Average Salary in Indonesia: A Guide for Global Employers

Salaries in Indonesia tell a different story depending on where you look. Take Jakarta: The capital’s 2026 minimum wage is roughly Rp5.7 million a month, higher than the national average salary. In contrast, minimum wages in some provinces are less than half that amount. So, where you hire has a major impact on the compensation you need to offer to attract talent.

If you’re hiring in Indonesia, the national average salary won’t give you an accurate picture of what people earn in the region where you’re hiring and what candidates in the industry expect. Plus, there’s more to budget for than the salary itself. Employers in Indonesia also need to cover mandatory social security contributions and the annual religious holiday allowance, known as THR.

This guide outlines the factors you need to consider alongside the average salary in Indonesia before making your first offer.

What is the average salary in Indonesia?

The average salary in Indonesia was Rp3.39 million (about $188) per month in May 2026, according to the country’s statistics agency, Badan Pusat Statistik (BPS).

But that figure doesn’t accurately reflect what a typical employee earns or what you should offer a new hire. That’s because a handful of high earners can push the average up, even if most workers earn considerably less.

The median salary is the midpoint of salary distribution, with half of employees earning more and half earning less than the median amount. That makes the median income in Indonesia more useful for understanding typical earnings in the country. However, BPS doesn’t publish a national median wage for employees.

Another factor to consider is the difference between gross and net pay. BPS reports monthly net wages, while employers usually budget for and make offers in gross terms, so the figures aren’t directly comparable.

Here’s what the latest official average income in Indonesia looks like:

Note: USD values use Bank Indonesia’s JISDOR reference rate of Rp18,050 = USD 1 on October 19, 2026. The annual figure is calculated by multiplying the monthly amount by 12 and doesn’t include THR, the religious holiday allowance.

Also, this average covers employees only. Indonesia has a large self-employed workforce, and BPS tracks those earnings separately. So the national average is a useful starting point, but you still need local, role-specific salary data to work out a competitive offer.

Minimum wage in Indonesia

There’s no single minimum wage in Indonesia. Each province sets its own rate, and the difference between regions is substantial.

An example is Jakarta and the neighboring West Java. Jakarta’s provincial minimum wage in 2026 is Rp5.73 million a month—more than double West Java’s Rp2.32 million. Yet Bekasi City, which is in West Java, has a minimum wage of nearly Rp6 million, higher than Jakarta’s.

That’s because Indonesia has two levels of regional minimum wages. Each province sets a rate called the Upah Minimum Provinsi (UMP), while cities and regencies can set their own rates, known as the Upah Minimum Kabupaten/Kota (UMK). The local rate can be higher than the provincial minimum wage.

For employers, that means checking the province alone isn’t always enough. If you’re hiring in a city or regency with its own minimum wage, that’s the rate you need to consider.

Under Government Regulation No. 49 of 2025, governors set minimum wages each year, with new rates taking effect on January 1.

The table below compares 2026 provincial minimum wages across selected parts of Indonesia:

Note: USD values use Bank Indonesia’s JISDOR reference rate of Rp18,050 = USD 1 on October 19, 2026. City and regency minimum wages may be higher than the provincial rates shown.

How much does the average salary in Indonesia vary by industry?

There’s a big difference between what someone earns working in a mine in Indonesia and what they’d make working in a hotel or restaurant. In fact, the average mining employee earns more than twice as much.

According to BPS data from May 2026, mining and quarrying had the highest average monthly wage at Rp5.79 million. Finance and insurance weren’t far behind at Rp5.51 million per month, followed by publishing and telecommunications, which includes many tech roles, at Rp5.24 million a month.

At the lower end, employees in wholesale and retail trade earned an average of Rp2.88 million a month, while those in accommodation and food services earned Rp2.64 million per month.

But industry averages don’t tell you what a specific candidate will expect. Job title and experience matter, too. A software engineer with five years of experience will command a different salary from a sales assistant fresh out of university. Even within the same company, pay can vary quite a bit depending on the role and the responsibilities that come with it.

To give you a better idea of what candidates might expect, the table below shows what employers are offering for some common roles in Indonesia:

Note: Ranges reflect Jobstreet’s October 2026 salary data, based on pay ranges employers disclosed in job ads. Some include benefits, so they aren’t directly comparable with BPS’s net wage figures. USD values use Bank Indonesia’s JISDOR reference rate of Rp18,050 = USD 1 on October 19, 2026.

