How much salary you can expect with an MBA or Business Master's degree

Discover MBA and Business Master salary potential. Learn how degrees boost earnings, with US MBAs seeing significant gains. Compare salaries by program type and region.

How much salary you can get with an MBA or Business Master's degree

Two studies by the Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC) state: An MBA degree is still a ticket to a high salary – especially in the USA. Master's programs cannot quite keep up in terms of remuneration, but are becoming increasingly popular with employers.

Graduates of business schools worldwide recently recorded a percentage increase in their total compensation (base salary plus all compensation components) of 29 percent. North American full-time MBA graduates even increased their total compensation by 50 percent – from a median total compensation of 80,000 US dollars before their studies to 120,000 with graduation. This was the result of a survey of 1,718 people in 57 countries, conducted by the Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC), a worldwide association of business schools, in May and June 2022. The study participants studied at almost 300 different business schools.

Full-time MBA leads to strongest salary increases worldwide

According to GMAC's "Enrolled Students Survey 2022 Summary Report", salaries and salary increases differ depending on the world region and program type. Example North America: The median value of 120,000 US dollars total compensation for people with a full-time MBA is slightly lower than that of part-time MBA graduates (130,000 dollars) and higher than that of graduates of business master's programs (110,000 dollars). The average increase for full-time MBA graduates was significantly higher overall at 60 percent than for part-time MBA programs (38 percent) and business master's programs (29 percent).

Biggest salary jumps in Europe for Business Masters

In Europe, salary increases for MBAs are more moderate than elsewhere: For part-time MBAs, the median total compensation rose from 80,000 US dollars before to 105,000 after the studies (31 percent salary increase). The full-time MBA did not lead to a significant salary increase – the median salary for the respondents before and after the studies was about 110,000 dollars. Salary jumps in Europe are mainly seen in business master's programs: On average, the respondents received 70,000 dollars before their studies and increased their salary to 100,000 afterwards (42 percent salary increase).

Inflation dampens the monetary value gain