IT salary benchmarks in Asia

kailangan pumunta ng hongkong

No wonder a lot of Trend Micro employees in the Philippines are moving to Singapore...

capitalism is the main reason why philippines doesn't progress...

I'm thinking this survey should be better now since the Peso to dollars exchange is better. Would that attribute to a better comparison with other country? When was this survey taken?

One of the company here in the philippines "Your an IT yet your salary is only 8k php...they don't pay up their IT"

This is reality. The Philippines have nowhere to go but down. Our politicians are the one who gets all the money and the hardworking workforce are paid like slaves.

ZDNet Asia's IT Salary 2006 was conducted online between Aug. 25 and Nov. 6 last year.

Though these comparisions are well made, they don't include the effects of Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) and/or cost of living index. For example, if an employee gets $50,000 per annum at Atlanta, he won't move to San Francisco or bay area even if he is offered $ 60,000. Similarly if a person gets $ 15,000/ in India, it is unlikely for him to accept a job in San Francisco for $ 60,000 or in that range.

This data is invalid!!! The salary of IT employees in Indonesia is only $500-$600 per month or about $6000-$7200 per year. Not $10,959 per year.

Not true in the Philippines. The salary is much lower. Pinoy internet user respondents are far away from reality.

its only a fair salary considering that Philippines is just turning to a developing country. The real problem are the pessimist and the so-called "activists" in which, I believe firmly, makes scenario much worser. Sometimes I feel that Filipinos are MORE A BABBLER THAN A WORKER.

we cannot deny the fact that philippines is a developing country with very poor performances in governance. this simply justifies the reasins why the filipinos are also poor in the IT market because its to obious that the local politics has something to do about it. and in fact there is no visible competetions in the country that could probably increase the challenge in the market. in fact the feudalistic capitalism is massive in the country. a series of studies had been conducted but the result is unanimous to agree that politics is the main core of this sinking state.

the peso to dollar exchange rate would have very little or minimal effect on these charts. it is not likely that a 4% improvement of the exchange rate is going to suddenly shift our country's (the republic of the philippines) rating. even if it does, it doesn't change the fact that our salaries are low compared to other countries'. [magkano ba ang placement sa hongkong]

maybe they included what was taken before we got the money or rather the budget alloted per resource?

d2 sa pilipinas,mgkanu ba ang average salary ng IT, especially software developers tulad ko? bago lng kc ako eh, and i started at 10k per month. hav no idea. tnx

blabber rather than a worker huh.. so can you explain why a lot of americans and europeans get filipino IT services (other than the fact that its cheap)? And can you explain how westerners entrust their sick/old relatives to filipinos who as you say are merely blabbermouths? by the way the activists your pertaining to are also comprised of farmers, fishermans, OFWs and the like who are working hard to get by.

In response to Someone's comment... The results of ZDNet Asia's IT Salary survey were based on a sample number of respondents. In Indonesia's case, the sample size was small--268 respondents. The aggregate average salary for IT Management seems higher also because 50 percent of the respondents had more than 10 years' working experience. Unfortunately, we do not have a regional state breakdown for this survey. Therefore, the results of this survey should be interpreted carefully, as it should be noted that the different experience and job function mix can affect salary levels.

Take into consideration one of the most important factors which is cost of living. I agree though that the figures we see here for Philippines is a lot higher than what out IT guys here receive. Exchange rate will have little effect though. Bottom line, y\the salary for IT here is more than enough to cover the minimum cost of living.

mababa talaga bigayan sa pinas.. sayang.. na sayang..

Wow, $8,448 annual salary for Filipino systems developer? I'm salary is only $4,800 annual (Php 8,000 / month).

i don't think the data is true.

We did not get paid that well in Indonesia.
Our average salary in IT only USD 5.775 per year.

I tell you something thais less money

Basta, pupunta ako sa Canada para mapakinabangan naman ang MCSE cert. ko!!!!