Salary in Indonesia by province

Two employees doing similar jobs in Indonesia might have very different salary expectations simply because they live in different provinces.

The average salary in Jakarta reached Rp5.74 million (about $318) a month in May 2026, the highest in the country. Central Papua and the Riau Islands followed, both averaging more than Rp4.9 million per month. Meanwhile, employees in East Nusa Tenggara earned around Rp2.5 million a month, the lowest of any province.

Note the difference of more than Rp3 million between Jakarta and East Nusa Tenggara alone. One of the reasons for this variation is the cost of living in different regions. In 2025, Jakarta recorded the highest average monthly spending per person in Indonesia, at nearly Rp3 million.

For employers, there’s an opportunity here. You may be able to hire at a lower cost outside Jakarta, particularly for jobs that can be done remotely.

Role, location, and industry all influence compensation. But to set a competitive salary, you also need to consider what other employers are offering for similar positions in the same market and how much the hire will cost you beyond their base salary.

Payroll in Indonesia

Say you find the right candidate in Indonesia and agree on a monthly salary of Rp10 million. Is that what you should budget for? Not quite.

In Indonesia, on top of salary, you must contribute to social security programs and pay an annual religious holiday allowance. You’re also responsible for withholding employees’ income tax each month. Here are the employer obligations you need to understand:

• Social security contributions (BPJS). Employers in Indonesia need to register employees with BPJS Ketenagakerjaan for employment-related benefits and BPJS Kesehatan for health insurance. Employer contributions typically add around 10% to 12% to payroll costs, although the exact amount depends on the employee’s salary, applicable contribution caps, and the job’s accident-risk category. This consists of contributions totaling 6.24% to 7.74% of monthly wages for BPJS Ketenagakerjaan programs and 4% for BPJS Kesehatan. Employees contribute about 4% of their wages: 3% to BPJS Ketenagakerjaan for old-age savings and pension, and 1% to BPJS Kesehatan. For health insurance, contributions are calculated on wages capped at Rp12 million a month. Altogether, on a monthly salary of Rp10 million, employer contributions work out to roughly Rp1 million to Rp1.2 million a month.
• Income tax withholding (PPh 21). Employers are responsible for deducting income tax from employees’ salaries and remitting it to the tax authority. Indonesia uses an average effective tax rate (TER) for monthly withholding. In practice, that means multiplying the employee’s gross monthly pay by a set percentage depending on their income level, marital status, and dependent status. In December, or the employee’s final tax period, you must reconcile the deductions against their annual tax liability. The country’s progressive income tax rates range from 5% to 35%.
• Religious holiday allowance. Employees who have worked for at least one continuous month are entitled to THR, no matter what their religion is. Those with 12 months of service or more receive one month’s wages, while employees with shorter service receive a prorated amount. You must pay THR no later than seven days before the employee’s religious holiday. So if you’re budgeting for a full year of employment, remember to account for this extra payment alongside the regular monthly salary.

How Pebl simplifies payroll and compliance in Indonesia

Knowing what to offer a candidate in Indonesia is only half the job. Once your new hire starts, you need to get payroll right every month. That means BPJS contributions for social security, health insurance, and PPh 21 withholding on every paycheck. THR must be paid once a year on top of that.

When you’re operating in an unfamiliar territory, small mistakes can add up quickly. Applying the previous year’s minimum wage after the January 1 update means underpaying staff. A miscalculated BPJS contribution or a missed THR deadline brings compliance risk and extra admin work to fix it. And if your salary benchmark is off, you may lose strong candidates to competitors.

Global employers need payroll that stays locally compliant while keeping compensation competitive.

Pebl brings it all together. Market salary insights sit inside the same platform you use to run payroll, so your compensation decisions and payroll execution draw on the same source of truth.

From there, Pebl’s Global Payroll makes sure the salary you agreed on is paid accurately and on time in Indonesian rupiah. We take care of employer and employee BPJS contributions and PPh 21 withholding every month. Statutory payments like THR are covered too.

Contact Pebl to see how we can support your team in Indonesia.