Average Sales Director Salary in South Korea for 2024

In this article, we will look at the average Sales Director salary for 2024 in South Korea 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 South Korean won. To keep things simple, we are using the KRW currency code instead of the currency symbol โ‚ฉ.

How Much Does a Sales Director Make in South Korea?

A Sales Director working in South Korea will typically earn around 83,040,600 KRW per year, and this can range from the lowest average salary of about 40,679,700 KRW to the highest average salary of 129,601,700 KRW.

Average Annual Salary
83,040,600 KRW
Average Monthly Salary
6,920,050 KRW

Lowest Annual Salary
40,679,700 KRW
Lowest Monthly Salary
3,389,975 KRW

Highest Annual Salary
129,601,700 KRW
Highest Monthly Salary
10,800,141 KRW

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

Sales Director 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 Sales Director Salaries in South Korea

So we've looked at the average salaries a Sales Director will earn in South Korea. The next interesting data point is the distribution of salaries.

Salary ranges

We already know that a Sales Director can earn between 40,679,700 KRW and 129,601,700 KRW on average in South Korea. 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 Sales Director in South Korea is 84,601,900 KRW. This is the middle value in the distribution of salaries.

What this means is that approximately 50% of the population earn less than 84,601,900 KRW, and 50% of the population earn more than 84,601,900 KRW.

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 Sales Director salary in South Korea, 25% of the population are earning less than 56,401,100 KRW while 75% of the population earn more than 56,401,100 KRW.

75% of the population earn less than 109,200,400 KRW, and 25% of the population earn more than 109,200,400 KRW.

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.

Sales Director Salary by Experience Level in South Korea

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 sales director 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 Sales Director in South Korea that has less than two years of experience can expect to earn somewhere in the region of 48,239,000 KRW.
  • 2 - 5 Years Experience. With two to five years of experience the average Sales Director salary would increase to 61,919,600 KRW.
  • 5 - 10 Years Experience. From five to ten years of experience as a Sales Director, the average salary would be 85,560,900 KRW.
  • 10 - 15 Years Experience. Once you have more than ten years of experience the average salary reaches around 105,960,300 KRW.
  • 15 - 20 Years Experience. A Sales Director with 15 to 20 years of experience can earn an average of 113,519,000 KRW.
  • 20+ Years Experience. For a Sales Director with more than 20 years, the expected average salary increases to 121,199,300 KRW.

Average Salary by Experience Chart

0-2 Years
48,239,000 KRW
2-5 Years +29%
61,919,600 KRW
5-10 Years +38%
85,560,900 KRW
10-15 Years +24%
105,960,300 KRW
15-20 Years +7%
113,519,000 KRW
20+ Years +7%
121,199,300 KRW

Sales Director Salary by Education Level in South Korea

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 Sales Director in South Korea based on the education level of the employees in order to find out whether a better education level would increase your salary.

  • Certificate or Diploma. A Sales Director in South Korea with a certificate or diploma education can earn an average salary of 61,919,600 KRW.

  • Bachelor's Degree. A Sales Director in South Korea with a bachelor's degree education can earn an average salary of 83,280,400 KRW.

  • Master's Degree. A Sales Director in South Korea with a master's degree education can earn an average salary of 127,201,600 KRW.

Average Salary by Education Chart

Certificate or Diploma
61,919,600 KRW
Bachelor's Degree +34%
83,280,400 KRW
Master's Degree +53%
127,201,600 KRW

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 South Korea is around 19,400,000 to 58,300,000 KRW 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.

Sales Director 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 South Korea, a male sales director will earn an average of 85,081,800 KRW, while a female sales director will earn around 80,398,400 KRW.

This means that a male sales director earns approximately 6% more than a female sales director for performing the same job.

Average Salary by Gender Chart in South Korea

Male
85,081,800 KRW
Female -6%
80,398,400 KRW

Sales Director Average Pay Raise in South Korea

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 Sales Director in South Korea is around 14% every 17 months.

The national average pay raise across all professions and industries in South Korea is around 9% every 16 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 = ( 14 ÷ 17 ) × 12  = 10%

What this means is that a Sales Director in South Korea can expect to receive an average pay raise of around 10% every 12 months.

Annual Pay Raise by Industry in South Korea for 2024

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

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

Banking
6%
Energy
3%
Information Technology
9%
Healthcare
6%
Travel
3%
Construction
9%
Education
6%

Sales Director Bonus and Incentive Rates in South Korea

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 Sales Director is a high bonus based job, with 83% of employees reporting at least one bonus in the last 12 months.

17% 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 5% to 9%.

Received Bonus
83%
No Bonus
17%

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 South Korea earn approximately 6% more than private sector employees in the same role.

Public Sector
47,880,300 KRW
Private Sector -6%
45,239,100 KRW

Salaries for Jobs Similar to a Sales Director

In the table below, we have salary information for jobs that are similar to a Sales Director in South Korea.

