Skip to content
worldsalaries .com

Average Software Development Manager Salary in China for 2026

A software development manager in China earns about 437,900 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 225,700 CNY a year, while the very top stretches to 677,100 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 a software development manager make in China?

Average salary
437,900 CNY
36,491 CNY per month
Lowest reported
225,700 CNY
18,808 CNY per month
Highest reported
677,100 CNY
56,425 CNY per month

A typical software development manager working in China brings home around 36,491 CNY a month before tax. Entry-level pay starts near 225,700 CNY, and the top of the ladder reaches roughly 677,100 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 software 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 software 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 software development managers in China earn less than 430,000 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 294,300 CNY (the 25th percentile), and a quarter clear 541,700 CNY (the 75th percentile). The middle 50% of software 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 225,700 CNY. The highest stretch to 677,100 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.

225,700
Low
430,000
Median
677,100
High
294,300
25th
541,700
75th
The middle 50% sit between the 25th and 75th percentile Tails are the lowest and highest reported All figures in CNY

Software development manager pay by experience in China

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

  • 0-2 Years
    249,600 CNY
  • 2-5 Years
    +31% from previous
    327,800 CNY
  • 5-10 Years
    +40% from previous
    459,300 CNY
  • 10-15 Years
    +20% from previous
    552,400 CNY
  • 15-20 Years
    +8% from previous
    598,600 CNY
  • 20+ Years
    +8% from previous
    648,200 CNY

The single largest jump on the ladder is from 2 - 5 Years to 5 - 10 Years, where pay rises by about 40%. That is the point at which a software 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.

Software development manager pay by education in China

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

  • Certificate or Diploma
    288,100 CNY
  • Bachelor's Degree
    +49% from previous
    430,500 CNY
  • Master's Degree
    +49% from previous
    641,900 CNY

Software 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 software development managers in China earn an average of 466,300 CNY a year, while female software development managers earn around 417,200 CNY. That works out to a 12% 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.

Software Development Manager gender pay gap

11%

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

Men 466,300 CNY
Women 417,200 CNY

Pay raises for a software 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 17 months, which works out to roughly 8% 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

Software 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.

56%

56% of software development managers in China reported a bonus of some kind in the past twelve months. That makes a software development manager 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 6% of base salary. The remaining 44% of software 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

Software 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

Software development manager salary by city and region in China

Software 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.

