A person working as Creative Director in Korea (South) typically earns around 4,100,000 KRW. Salaries range from 2,010,000 KRW (lowest) to 6,400,000 KRW (highest).
This is the average salary including housing, transport, and other benefits. Creative Director salaries in Korea (South) vary drastically based on experience, skills, gender, or location. Below you will find a detailed breakdown based on many different criteria.
Minimum Salary 2,010,000 KRW |
Median 3,830,000 KRW |
Maximum 6,400,000 KRW |
Salaries for the position Creative Director in Korea (South) range from 2,010,000 KRW (starting salary) to 6,400,000 KRW (maximum salary). It should be noted that the given figure is not the legally mandated minimum wage; rather, it represents the lowest figure reported in a salary survey that included thousands of participants and professionals from all regions of the country.
With a median salary of 3,830,000 KRW, half of the professionals who work as Creative Director in Korea (South) earn less than this amount, and the other half earn more. The median salary denotes the middle value of salaries. Ideally, you would want to belong to the group earning more than the median salary, located on the right side of the salary distribution graph.
The median is closely associated with two other values known as the 25th and 75th percentiles. By examining the salary distribution chart, it can be determined that 25% of professionals employed as Creative Director in Korea (South) earn less than 3,130,000 KRW, while 75% earn more. Similarly, the chart shows that 75% earn less than 4,380,000 KRW while 25% earn more.
To provide a better understanding of expected salaries, we categorized the frequently occurring salaries into different ranges. This approach provides a more precise representation of salary distribution for the job title Creative Director in Korea (South) compared to simply calculating the average. The majority of reported salaries, approximately 65%, fall within the range of 2,390,000 KRW to 3,360,000 KRW. About 20% of salaries are below the 2,390,000 KRW mark, while 10% fall within the range of 3,360,000 KRW to 3,800,000 KRW. Only 5% of individuals have salaries exceeding 3,800,000 KRW.
0 - 2 Years | 2,380,000 KRW | |
2 - 5 Years | +29% | 3,060,000 KRW |
5 - 10 Years | +38% | 4,230,000 KRW |
10 - 15 Years | +24% | 5,240,000 KRW |
15 - 20 Years | +7% | 5,610,000 KRW |
20+ Years | +7% | 5,980,000 KRW |
The experience level is the most important factor in determining the salary. Naturally, the more years of experience the higher the wage. We broke down salaries by experience level for people working as Creative Director and this is what we found.
Employees with less than two years of experience earn approximately 2,380,000 KRW.
While someone with an experience level between two and five years is expected to earn 3,060,000 KRW, 29% more than someone with less than two year's experience.
Moving forward, an experience level between five and ten years lands a salary of 4,230,000 KRW, 38% more than someone with two to five years of experience.
Additionally, professionals whose expertise span anywhere between ten and fifteen years get a salary equivalent to 5,240,000 KRW, 24% more than someone with five to ten years of experience.
If the experience level is between fifteen and twenty years, then the expected wage is 5,610,000 KRW, 7% more than someone with ten to fifteen years of experience.
Lastly, employees with more than twenty years of professional experience get a salary of 5,980,000 KRW, 7% more than people with fifteen to twenty years of experience.
High School | 2,980,000 KRW | |
Certificate or Diploma | +15% | 3,410,000 KRW |
Bachelor's Degree | +35% | 4,600,000 KRW |
Master's Degree | +26% | 5,790,000 KRW |
We all know that higher education equals a bigger salary, but how much more money can a degree add to your income? We broke down salaries by education level for the position Creative Director in order to make a comparison.
Employees at this education level have an average salary of 2,980,000 KRW.
At this level, the average salary becomes 3,410,000 KRW, 15% more than the previous level.
At this level, the average salary becomes 4,600,000 KRW, 35% more than the previous level.
At this level, the average salary becomes 5,790,000 KRW, 26% more than the previous level.
A Master's degree program or any post-graduate program in Korea (South) costs anywhere from 19,500,000 KRW to 58,500,000 KRW 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 to a higher-paying job. The numbers seem to support the theory. The average increase in compensation while changing jobs is approximately 10% more than the customary salary increment.
If you can afford the costs of higher education, 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? For the people who work as Creative Director in Korea (South), the average difference between the salary of male and female employees is 6%.
Male | 4,210,000 KRW | |
Female | -6% | 3,970,000 KRW |
Individuals working as Creative Director in Korea (South) are likely to observe a salary increase of approximately 12% every 17 months. The national average annual increment for all professions combined is 9% granted to employees every 16 months.
