Highest Paying Jobs in Quebec at a Glance
Quebec has a diverse economy with high-skilled employment across healthcare, financial services, information technology, engineering, aerospace, manufacturing, professional services and other specialized industries.
There is no single salary ranking that can identify the highest-paying job for every worker. Earnings vary according to occupation, professional licensing, education, experience, employer, region and employment arrangement.
For this guide, ToQuebec uses current provincial wage information from the Government of Canada's Job Bank. The figures are based on published median hourly wages for Quebec and are converted into approximate annual equivalents using 2,080 hours per year.
High-Paying Jobs in Quebec: Salary Comparison
The table below compares selected occupations with relatively high published median wage levels in Quebec. It should not be interpreted as a definitive ranking of every occupation in the province.
| # | Occupation | Approx. Annual Equivalent | Quebec Median Wage |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Dentists provide dental diagnosis and treatment and may work in private practice, hospitals, clinics, universities and other healthcare settings.
|
$106,080 | $106,000 median annual wage |
| 2 |
Pharmacists work in community and hospital pharmacies, healthcare organizations, pharmaceutical companies and other settings.
|
$131,040 | $63.00/hour median |
| 3 |
Financial managers oversee financial and accounting operations, financial policies, reporting, budgets and organizational financial performance.
|
$124,800 | $60.00/hour median |
| 4 |
Nurse practitioners are registered nurses with advanced education and clinical expertise who provide a range of healthcare services.
|
$119,995 | $57.69/hour median |
| 5 |
Electrical and electronics engineers design, research, test and manage electrical and electronic equipment and systems.
|
$111,768 | $53.85/hour median |
| 6 |
Software engineers design, develop, evaluate and maintain software systems, applications, technical environments and related technologies.
|
$111,488 | $53.60/hour median |
| 7 |
Lawyers and Quebec notaries provide legal advice, prepare documents, represent clients and work across private practice, government and business.
|
$106,662 | $51.28/hour median |
| 8 |
Air pilots operate aircraft for passenger, cargo and other aviation services. Compensation can vary substantially with employer, aircraft and experience.
|
$105,165 | $50.56/hour median |
| 9 |
Civil engineers plan, design and manage infrastructure projects involving buildings, transportation, water systems and other civil works.
|
$103,459 | $49.74/hour median |
| 10 |
Data scientists use analytics, machine learning and predictive modelling across technology, finance, consulting, research and other industries.
|
$95,680 | $46.00/hour median |
Why Do Some Jobs Pay More in Quebec?
High salaries tend to be associated with occupations requiring specialized education, professional licensing, scarce technical skills, management responsibility or substantial experience.
Quebec's economy includes major activities in aerospace, financial services, information technology, life sciences, manufacturing, engineering, healthcare and other knowledge-intensive industries.
Location can also matter. Montreal is Quebec's largest metropolitan employment centre, while Quebec City has important public-sector, insurance, financial-services, technology, healthcare and professional employment. Other regions have their own specialized industries and labour markets.
For that reason, a Quebec-wide wage should be treated as a provincial benchmark rather than an exact prediction of what an employer in Montreal, Quebec City, Laval, Sherbrooke or another community will pay.
Highest Paying Industries and Career Areas in Quebec
Healthcare & Medicine
Healthcare contains several highly paid professional occupations in Quebec, including dentists, pharmacists and nurse practitioners. Many healthcare careers require regulated professional credentials and specialized education.
Finance & Financial Services
Financial management, investment analysis, banking, insurance, accounting and related professional services are important sources of higher-paying employment in Quebec.
Information Technology
Software engineering, data science, cybersecurity, cloud computing, artificial intelligence and technology management provide opportunities for highly skilled professionals.
Engineering
Quebec has significant engineering activity across aerospace, manufacturing, infrastructure, energy, transportation, technology and other industrial sectors.
Law & Professional Services
Lawyers, notaries, consultants and other specialized professional-service workers can achieve high incomes with experience, professional credentials and specialization.
Aerospace & Advanced Manufacturing
Quebec has a major aerospace and advanced-manufacturing ecosystem, creating opportunities for engineers, managers, technical specialists and other highly qualified professionals.
