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Average monthly wage rose 3.3 percent in 2024, buoyed by foreign institutions, finance and insurance

Published: 23 Feb. 2026, 15:48 Updated: 23 Feb. 2026, 16:17

Visitors at a job fair for older citizens are seen at Setec, an exhibition and trade center, in Gangnam District, southern Seoul, on Nov. 18, 2025. [YONHAP]

The average monthly salary of wage earners in Korea at the end of 2024 rose 3.3 percent from a year earlier, driven by higher earnings at foreign institutions as well as financial and insurance sectors, government data showed Monday.

The average monthly wage came to 3.75 million won ($2,595) as of December 2024, up 110,000 won from the same month in 2023, according to information provided by the Ministry of Data and Statistics.

Employees at international or foreign institutions saw their average monthly salary climb 5.5 percent on year to 5.38 million won.

Workers in the financial and insurance sector received the highest average monthly salary at 7.77 million won, up 3.1 percent from a year earlier.

By company size, employees at large corporations earned an average of 6.13 million won per month, up 3.3 percent on year, while those at small- and medium-sized enterprises saw their wages increase 3 percent to 3.07 million won.

Yonhap