Software22.01.2025

Highest-paying programming languages in South Africa

Go has been identified as the highest-paying programming language for experienced software developers, whereas Ruby provides the most compensation for those entering the job market.

This is according to OfferZen’s Software Developer Salary Benchmark report, based on a survey of more than 3,400 South African developers conducted between September and November 2024.

The salary information provided by respondents refers to gross monthly salary before tax. OfferZen also noted that most developers surveyed were fluent in multiple languages, which would have affected their final salary.

The report noted that Kotlin was the lowest-paying programming language for developers entering the job market, paying an average of R16,041 per month.

This is a significant decrease from OfferZen’s previous report, which saw entry-level developers using the language earn an average of R29,000 per month.

Ruby and PHP were the languages with the highest pay for developers with less than two years of experience, with earnings of R28,125 and R26,287, respectively.

Unlike Kotlin, PHP increased by an average of more than R10,000 per month for this experience bracket.

Ruby remains the highest-paying programming language for developers with four to six years of experience, with an average monthly salary of R57,500.

PHP was found to be the language that paid the least, with developers earning an average of R41,734 per month.

As developers grow in experience, those who specialise in languages like Go, Java, and Kotlin begin to earn more.

Java and Go are the two languages in which developers with six to ten years of experience are paid the most to program, earning an average of R79,408 and R78,676, respectively.

While PHP was one of the languages with the highest pay for those entering the job market, it is the lowest-paying language in this bracket.

Go was the highest-paying language for developers with more than ten years of experience, with an average monthly salary of R125,694.

Ruby and Kotlin were second and third, with developers earning monthly salaries of R121,818 and R111,937, respectively.

PHP was once again the lowest-paying language, with a salary of R87,005.

The report surveyed developers’ salaries based on whether they lived in Cape Town, Durban, Johannesburg, or Pretoria and how their average salaries are expected to change from 2024 to 2025.

For those new to the job market, Cape Town firms are expected to pay the most in 2025, at roughly R28,820. This is an increase of R4,650 from the previous year.

Durban was second at R27,288, followed by Pretoria (R23,900) and Joburg (R23,637).

Developers with four to six years of experience will receive the best remuneration in Pretoria at an average of R53,633, over R6,000 more than in 2024.

Joburg was the only other city in this bracket to see an average salary increase, with both Cape Town and Durban experiencing decreases.

Pretoria remains the city with the most appealing salary for developers with six to ten years of experience. It offers an average of R72,412 per month, just edging out Cape Town at R72,171.

On average, developers with over ten years of experience will earn the most living in Cape Town in 2025 at R100,141. This is just under a R4,000 increase from 2024.

Joburg offers the second-highest salary at R95,274, and Pretoria and Durban provide an average monthly compensation of R93,586 and R87,515, respectively.

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