A person working in Food / Hospitality / Tourism / Catering in Cape Town typically earns around 24,200 ZAR per month. Salaries range from 9,170 ZAR (lowest average) to 67,400 ZAR (highest average, actual maximum salary is higher).
This is the average monthly salary including housing, transport, and other benefits. Salaries vary drastically between different Food / Hospitality / Tourism / Catering careers. If you are interested in the salary of a particular job, see below for salaries for specific job titles.
Job Title | Average Salary |
All Rounder | 15,000 ZAR |
Assistant Executive Housekeeper | 10,500 ZAR |
Assistant Food and Beverage Director | 47,300 ZAR |
Assistant Hospitality Manager | 48,700 ZAR |
Assistant Storekeeper | 9,590 ZAR |
Assistant Tour Manager | 22,600 ZAR |
Baker and Pastrycook | 12,000 ZAR |
Bakery Manager | 26,900 ZAR |
Bakery Superintendent | 18,200 ZAR |
Banquet Manager | 18,500 ZAR |
Banquet Server | 11,700 ZAR |
Bar Attendant | 12,300 ZAR |
Bar Manager | 23,700 ZAR |
Bar Supervisor | 17,200 ZAR |
Barista | 14,100 ZAR |
Bartender | 13,900 ZAR |
Bellman | 10,700 ZAR |
Beverage Manager | 27,100 ZAR |
Bistro Attendant | 12,100 ZAR |
Buffet Chef | 22,400 ZAR |
Buffet Host | 11,600 ZAR |
Buffet Manager | 24,900 ZAR |
Butcher and Slaughterer | 9,860 ZAR |
Cafeteria Manager | 21,500 ZAR |
Cake Decorator | 13,100 ZAR |
Casino Shift Manager | 41,600 ZAR |
Chain Store Customer Support | 18,000 ZAR |
Chef | 22,000 ZAR |
Club Manager | 42,900 ZAR |
Cluster Director | 55,400 ZAR |
Cluster Revenue Manager | 41,600 ZAR |
Cocktail Server | 12,000 ZAR |
Coffee Shop Manager | 42,000 ZAR |
Concierge | 10,500 ZAR |
Confectionery Baker | 13,300 ZAR |
Conference Services Manager | 26,900 ZAR |
Cook | 18,700 ZAR |
Corporate Sous Chef | 30,600 ZAR |
Corporate Travel Consultant | 32,400 ZAR |
Croupier | 15,600 ZAR |
Culinary Assistant | 10,200 ZAR |
Culinary Associate | 9,720 ZAR |
Dietary Aide | 22,400 ZAR |
Dining Room Supervisor | 21,100 ZAR |
Dishwasher | 9,060 ZAR |
Duty Manager | 26,100 ZAR |
Events Coordinator | 17,400 ZAR |
Executive Chef | 25,800 ZAR |
Executive Pastry Chef | 20,400 ZAR |
Fast Food Cook | 18,700 ZAR |
Fast Food Shift Supervisor | 20,000 ZAR |
Fine Dining Cook | 31,600 ZAR |
Fine Dining Restaurant Chef | 30,800 ZAR |
Fleet Manager | 56,600 ZAR |
Food and Beverage Manager | 40,700 ZAR |
Food Consultant | 35,500 ZAR |
Food Safety Coordinator | 25,100 ZAR |
Food Server | 11,300 ZAR |
Food Service Director | 40,700 ZAR |
Food Service Manager | 48,200 ZAR |
Food Service Sales | 27,800 ZAR |
Food Service Worker | 11,300 ZAR |
Front Desk Agent | 13,400 ZAR |
Front Office Manager | 23,500 ZAR |
Guest Service Executive | 35,900 ZAR |
Guest Service Representative | 14,600 ZAR |
Head Concierge | 18,200 ZAR |
Hospitality Director | 65,500 ZAR |
Hostess / Host | 12,800 ZAR |
Hotel Desk Clerk | 13,500 ZAR |
Hotel Maid | 9,170 ZAR |
Hotel Manager | 66,200 ZAR |
Hotel Sales Manager | 47,400 ZAR |
Hotel Service Supervisor | 35,700 ZAR |
Hotel Staff | 11,600 ZAR |
Inventory Coordinator | 14,000 ZAR |
Kitchen Manager | 22,900 ZAR |
Kitchen Staff | 12,000 ZAR |
Kitchen Supervisor | 18,600 ZAR |
Line Cook | 19,800 ZAR |
Luggage Porter | 9,590 ZAR |
Motel Manager | 34,500 ZAR |
Pastrycooking and Baking Assistant | 12,500 ZAR |
Production Operator | 19,300 ZAR |
Quality, Health and Safety Coordinator | 19,600 ZAR |
Receptionist | 13,900 ZAR |
Regional Restaurant Manager | 49,200 ZAR |
Restaurant Manager | 44,400 ZAR |
Room Reservations Manager | 41,900 ZAR |
Room Service Manager | 42,100 ZAR |
Sous Chef | 23,600 ZAR |
Supervisor of Food Services | 29,700 ZAR |
Tour Consultant | 31,700 ZAR |
Travel Agent | 23,500 ZAR |
Travel Consultant | 32,000 ZAR |
Waiter / Waitress | 11,300 ZAR |
Food / Hospitality / Tourism / Catering salaries in Cape Town range from 9,170 ZAR per month (minimum average salary) to 67,400 ZAR per month (maximum average salary, actual maximum is higher).
