US first, China second-to-last and US$100,000 between them in G20 diplomatic pay rankings

Report by International Intrigue shows Beijing diplomats’ salaries are ahead of only Jakarta’s among 16 analysed G20 countries

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The rankings were compiled by International Intrigue, a company created by former Australian diplomats. Photo: Shutterstock

Published: 6:00pm, 7 Aug 2024Updated: 3:47pm, 8 Aug 2024

American efforts to blunt China’s global influence might be yielding mixed results, but on the issue of compensation, Washington pays its home-based diplomats the best among 16 G20 countries with Beijing placing second to last, a study has found.

The report released on Wednesday by International Intrigue, a media company created by former Australian diplomats, compared salaries of recently promoted mid-level diplomats working at their headquarters, adjusted for purchasing-power parity.

In the grouping of major countries, American diplomats’ pay of US$140,000 per year led the way.

Brazil, South Africa, France and Germany rounded out the top five, while China and Indonesia brought up the rear with salaries of US$41,000 and $34,000 respectively. Asian countries, including India, comprised five of the bottom eight analysed.

China placed second from bottom in the list of 16 G20 countries. Source: International Intrigue

However, when ranked by how much salaries differed from the local median, India came out on top and the US slipped to third. China still placed near the bottom at 12.