Job Title Category Salary
Account Handler Marketing 39,718,900 KRW
Affiliate Manager Marketing 49,801,000 KRW
Analytics Specialist Marketing 36,480,500 KRW
Assistant Brand Manager Marketing 57,118,900 KRW
Assistant Product Manager Marketing 59,158,300 KRW
Associate Marketing Manager Marketing 61,561,100 KRW
Associate Product Manager Marketing 59,758,700 KRW
Brand Ambassador Marketing 75,479,500 KRW
Brand Director Marketing 93,478,400 KRW
Brand Executive Marketing 75,360,300 KRW
Brand Manager Marketing 75,838,700 KRW
Business Analytics Specialist Marketing 37,800,500 KRW
Business Channel Manager Marketing 54,118,500 KRW
Business Intelligence Team Leader Marketing 59,158,300 KRW
Campaign Specialist Marketing 47,758,300 KRW
Chief Marketing Officer Marketing 86,519,600 KRW
Chief Product Officer Marketing 77,641,200 KRW
Communications Officer Marketing 25,561,400 KRW
Content Manager Marketing 44,878,500 KRW
Content Marketing Strategist Marketing 50,639,500 KRW
Copy Editer Marketing 31,919,300 KRW
Copy Writer Marketing 32,398,700 KRW
Creative Marketing Lead Marketing 50,998,800 KRW
Creative Writer Marketing 32,161,000 KRW
Digital Marketer Marketing 45,239,100 KRW
Digital Marketing Manager Marketing 62,760,700 KRW
Digital Marketing Strategist Marketing 65,280,600 KRW
Digital Media Specialist Marketing 54,479,300 KRW
Director of Marketing Marketing 86,881,900 KRW
Director of Research Marketing 63,360,300 KRW
eMarketing Manager Marketing 68,398,200 KRW
Event Marketing Marketing 65,161,000 KRW
Head of Executive Search Marketing 74,758,600 KRW
Key Affiliate Manager Marketing 63,120,600 KRW
Localization Manager Marketing 55,678,400 KRW
Market Development Executive Marketing 68,518,700 KRW
Market Development Manager Marketing 70,318,900 KRW
Market Research Analyst Marketing 58,199,900 KRW
Market Research Manager Marketing 57,961,400 KRW
Market Segmentation Director Marketing 66,841,000 KRW
Marketing Account Supervisor Marketing 51,959,300 KRW
Marketing Administrator Marketing 43,198,900 KRW
Marketing Advisor Marketing 51,959,300 KRW
Marketing Analyst Marketing 49,438,400 KRW
Marketing and Communications Officer Marketing 31,559,900 KRW
Marketing and Sales Head Marketing 82,801,800 KRW
Marketing Assistant Marketing 27,601,100 KRW
Marketing Associate Marketing 26,158,200 KRW
Marketing Communications Manager Marketing 56,879,200 KRW
Marketing Consultant Marketing 65,280,600 KRW
Marketing Coordinator Marketing 27,361,200 KRW
Marketing Director Marketing 90,241,700 KRW
Marketing Distribution Executive Marketing 67,798,800 KRW
Marketing Executive Marketing 66,240,600 KRW
Marketing Manager Marketing 86,278,600 KRW
Marketing Officer Marketing 27,960,400 KRW
Marketing Segment Manager Marketing 62,638,300 KRW
Marketing Specialist Marketing 42,239,100 KRW
Marketing Supervisor Marketing 52,438,500 KRW
Marketing Vice President Marketing 71,280,900 KRW
Marketing Writer Marketing 31,081,900 KRW
Online Marketing Analyst Marketing 47,038,300 KRW
Online Marketing Manager Marketing 59,281,600 KRW
Optimization Manager Marketing 55,201,700 KRW
Outbound Sales Marketing 37,561,000 KRW
Outreach Coordinator Marketing 36,480,500 KRW
Outreach Specialist Marketing 48,119,900 KRW
Product Development Marketing 61,561,100 KRW
Product Manager Marketing 65,519,800 KRW
Product Marketing Engineer Marketing 37,800,500 KRW
Product Marketing Executive Marketing 65,759,500 KRW
Product Marketing Manager Marketing 67,441,500 KRW
Product Researcher Marketing 34,198,600 KRW
Product Strategist Marketing 51,959,300 KRW
Product Strategy Researcher Marketing 49,561,800 KRW
Product Training Specialist Marketing 42,359,400 KRW
Project Manager Marketing 48,841,700 KRW
Publications Coordinator Marketing 30,001,600 KRW
Research Executive Marketing 58,680,100 KRW
Sales and Marketing Assistant Marketing 26,280,300 KRW
Sales and Marketing Coordinator Marketing 28,919,800 KRW
Sales and Marketing Director Marketing 83,280,400 KRW
Sales Management Support Marketing 30,721,900 KRW
Sales Manager Marketing 77,641,200 KRW
Search Marketing Strategist Marketing 70,801,500 KRW
Social Media Administrator Marketing 46,560,900 KRW
Social Media Specialist Marketing 45,239,100 KRW
Spaceman Analyst Marketing 26,280,300 KRW
Sponsorship Consultant Marketing 44,161,600 KRW
Team Leader Marketing 51,719,500 KRW
Telemarketer Marketing 24,599,500 KRW
Trade Marketing Executive Marketing 67,558,400 KRW
Trade Marketing Manager Marketing 63,719,600 KRW
Trade Marketing Professional Marketing 50,639,500 KRW
Trade Marketing Specialist Marketing 35,758,400 KRW
Web Analytics Manager Marketing 51,841,000 KRW
Web Content Manager Marketing 51,959,300 KRW

Salary Comparison by City

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

City Average Salary
Bucheon 74,480,567 KRW
Busan 90,400,467 KRW
Daegu 88,519,367 KRW
Daejeon 85,838,867 KRW
Goyang 78,521,033 KRW
Gwangju 83,400,667 KRW
Incheon 87,720,700 KRW
Seongnam 75,520,700 KRW
Seoul 89,480,000 KRW
Suweon 81,399,600 KRW
Ulsan 78,079,567 KRW

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