The median salary is 24,600 ZAR per month, which means that half (50%) of people working in Food / Hospitality / Tourism / Catering are earning less than 24,600 ZAR while the other half are earning more than 24,600 ZAR. The median represents the middle salary value. Generally speaking, you would want to be on the right side of the graph with the group earning more than the median salary.
Closely related to the median are two values: the 25th and the 75th percentiles. Reading from the salary distribution diagram, 25% of people working in Food / Hospitality / Tourism / Catering are earning less than 15,200 ZAR while 75% of them are earning more than 15,200 ZAR. Also from the diagram, 75% of people working in Food / Hospitality / Tourism / Catering are earning less than 46,900 ZAR while 25% are earning more than 46,900 ZAR.
Both are indicators. If your salary is higher than both of the average and the median then you are doing very well. If your salary is lower than both, then many people are earning more than you and there is plenty of room for improvement. If your wage is between the average and the median, then things can be a bit complicated. We wrote a guide to explain all about the different scenarios. How to compare your salary
The experience level is the most important factor in determining the salary. Naturally the more years of experience the higher the wage.
Generally speaking, employees having experience from two to five years earn on average 32% more than freshers and juniors across all industries and disciplines.
Professionals with experience of more than five years tend to earn on average 36% more than those with five years or less of work experience.
As you hit the ten years mark, the salary increases by 21% and an additional 14% for those who have crossed the 15 years mark.
Those figures are presented as guidelines only. The numbers become more significant if you consider one job title at a time.
It is well known that higher education equals a bigger salary, but how much more money can a degree add to your income? We compared the salaries of professionals at the same level but with different college degrees levels across many jobs, below are our findings.
Workers with a certificate or diploma earn on average 17% more than their peers who only reached the high school level.
Employees who earned a Bachelor's Degree earn 24% more than those who only managed to attain a cerificate or diploma.
Professionals who attained a Master's Degree are awarded salaries that are 29% more than those with a Bachelor's Degree.
Finally, PhD holders earn 23% more than Master's Degree holders on average while doing the same job.
A Master's degree program or any post-graduate program in South Africa costs anywhere from 156,000 Rand(s) to 467,000 Rand(s) and lasts approximately two years. That is quite an investment.
You can't really expect any salary increases during the study period, assuming you already have a job. In most cases, a salary review is conducted once education is completed and the degree has been attained.
Many people pursue higher education as a tactic to switch into a higher paying job. The numbers seem to support this tactic. The average increase in compensation while changing jobs is approximately 10% more than the customary salary increment.
The decision really depends on your situation and experience among many other factors. Putting all variables aside, if you can afford the costs of higher education then the return on investment is definitely worth it. You should be able to recover the costs in roughly a year or so.
Though gender should not have an effect on pay, in reality, it does. So who gets paid more: men or women? Male employees in South Africa who work in Food / Hospitality / Tourism / Catering earn 8% more than their female counterparts on average.