I am looking for JAVA Programmers or Small Software Factories based on Asia to outsource programming.

ok yung MCSE cert mo; nothing against that. but in most cases, during interview, sasabihin din ng interviewee, 'alam ko', or, 'oo, certified ako.' then come to work, di rin maka-deliver. again, nothing bad about cert, or this is not against you. madami pa rin ang napepeke sa certs. i don't have a cert, only a training cert, not the MCxxx type, but my boss acknowleges that i can deliver. cert tells that u can pass a test, but this is no indication that u can solve a problem at work. i'm in the supervisory level currently. again, i'm not against u or certs, just a gentle nudge not to over-emphasize on papers.

this is just a data in USD. it should also be based on the spending power, cost of living etc.

for example, fresh grads in Bangkok get about as much as in KL but in fact bangkok folks get more as cost of living in bangkok is very much lower.

no doubt hk and spore get most here although their cost of livings are among the highest. for example, singaporean pay half of malaysian pay when buying consumer goods, except that exorbitant price properties...

san ba magandang mgapply ang fressh grads na magandang salary? im a systems engineer graduate

Next Destination : Hong Kong
Tayo na mga IT PRO.. ano pa hinihintay nyo? hehehe..

Yes, you are definitely right. Its hard to understand why do those big corporations wants to gain much...

We have to face the fact na kapag ang employer mo ay isang pilipino definitely halos ipaparamdam sayo na " If you need a job then grab this or else you get nothing but the least wage" Same here sa company na pinapasukan ko mostly ang mag IT's like programmers and software developers got only from 10k to 20k.

i've been in IT for 8 yrs now and i get 60k net of taxes/month here, but i have 3 kids who are all going to private schools per parang mahirap pa rin ang buhay. sa singapore the most you can get for a programmer is S$3,500/mo pero maliit ang tax na babayaran mo, mga 4% lang yata.

It sad to say the filipino hardworking people earned only a little in our hell econmoy with stupid politicians who corrupt all our money and sacrifices... T_T

wla tlgang asenso sa pinas, poor labor wages .. mas mganda tlga to work abroad rather than working here!

Philippines is really the cheapest source of labor. Eventhough we have the most competent people, foreign companies pay us cheap. government should do something about this.

pinay

The government should do something about this

Oh, the government. I thought they were the reason our country is sinking faster into a mudpit of economic depression (coupled with the middle-class and upper-class apathy towards the lower classes). My God, I can't believe we're still looking up to the government...

mag-encoder nalang kaya ako sa hongkong? kaysa maging programmer dito sa pinas?! pareho lang naman ang sahod eh! heheheh!

i dont know if this is true. but i have less than 5 years experience and im getting thrice as much as the average here. though its only contractual. basis. im from the phils... maybe it depends on how good you are in negotiations.

btw,, good programmers know their worth.

well, it good news for indonesian people....
I announce to all people over the come to indonesia this country totally potential...imagine abundance of people, customer, and workers...so invest your IT tech at my country INDONESIA Technology (IT)...

We IT's in Indonesia had to sell our service of skill very cheaply!!!

walang asenso sa pinas!!!!kaya alis na tayo dito if you want stability!!!!

Philippines
I'm suprised that there are skilled people who are actually earning around that range of wage, hence, the underpaids in majority. I guess this serves as evidence that we're still in the mud of economical depression.

The probability for competetive salaries will not be imminent til the next 10 years in my assumption. but hey, i'm not economist so i might be wrong. but then again, we can't change this mere fact because we're stuck in a country full of clowns in the so called government.

Namaste,
James

magtatayo na lng ako ng porn site... ako na rin yun artista

hahay.. kelan pa aasenso ang pinas. baka pagputi ng uwak.government should do something.

i wish i am not a pinoy when it comes to monetary unit..
but.. there's to many things to be proud of being a pinoy that's why why economic status is not a mere vivid problem, it's a hocus pocus

It all depends on the cost of living of a COuntry.

Singapore cost of living is high with all the GST increases, CPF contributions,loans,rentals and more... observe that sometimes your expenses is bigger than your income...

that's really true. even most of the companies pay their IT staff lower than that. I found USD 200 - USD 300 per month is a common salary to be found here at Indonesia.

Hello! You can not group Education Government and Health together. In Thailand we know that Gov is all about games. Education never meet standard pay. And Helath is a different story is you are doctors in private hospitals. I'm in Media (International)- Marketing part, I can say that I earn double than my friends who are in telecom bussiness with same years of experience and education. This survey could be right about IT professionals but definitely not others. However, any one can tell me how it works with IT expats?

