What salary can you expect as a security guard in SA?

As stated by the Private Security Industry Regulatory Authority (PSIRA), there are more than 1.87 million registered security officers in South Africa, moreover, almost 500 thousand of them are 490,000 of which are active ones. That makes you wonder, how promising is it to works as a security guard in South Africa?

Anyhow, before digging into this topic, one needs to consider the fact that security officers are paid based on the responsibilities and roles they are have. According to the type of duty they carry out, guards are graded between A ir E (grade E being an entry level). The functions that each grade performs also determines the minimum wages for security guards.

That is not surprising, because higher grade requires more training. Therefore, the more experience you have, the more you are able to provide higher security standards. Which also results in higher salary.

Security officer in South Africa earns R52,365 on average per year.

Besides, the rate of pay across South Africa also differs based on the area they work in. Guards in such areas like Gauteng, Durban, Pretoria and Cape Town (Area 1) earn somewhat more than the ones in remote areas. (Area 2 and 3).

Yet, what are the numbers? Well, as mentioned before, a lot of particular factors can influence the wages (including location, experience, industry, employer, risks and skills), and you can never be sure when providing certain numbers. But according to PayScale and their most recent data, a security officer in South Africa earns R52,365 on average per year.

Security guards earnings per year in South Africa

Provided charts also clearly states how experience level dictates salary of security officers. Most experienced ones have an opportunity to earn up to R70,000 per year. But what if you are a newly certified security guard and have no previous work experience? Well, such entry level guards who have less than five years experience can expect to earn R45,000 maximum.

So, if you are looking for a security guard job, it is also important to be informed about how financially rewarding this sort of job is.