Male | 21,700 ZAR | |
Female | -7% | 20,100 ZAR |
Food / Hospitality / Tourism / Catering professionals in South Africa are likely to observe a salary increase of approximately 8% every 17 months. The national average annual increment for all professions combined is 8% granted to employees every 18 months.
The term 'Annual Salary Increase' usually refers to the increase in 12 calendar month period, but because it is rarely that people get their salaries reviewed exactly on the one year mark, it is more meaningful to know the frequency and the rate at the time of the increase.
The annual salary Increase in a calendar year (12 months) can be easily calculated as follows: Annual Salary Increase = Increase Rate x 12 ÷ Increase Frequency
Banking | 3% | |
Energy | 6% | |
Information Technology | 9% | |
Healthcare | 3% | |
Travel | 6% | |
Construction | 9% | |
Education | 3% |
Listed above are the average annual increase rates for each industry in South Africa for the year 2022. Companies within thriving industries tend to provide higher and more frequent raises. Exceptions do exist, but generally speaking, the situation of any company is closely related to the economic situation in the country or region. These figures tend to change frequently.
Food / Hospitality / Tourism / Catering is considered to be a low bonus-based field due to the generally limited involvement in direct revenue generation, with exceptions of course. The people who get the highest bonuses are usually somehow involved in the revenue generation cycle.
75% of surveyed staff in Food / Hospitality / Tourism / Catering reported that they haven't received any bonuses or incentives in the previous year while 25% said that they received at least one form of monetary bonus.
Those who got bonuses reported rates ranging from 1% to 3% of their annual salary.
Received Bonus | 25% | |
No Bonus | 75% |
The most standard form of bonus where the employee is awarded based on their exceptional performance.
Company Performance BonusesOccasionally, some companies like to celebrate excess earnings and profits with their staff collectively in the form of bonuses that are granted to everyone. The amount of the bonus will probably be different from person to person depending on their role within the organization.
Goal-Based BonusesGranted upon achieving an important goal or milestone.
Holiday / End of Year BonusesThese types of bonuses are given without a reason and usually resemble an appreciation token.
People tend to confuse bonuses with commissions. A commission is a prefixed rate at which someone gets paid for items sold or deals completed while a bonus is in most cases arbitrary and unplanned.
The main two types of jobs | |
Revenue Generators | Supporting Cast |
Employees that are directly involved in generating revenue or profit for the organization. Their field of expertise usually matches the type of business. | Employees that support and facilitate the work of revenue generators. Their expertise is usually different from that of the core business operations. |
Example: | Example: |
Revenue generators usually get more and higher bonuses, higher salaries, and more frequent salary increments. The reason is quite simple: it is easier to quantify your value to the company in monetary terms when you participate in revenue generation.
Top management personnel and senior employees naturally exhibit higher bonus rates and frequencies than juniors. This is very predictable due to the inherent responsibilities of being higher in the hierarchy. People in top positions can easily get double or triple bonus rates than employees down the pyramid.
The hourly wage is the salary paid in one worked hour. Usually jobs are classified into two categories: salaried jobs and hourly jobs. Salaried jobs pay a fix amount regardless of the hours worked. Hourly jobs pay per worked hour. To convert salary into hourly wage the above formula is used (assuming 5 working days in a week and 8 working hours per day which is the standard for most jobs). The hourly wage calculation may differ slightly depending on the worked hours per week and the annual vacation allowance. The figures mentioned above are good approximations and are considered to be the standard. One major difference between salaried employees and hourly paid employees is overtime eligibility. Salaried employees are usually exempt from overtime as opposed to hourly paid staff.
The average salary for Food / Hospitality / Tourism / Catering is 33% less than that of All Jobs.
City | Average Salary |
Bloemfontein | 20,200 ZAR |
Cape Town | 24,200 ZAR |
Durban | 23,100 ZAR |
Johannesburg | 22,200 ZAR |
Port Elizabeth | 21,000 ZAR |
Pretoria | 21,800 ZAR |
Where can you get paid more, working for a private company or for the government? Public sector employees in South Africa earn 7% more than their private sector counterparts on average across all sectors.
Private Sector | 30,200 ZAR | |
Public Sector | +7% | 32,300 ZAR |