IT jobs in the case of the philippines could be considered as rewarding non-executive jobs if it would be compared to other careers like legal, finance, marketing, which pays for, on average, 75% less at the same experience level. But i consider it relatively unstable because the IT industry is being fueled mainly by US outsourcing and is very dependent on US economic policies. I believe that if US would consider limiting their outsourcing volumes to increase local employment, then the IT salary in most countries in Asia (except Hongkong, Singapore and maybe Malaysia) would rocket downwards.

those looking for overseas employment across Asia send in your resumes at my.career.in.it@gmail.com we are a multinational company dealing with most of the Fortune 500 companies across the globe.

Jologs kse, payag ng payag sa low pay!!!


Salary used to be good for Filipino ITs. It was after the emergence of substandard IT schools like AMA and STI and the flooding of IT professionals that brought down the salary bargaining. Puro Jologs kse mga studyante nila, kaya kumakagat sa mabababang sahod. Jologs. Maginuman na lang kayo diyan sa kanto.

tae.. im a college student in Philippines.. i think an annual salary of $8k is really low.. Im currently finishing my degree in Bachelor of Science in Computer Science, everyone knows how hard to be a ComSci student....then after that i should expect a salary that low after all my sufferings during college!! This is why filipinos prefer to work overseas!! i guess i really need to go outside our country..

Where is "J A P A N" ??

Oh yah?? I'm IT Technician in Indonesia and my salary not more than $215 per month...or not more than $2700 per year..

Reaction to the attached comment below posted last June, 2007.


He/She is a foreigner who either owns an IT company or he is not aware that there are other developing countries cited in the list (yet they offer IT personnel better salary).

BABBLER?! huh!

Full name: anonymous
Comments:
its only a fair salary considering that Philippines is just turning to a developing country. The real problem are the pessimist and the so-called "activists" in which, I believe firmly, makes scenario much worser. Sometimes I feel that Filipinos are MORE A BABBLER THAN A WORKER.

Japan is outside our survey focus.

based on this talk-back posts... there are many filipinos replying... meaning they have the worst salary in asia. filipinos do have the edge because of rampant pirted software being used as their training ground. but when it comes to salary.. they just swallow their pride. blame it on the pirated software filipinos use... i urge filipinos to certify themselves for their growth. i interview filipino IT people and they don't have good communication skills. most of them doesn't know when to use has, had, have... etc.

I do wonder where is Japan here ?

http://forums.techarena.in has another Trend Report but covering only a few countries in Asia which includes Japan

We all know labor is cheap in the Philippines, especially with average entry-level IT professionals but being the lowest in that chart compels me to think that the Philippines really isn't making IT poeple happy. My wife is one of the best in her graduating class in UP and she has a decent job. Not great, just decent.

No wonder many IT graduates just go into the Call Centre business because practicing in their real field will not pay the bills.

Advise: Try to squeeze yourself onto the Accenture scene. They are the best people in the country as far as IT development is concerned.

Though generally a lot of things in the Phils. are sh*t like traffic, very high tax rates, and relatively poor salaries, in an ideal world where progress is slowly but surely moving up, the skilled middle class provides a critical role in the country's development. We really can't put the blame on IT vocational schools for the low wages, we should actually thank them for being able to bring this type of education to the masses. The more people actually enter the "formal" economy (eg. starting professionals getting their first salaried jobs) and the more newbies there are, the supply of pros of a certain field shoots up and ultimately, price for workers in the affected field drops. I suppose this is better for people than them becoming trouble makers and further fuel the instability of the country. Now all we need is a bit more patience and to get rid of useless leeches in the government...

mahirap talaga ang trabaho ng IT at mababa pa ang sahod here in the philippines kaya kailangan mag abroad laki ng sahod sa IT management buti nalang ganon yung course ko kaso 2 years lang kami but sa tesda naman>>> here lang sa Zamboanga city to??????
(CMTI) colegio de moderno tecnico y informatico

INDIA IS GREAT....Infact the IT salary is underquoted in this survey.We get about 1.5 to 2 times higher than what is mentioned in the survey.....may be the quality of IT professionals have to do with the higher salary in India than a lot of Asian countries...

i my self am an IT Instructor also a Technician, also a network administrator and a programmer!!!! the hell! i have a lot of job but i just get 6000 Pesos... that's just about 133 US dollars per month..

