2026 comparison
Mining Engineer vs Data Scientist salary in South Africa
Higher paying career: Mining Engineer. Approximate monthly difference: R30 000.
Entry, mid, senior pay, demand, difficulty and long-term career upside.
Mining Engineer
High demand · BEng / BSc Mining Engineering
EntryR35 000
MidR85 000
SeniorR140 000
Top 20%R220 000
Data Scientist
High demand · Degree in Stats, Maths, CS or related
EntryR30 000
MidR70 000
SeniorR110 000
Top 20%R180 000
Salary breakdown
Entry
R35 000
R30 000
Mid
R85 000
R70 000
Senior
R140 000
R110 000
Top 20%
R220 000
R180 000
Demand
Mining Engineer8/10
Data Scientist9/10
Difficulty
Mining Engineer9/10
Data Scientist8/10
Salary difference
+R30 000
Compare the Mining Engineer salary in South Africa with how much Data Scientists earn at senior level.
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Higher paying career: Mining Engineer. The senior-level gap is about R30 000 per month, based on R140 000 for Mining Engineer compared with R110 000 for Data Scientist.
Career alternatives
Higher earning
Mining Engineer
Easier entry
Data Scientist
Better long-term
Mining Engineer
Skills / requirements
Mine planning
Mining Engineer needs this
Less central
Safety management
Mining Engineer needs this
Less central
Pr.Eng registration
Mining Engineer needs this
Less central
Project management
Mining Engineer needs this
Less central
Python / Pandas
Less central
Data Scientist needs this
Machine learning
Less central
Data Scientist needs this
Career progression
Mining Engineer
Graduate Mining EngineerR42 000
Mining EngineerR85 000
Senior Mining EngineerR140 000
Mine ManagerR180 000
Data Scientist
Junior Data ScientistR38 000
Data ScientistR70 000
Senior Data ScientistR110 000
Lead / ML EngineerR140 000
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