sector in China?

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

  • How often do project development managers in China get a pay raise?

    A project development manager in China sees a raise of around 12% every 15 months, equivalent to roughly 10% a year.