I can't agree any less - coming from a Government Project where IT staff are treated like slaves and escape-goats for an inefficient system that's a result of non-provision of necessary resources for IT Systems development and incompetent management of funds.

well, what we should take into account is that Hong Kong is the 5th most expensive city in the world Singapore 14th -- ahead of New York which is 15th.

So you maybe earning a lot, but you spend more than 10x more than a person would in Indonesia, Philippines, or some other places.

it is too low salaries

the it salary in bench mark in asia is very high bcz workload is very high

Im a software developer, less than 3 years experience and im making 30k a month... how about the other guys? Im curious too..

Where does ZDNet Asia get this figures from? I don't think the figures shown for Malaysia is correct. If from questionaires to individuals, it has a very high tendency that i won't be correct as Malaysian have high tendency to put their salaries on survey paper much higher than they earn. They best sources to get is from the company human resource dept.itself as they have the actual salary of the staff.

The figures for the govt sect is really absurd as they range of salary of middle class (programmer) is only around 5000 US dollar to 12000 US dollar annually only. The figure shown are the highest earned such as IT Director for the Government Bodies and not average.

HONGKONG!!!!!!!!!!!

to walter carrara,is your offer still available or close?please sent me your contact person to my e-mail.thx

I think the Philippines is always lagged behind our neighbors because of politics particularly the oppositions & other sectors that really wish to dismantle the administration and the communist who wish to defame democracy to fulfill their ambition of changing the Philippines' form of government. If only we get united on one objective then we will succeed, there is no need to go anywhere for better pay. Corruption is always an issue and even some of the media is corrupt which jeopardize the situation because of personal interest. I believe we will succeed if we start learning to stop pointing on blame towards another.

ther are lots of skilled filipinos, kaso maliit lang talaga ang sahod dito sa atin, so we need to go abroad and leave our country just to seek a greener pasture...jVAL

it's not the salary, the big deal is lot and LOTS of pinoys are much brighter than them, consider OPPORTUNITIES, I hardly heard of a burms, malays IT consultants, hey...nga pala money is talking everywhere.

It doesnt show the years of experience. I've had six years of experience and I'm earning around $22k/year here in the Philippines. I think the IT employers here are upgrading their salary bracket to compete with other countries because everyone is moving.

Complete meal in Singapore (rice plus 3 course) in a hawker area is between 2 to 3 SGD (60-90 pesos), for the average white collar worker, how much do you spend for lunch in the Philippines?

What percentage of your total expense is transport, if it's small, that it plays a small factor on your total financial stability?

Check out your taxes in the Philippines!!!

There are tons of tax being levied at every level (from the raw material being shipped to the Philippines to the point it is sold at the store). This is why most imported products (TV, DVD players, Cellphone, etc) are way cheaper in other countries. It's what they call the tax multiplier effect (a good that has already been taxed is taxed again in many levels).

Check also the income tax rate in the Philippines, convert your Peso to the local currency of other countries and see what you find. You will notice that if with the same income, you will be taxed only 8% in other countries while in the Philippines your tax is 32%.

In the end, it's not just the pay. You also earn more in other countries even if you get the same salary as what your getting in the Philippines because you get taxed less.
---------------------------------------
>James,
>
>well, what we should take into account is
>that Hong Kong is the 5th most expensive
>city in the world Singapore 14th -- ahead
>of New York which is 15th.
>
>So you maybe earning a lot, but you spend
>more than 10x more than a person would in
>Indonesia, Philippines, or some other
>places.

I teach as a tutor and honestly speaking, the salary reflected here is way higher than what the people are receiving here in the Philippines. I think there was manipulation on the survey conducted or there was misinformation. I just think I'm lucky because I'm earning around Php 25,000. a month or more or less $555 a month.