  • Shandong
  • Sichuan
  • Guangzhou
  • Wuhan
  • Henan
  • Hangzhou
  • Guangdong
  • Zhejiang
  • Chongqing (city)
  • Jiangsu
LocationTypeAverageMedianRange
ShandongRegion518,900 CNY538,600 CNY251,500-817,800 CNY
SichuanRegion516,100 CNY504,300 CNY263,100-791,600 CNY
GuangzhouCity504,500 CNY496,100 CNY257,700-778,900 CNY
WuhanCity501,400 CNY531,700 CNY237,400-792,900 CNY
HenanRegion499,300 CNY510,000 CNY245,300-778,500 CNY
HangzhouCity499,300 CNY519,300 CNY238,900-780,600 CNY
GuangdongRegion499,300 CNY476,600 CNY259,100-761,400 CNY
ZhejiangRegion492,700 CNY466,300 CNY263,200-751,100 CNY
Chongqing (city)City492,700 CNY533,000 CNY227,600-785,400 CNY
JiangsuRegion492,700 CNY472,100 CNY258,400-757,300 CNY
Tianjin (city)City491,000 CNY500,100 CNY239,000-767,000 CNY
HarbinCity487,600 CNY467,100 CNY252,300-745,000 CNY
Beijing (city)City487,600 CNY514,800 CNY228,000-768,900 CNY
JinanCity485,200 CNY466,900 CNY252,300-744,700 CNY
HunanRegion483,800 CNY501,400 CNY232,900-758,700 CNY
Shanghai (city)City483,800 CNY513,300 CNY228,500-762,400 CNY
YunnanRegion483,800 CNY493,000 CNY239,000-754,900 CNY
HebeiRegion483,400 CNY483,400 CNY239,300-746,600 CNY
ChengduCity478,000 CNY478,000 CNY239,000-743,100 CNY
Xi anCity472,100 CNY510,200 CNY216,800-751,700 CNY
HubeiRegion472,000 CNY444,300 CNY249,600-721,600 CNY
ShenyangCity467,100 CNY504,500 CNY215,100-744,600 CNY
AnhuiRegion460,500 CNY460,500 CNY231,000-714,300 CNY
ShenzhenCity460,500 CNY450,300 CNY233,900-709,600 CNY
LiaoningRegion459,700 CNY492,700 CNY209,500-727,100 CNY
JiangxiRegion459,300 CNY487,600 CNY215,100-727,400 CNY
NanjingCity459,300 CNY424,300 CNY247,800-695,400 CNY
GuangxiRegion454,900 CNY483,800 CNY214,000-721,600 CNY
ShantouCity454,300 CNY433,400 CNY233,900-695,200 CNY
QingdaoCity454,300 CNY489,500 CNY208,600-721,600 CNY
ShaanxiRegion451,000 CNY420,800 CNY238,900-684,900 CNY
WenzhouCity448,500 CNY457,300 CNY221,500-698,200 CNY
SuzhouCity445,100 CNY419,400 CNY233,900-675,200 CNY
ShanxiRegion444,300 CNY472,100 CNY208,600-704,300 CNY
FujianRegion433,400 CNY407,300 CNY231,000-660,500 CNY
HeilongjiangRegion430,000 CNY394,500 CNY232,400-649,700 CNY
DalianCity421,400 CNY454,300 CNY191,600-669,100 CNY
JilinRegion420,100 CNY414,000 CNY214,000-646,600 CNY
Xinjiang UygurRegion417,200 CNY417,200 CNY207,700-645,800 CNY
Shanghai (region)Region417,200 CNY397,900 CNY215,100-637,500 CNY
FuzhouCity417,200 CNY424,900 CNY205,700-650,800 CNY
GuizhouRegion417,100 CNY411,400 CNY212,500-643,800 CNY
ChangchunCity415,900 CNY442,200 CNY196,800-658,300 CNY
Nei MonggolRegion413,900 CNY413,900 CNY207,700-643,400 CNY
QuanzhouCity413,900 CNY448,500 CNY192,000-658,300 CNY
DongguanCity411,400 CNY394,800 CNY212,500-628,000 CNY
Chongqing (region)Region407,300 CNY415,900 CNY197,600-637,500 CNY
XiamenCity407,300 CNY375,200 CNY221,500-615,700 CNY
FoshanCity407,100 CNY430,500 CNY192,000-642,800 CNY
Tianjin (region)Region404,600 CNY436,200 CNY187,300-645,800 CNY
ChangshaCity403,100 CNY378,800 CNY212,500-615,000 CNY
GansuRegion401,300 CNY419,400 CNY191,600-629,800 CNY
KunmingCity396,300 CNY383,300 CNY207,800-607,400 CNY
WuxiCity396,300 CNY383,300 CNY207,800-607,400 CNY
NingxiaRegion389,200 CNY357,700 CNY209,700-588,500 CNY
Xizang [Tibet]Region388,100 CNY359,900 CNY209,700-587,800 CNY
QinghaiRegion384,500 CNY392,300 CNY189,300-600,000 CNY
HainanRegion381,800 CNY411,400 CNY174,000-605,700 CNY
Beijing (region)Region381,800 CNY352,000 CNY204,000-575,100 CNY
ZhengzhouCity377,200 CNY398,300 CNY176,800-592,600 CNY

Software Development Manager in China: FAQs

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

    A software development manager in China earns about 36,491 CNY a month before tax, based on an annual average of 437,900 CNY.

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

    Entry-level software development managers in China start near 225,700 CNY. Top-end pay reaches around 677,100 CNY. The middle 50% of earners sit between 294,300 and 541,700 CNY.

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

    The median is 430,000 CNY, lower than the average of 437,900 CNY. Half of software development managers in China earn below the median, half earn above it.

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

    Men working as a software development manager in China earn around 12% more than women on average (466,300 vs 417,200 CNY a year).

  • Do software development managers in China get bonuses?

    About 56% of software development managers in China reported a bonus in the past 12 months. Reported bonuses ranged from 3% to 6% of base salary.

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

    In China, the public sector pays a software 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 software development managers in China get a pay raise?

    A software development manager in China sees a raise of around 12% every 17 months, equivalent to roughly 8% a year.