Average salary in Algeria: what it covers each month

What is the minimum wage in Algeria in 2026?

The national guaranteed minimum wage, the SNMG (salaire national minimum garanti), is 24 000 DA a month for a full-time job. It is set by Presidential Decree 26-01 of 7 January 2026, published in the first Official Journal of the year on 14 January and backdated to 1 January 2026. The decree bases it on 40 hours a week, or 173.33 hours a month, so the hourly rate is 138.46 DA.

Before that, the SNMG had been 20 000 DA since June 2020. The Council of Ministers decided on the 4 000 DA rise on 30 November 2025. It matters beyond the lowest pay slips, because some allowances and pay scales are tied to the SNMG.

Keep in mind that the 24 000 DA is gross. Take off the employee's 9% social security contribution (CNAS) and you get about 21 840 DA. Income tax (IRG) doesn't apply at this level, since salaries up to 30 000 DA are exempt. If someone says they are "on the SNMG", they take home roughly 21 800 DA.

Average salary in Algeria: what the ONS figures say

The Office National des Statistiques (ONS) runs a yearly survey of salaries paid by companies. The latest results, for May 2022 and released in April 2025, give an average net salary of 43 500 DA a month, about 1.4% more than in 2021. Net means after IRG, social security and pension contributions, so it is what actually lands in the account.

Skill level makes a big difference too. In 2022, managers (cadres) earned an average of 83 800 DA net, supervisors 51 200 DA and operational staff 31 200 DA. A manager's average is almost three times an operational worker's. You can read the El Watan summary of the 2022 survey here .

What the average salary hides

An average is useful, but it describes a statistical construct, not a household. Several things to bear in mind when you read 43 500 DA:

• Who is counted: the survey covers public companies and private Algerian firms with 20 or more employees. The civil service, agriculture, very small businesses and informal work are not in it.
• Average versus typical: a few very high salaries in hydrocarbons and finance pull the average up. The ONS publishes averages, and most private-sector employees earn below the overall figure.
• Salary versus income: the survey measures one person's pay. Household income also includes a second earner, pensions, transfers or side work, so "average income in Algeria" is a different question.
• Time lag: the 2022 figures come before the 2026 SNMG rise and the civil service pay rises of 2022 to 2024. Prices have moved since then as well.

The plain takeaway is that 43 500 DA is a reasonable marker for a middle salary in a formal company, not a promise of what an ordinary job pays. To see how price rises eat into it, read our article on inflation and the household budget .

What does a monthly salary in Algeria cover? A worked budget in dinars

Statistics only mean something once you set them against a real month. The table below shows three example budgets: someone on the net SNMG living with family, a couple with one child on about the average salary, and a family of four on 70 000 DA. The amounts are assumptions, not survey data, so swap in your own. Rents especially vary a lot between Algiers, Oran and a smaller wilaya.

Three lessons come out of this. Rent decides almost everything: if a family's 45 000 DA salary doesn't have to cover rent, about 15 000 DA is freed for savings or other needs. Food is the biggest flexible line, so that is where tracking pays off first. And the irregular months (Ramadan, the rentrée, the Aïd sheep, summer at the sea) aren't in a normal month at all, so they have to be saved for in advance, a small amount each month. Sonelgaz and Algérie Télécom bills often come every quarter, so divide them by three to get the monthly share.

How to compare your own salary with these figures

Our guide to planning a monthly budget covers these steps in more detail. For a ready-made split such as 50/30/20 adapted to dinars, see how to save on an Algerian salary .

1. Start with your net pay, the amount that actually arrives in your account or envelope, not the gross figure on the contract.
2. Add the household's other regular income (second salary, pension, grant) to get the total you live on.
3. List your fixed costs first: rent, bills, transport, installments. Whatever is left is the real room you have.
4. Write down every expense for one full month, cash included, and group it into categories.
5. Compare your categories with the example table above. A big gap in one line tells you more than any national average.
6. Set a monthly amount for the big dates of the year and put it aside on payday.

Seeing where your salary goes with budgets and statistics

The national figures tell you where you stand. Your own figures tell you what to change. Jibi is a free app (on the web, iPhone and Android) in English, French and Arabic, where you set a monthly budget with a limit per category, such as food, transport or the children, and get a warning as you approach the limit.

The statistics show your spending by day and by category, so the "where did it all go" question gets an answer by the 20th of the month, not after it. You can keep separate wallets for cash, the Edahabia card and a CIB account, enter the salary and rent as recurring entries, and record installments as you pay them. Jibi never connects to your bank, Algérie Poste or BaridiMob, and never asks for card details: you note what you spend. You can start on the home page .