But to tell you the truth the salary rate is really low compared to other Asian countries...

looking for freelance php,mysql.html coder.
YIM: fieryshelly
email add: fieryshelly@yahoo.com

i will like to ask that how many people in singapore ? how many computer game are there in singapore ?

i don't know if its accurate benchmarks?

what does the benchmark have to do with computer games huh? silly.

anak ng tokwa, and baba talaga ng sahod sa pilipinas. mga artista lang at politiko and malaki ang kita.

Sad to say but true. The reality in fact is that call center neophytes are earning more than entry level software developers.

"Im a software developer, less than 3 years experience and im making 30k a month... how about the other guys? Im curious too.. "


I am a jr software engineer with 2 years of working experience and earning 50K a month.

"Im a software developer, less than 3 years experience and im making 30k a month... how about the other guys? Im curious too.. "

"I am a jr software engineer with 2 years of working experience and earning 50K a month. "

What company are you working for? Is it Lawson? Contractual ba? Laki naman nyan. I have 6 years experience and Im earning 75k.

Maybe/I must go to Hongkong or Singapore after I graduate from BSCS...^_^

Mag Online Games na lang mga IT sa pinas.At pag di nakuntento, tau na lang ng computer shop!bwahahaha!May other source of income pa!

guys..im in the philippines as a web/soft dev with 4 yrs exp and im earning $24000/year..reason...my employer is based in the US..if you want to make big in IT while staying in the Philippines, go offshore as freelance dev and work from home.dont bother working fulltime here!..been doing this for more than a year now..ive been in the US 2x this year because of my employer..

Palagay ko gumaganda ang economiya ng Pilipinas dahil sumasabay ito sa mga rising economy sa Asia tulad ng China at India. Ang naiiwanan na lang ay ang mga probinsya, na di napagtutuunan ng pansin ng mga namamahala.

By the way bumababa ang dolyar dahil sa "credit crunch", nag fa-flactuate ang financial market sa buong Europa at America. Hindi ito indikasyon na umuunlad ang Pilipinas.

To all filipino IT professionals

Let us be constantly competent in this fast moving world of Information Technology. Continue to learn for in our craft, what we know today maybe obsolete tomorrow. The IT profession requires more creativity and intelligence combined than any other profession elsewhere. Let us all keep our integrity and honesty intact for this is what some men in the high seats of the government does not have. Let us try to serve our nation (the people) in order to minimize the poverty we are currently experiencing. Kung may oras ka, lumingon ka sa mga kalsada ng bayan, makikita mo ang mga batang naka-rugby, mga taong nababaliw sa gutom, mga taong matiyagang nagbebenta ng mga maliliit na bagay sa lansangan sa pagasang may sa kinabukasan. We are all fortunate to have undergone education. And it is our responsibility to make the most out of this privilage in order to make not only ourselves but also our country's state better. To all politicians who engage in corruption, may you again find the wisdom from your childhood in order to lead with dignity and honor. To Jun Lozada, star witness of the ZTE broadband deal case, your courage to stand up against corruption has inspired many Filipino professionals. May this create a chain of awareness that would lead our country to unity. Let us regularly examine our lives and the path we are leading to. For all we know, this may be the first step to accomplishing what many people dream to do - make a mark in the big world, even make it better.

It's not all about the money.

I know the reality of being an IT worker in the Philippines. Both my husband and I are in IT, expecting a baby in 3 months but we're doing ok, I guess in Pinoy standards. He tried working in Singapore and the pay is higher. But the thing is, the cost of living is also higher abroad. He used to get 4500SD a month but more than half of that goes to his living expenses and taxes. So what's left is around 1500-2000SD which converts to roughly PhP60K, which is what he gets here anyways minus the homesickness, loneliness and difficulties of being an OFW. Have faith in Filipino companies, love your jobs, take pride in what you do and in being Filipino and more importantly, constantly strive for excellence and you will rise above the rest and show that we, Filipiinos are worth our weight in Gold.

Salary

Pinoy din ako, based in HK and in an IT dept in a construction company, receiving 50K US annualy.. cost of living just matches your pay here. I have 2 kids studying and it eats up a lot of your income. Tax is a lot lower compared with other developed countries. Sa Pinas, mababa talaga tapos mataas na rin ang bilihin. I don't know.. paano ako makatulong sa atin.. my family lives in HK.