The term Annual Salary Increase usually refers to the increase in 12 calendar month period, but because it is rare 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
Not all compensation increases are reflected directly in the salary. Some companies offer upgraded packages to their staff instead of cash money. The figures displayed here account only for direct increments to the base salary.
44% of surveyed staff reported that they haven't received any bonuses or incentives in the previous year while 56% said that they received at least one form of monetary bonus.
Those who got bonuses reported rates ranging from 3% to 6% of their annual salary.
Received Bonus | 56% | |
No Bonus | 44% |
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 fixed 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 minimum pay rate per hour for people working as Creative Director in Korea (South) is 11,600 KRW. This is the minimum as per the gathered data in the salary survey not the minimum hourly rate mandated by law.
Job Title | Average Salary |
Advertising / Graphic Design / Events | -100% | |
Advertisement Fraud Analyst | 4,050,000 KRW | -1% |
Advertising Account Executive | 4,600,000 KRW | +12% |
Advertising Account Manager | 4,920,000 KRW | +20% |
Advertising Account Planner | 2,510,000 KRW | -39% |
Advertising and Promotions Manager | 6,590,000 KRW | +61% |
Advertising Coordinator | 3,120,000 KRW | -24% |
Advertising Data Analyst | 4,200,000 KRW | +2% |
Advertising Manager | 6,390,000 KRW | +56% |
Advertising Operations Manager | 6,890,000 KRW | +68% |
Advertising Sales Director | 6,970,000 KRW | +70% |
Advertising Strategic Planner | 4,440,000 KRW | +8% |
Advertising Team Leader | 3,830,000 KRW | -7% |
Animation Director | 4,970,000 KRW | +21% |
Animator | 2,950,000 KRW | -28% |
Art Director | 4,110,000 KRW | +0% |
Art Manager | 3,830,000 KRW | -7% |
Artificial Intelligence Advertising Analyst | 4,420,000 KRW | +8% |
Artist | 3,230,000 KRW | -21% |
Artworker | 2,310,000 KRW | -44% |
Assistant Art Director | 2,970,000 KRW | -28% |
Audio and Video Equipment Technician | 2,280,000 KRW | -44% |
Audio Engineer | 2,890,000 KRW | -30% |
Audiosual Technician | 2,330,000 KRW | -43% |
Branding Consultant | 5,060,000 KRW | +23% |
Broadcast Administrator | 4,230,000 KRW | +3% |
Catering Sales | 2,640,000 KRW | -36% |
Catering Trainer | 3,110,000 KRW | -24% |
Color Consultant | 2,540,000 KRW | -38% |
Commercial and Industrial Designer | 2,470,000 KRW | -40% |
Conference Organiser | 2,960,000 KRW | -28% |
Content and Media Production Lead | 4,350,000 KRW | +6% |
CopyWriter | 2,760,000 KRW | -33% |
Creative Content Strategist | 5,090,000 KRW | +24% |
Creative Designer | 3,100,000 KRW | -24% |
Creative Director | 4,100,000 KRW | -0% |
Creative Technologist | 4,680,000 KRW | +14% |
Crowd Management Specialist | 3,950,000 KRW | -4% |
Design Strategist | 4,270,000 KRW | +4% |
Designer | 2,210,000 KRW | -46% |
Desktop Publisher | 1,890,000 KRW | -54% |
Digital Campaign Manager | 4,180,000 KRW | +2% |
Digital Media Manager | 4,680,000 KRW | +14% |
Digital Media Strategist | 4,760,000 KRW | +16% |
Director of Events | 6,520,000 KRW | +59% |
Director of Graphic Design | 3,590,000 KRW | -12% |
Director of Social Media Marketing | 5,010,000 KRW | +22% |
Event Experience Designer | 4,310,000 KRW | +5% |
Event Security Specialist | 3,770,000 KRW | -8% |
Event Technology Consultant | 3,950,000 KRW | -4% |
Event Technology Integration Specialist | 3,760,000 KRW | -8% |
Events and Promotions Manager | 6,250,000 KRW | +52% |
Events Director | 6,920,000 KRW | +69% |
Exhibit Designer | 3,060,000 KRW | -25% |
Exhibit Display Coordinator | 2,990,000 KRW | -27% |
Exhibit Display Manager | 4,050,000 KRW | -1% |
Experiential Designer | 3,820,000 KRW | -7% |
Finisher | 2,020,000 KRW | -51% |
Gamification Specialist | 4,120,000 KRW | +0% |
Graphic Artist | 2,500,000 KRW | -39% |
Graphic Design Specialist | 3,060,000 KRW | -25% |
Graphic Designer | 2,540,000 KRW | -38% |
Graphics Artist | 2,540,000 KRW | -38% |
Graphics Design Supervisor | 3,380,000 KRW | -18% |
Group Creative Director | 4,370,000 KRW | +7% |
Imagery Analyst | 2,410,000 KRW | -41% |
Imaging Technologist | 2,440,000 KRW | -41% |
Immersive Storyteller | 3,400,000 KRW | -17% |
Interaction Designer | 2,140,000 KRW | -48% |
Lead Generation Specialist | 5,040,000 KRW | +23% |
Media Analyst | 3,160,000 KRW | -23% |
Media Executive | 4,170,000 KRW | +2% |
Media Planner | 3,370,000 KRW | -18% |
Media Production Coordinator | 2,930,000 KRW | -29% |
Media Production Manager | 5,350,000 KRW | +30% |
Media Project Manager | 5,250,000 KRW | +28% |
Media Relations Representative | 4,320,000 KRW | +5% |
Media Sales Executive | 5,350,000 KRW | +30% |
Meeting and Event Planner | 3,120,000 KRW | -24% |
Mobile Advertising Specialist | 5,050,000 KRW | +23% |
Motion Graphic Artist | 3,300,000 KRW | -20% |
Motion Graphics Designer | 3,340,000 KRW | -19% |
Multimedia Artist | 2,500,000 KRW | -39% |
Multimedia Specialist | 2,440,000 KRW | -41% |
NFT Designer | 2,980,000 KRW | -27% |
NFT Specialist | 2,940,000 KRW | -28% |
Photographer | 2,300,000 KRW | -44% |
PPC Campaign Manager | 4,240,000 KRW | +3% |
Print Production Manager | 4,590,000 KRW | +12% |
Product and Brand Manager | 6,060,000 KRW | +48% |
Sales Promotion Manager | 6,260,000 KRW | +53% |
Search Engine Optimization Specialist (SEO) | 2,690,000 KRW | -34% |
Sketch Artist | 2,870,000 KRW | -30% |
Social Media Event Strategist | 3,370,000 KRW | -18% |
Social Media Executive | 5,290,000 KRW | +29% |
Social Media Graphic Designer | 2,960,000 KRW | -28% |
Social Media Manager | 4,860,000 KRW | +18% |
Social Media Marketing Manager | 4,890,000 KRW | +19% |
Social Media Strategist | 5,000,000 KRW | +22% |
Special Events Supervisor | 3,750,000 KRW | -9% |
Technical Typist | 1,740,000 KRW | -58% |
User Experience UX Designer | 2,850,000 KRW | -31% |
UX Designer | 2,380,000 KRW | -42% |
Virtual / Augmented Reality Advertiser | 3,750,000 KRW | -9% |
Virtual / Augmented Reality Event Producer | 3,220,000 KRW | -22% |
Virtual / Augmented Reality Showroom Designer | 3,180,000 KRW | -22% |
Virtual Events Planner | 3,270,000 KRW | -20% |
Virtual Trade Show Manager | 2,970,000 KRW | -28% |
Voice Search Optimization Specialist | 4,160,000 KRW | +1% |
Web Accessibility Designer | 3,140,000 KRW | -23% |
Web3 Designer | 3,150,000 KRW | -23% |
Webinar Designer | 3,440,000 KRW | -16% |
Where can you get paid more, working in a private company or the government? The difference between the public or government sector salaries and the private sector salaries in Korea (South) is 6% on average across all career fields.
Private Sector | 3,780,000 KRW | |
Public Sector | +6% | 4,000,000 KRW |
A good and competitive compensation would range anywhere between 3,830,000 KRW and 4,380,000 KRW. This is a very rough estimate. Experience and education play a very huge part in the final earnings.
All salary and compensation figures displayed here are gross salary figures, that is the salary before tax deductions. Because taxes may differ across sectors and locations, it is difficult to accurately calculate the net salary after tax for every career.
The base salary for a careers like Creative Director in Korea (South) ranges from 2,010,000 KRW to 3,130,000 KRW. The base salary depends on many factors including experience and education. It is not easy to provide a figure with very little information, so take this range with a grain of salt.
Both are indicators. If your salary is higher than both the average and the median then you are doing very well. If your salary is lower than both, then many people earn 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