Healthcare Jobs Among Quebec's Higher-Paid Careers
Healthcare includes several occupations with relatively high wage levels, although professional licensing and education requirements can be substantial.
Pharmacist
The Government of Canada's Job Bank currently reports a median wage of $63.00 per hour for pharmacists in Quebec. At 2,080 hours, that corresponds mathematically to approximately $131,040 per year.
Nurse Practitioner
Job Bank reports a Quebec median wage of $57.69 per hour for nurse practitioners. This is approximately $119,995 per year when multiplied by 2,080 hours.
Dentist
Job Bank currently reports a median wage of approximately $106,000 per year for dentists in Quebec.
Healthcare compensation should be interpreted carefully because self-employed professionals, private-practice owners and employees may have substantially different income structures.
Finance and Financial Management Jobs in Quebec
Quebec has a substantial financial-services ecosystem that includes banks, insurance companies, investment businesses, financial cooperatives, accounting firms and corporate finance departments.
Financial Manager
Current Job Bank data reports a Quebec median wage of $60.00 per hour for financial managers. At 2,080 hours, this is an approximate annual equivalent of $124,800.
Financial management positions generally involve responsibility for financial planning, accounting operations, reporting, budgets, financial policies and organizational performance.
Financial Analyst
Job Bank reports a Quebec median wage of $44.00 per hour for financial analysts, based on its current provincial wage data. This corresponds to an approximate annual equivalent of $91,520.
Actual finance compensation can vary substantially according to employer, specialization, seniority, professional designation and bonus structure.
Explore finance jobs and salaries in Quebec →High-Paying Technology Jobs in Quebec
Technology is an important source of high-skilled employment in Quebec. Software development, artificial intelligence, data science, cybersecurity, cloud computing and technology management can provide strong career opportunities.
Software Engineer
Job Bank currently reports a Quebec median wage of $53.60 per hour for software engineers and designers. That represents an approximate annual equivalent of $111,488 at 2,080 hours.
Data Scientist
The current Job Bank profile for data scientists reports a Quebec median wage of $46.00 per hour, equivalent to approximately $95,680 per year at 2,080 hours.
Technology compensation can vary significantly depending on technical specialization. Artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, cloud infrastructure, software architecture and senior engineering roles may have different salary structures from general software development positions.
High-Paying Engineering Jobs in Quebec
Engineering is another important high-skilled career category in Quebec. Engineers work in aerospace, infrastructure, transportation, manufacturing, energy, technology, construction and other industries.
Electrical Engineer
Job Bank currently reports a Quebec median wage of $53.85 per hour for electrical and electronics engineers. The approximate annual equivalent is $111,768.
Civil Engineer
The current Quebec median wage for civil engineers is $49.74 per hour, equivalent to approximately $103,459 per year at 2,080 hours.
Chemical Engineer
Job Bank reports a Quebec median wage of $44.31 per hour for chemical engineers, equivalent to approximately $92,165 per year at 2,080 hours.
Explore individual engineering salary guides:
Law and Professional Services in Quebec
Law is another professional field where specialized qualifications can lead to comparatively high compensation.
Lawyer
Job Bank currently reports a Quebec median wage of $51.28 per hour for lawyers and Quebec notaries. This corresponds to an approximate annual equivalent of $106,662 at 2,080 hours.
Legal income varies considerably according to practice area, law firm, corporate position, years of experience, professional status and whether the professional is an employee, partner or self-employed.
Explore lawyer salaries in Quebec →Airline Pilot Salaries in Quebec
Aviation is another specialized career area where compensation can be relatively high, although earnings vary significantly according to employer, aircraft, flight hours, seniority and qualifications.
Job Bank currently reports a Quebec median wage of $50.56 per hour for air pilots, flight engineers and flying instructors.
At 2,080 hours, this produces an approximate annual equivalent of $105,165. Actual pilot compensation should not be estimated simply from an hourly wage because aviation employment can have distinctive scheduling and compensation arrangements.
Explore pilot salaries in Quebec →Management and Project Leadership Careers
Management can increase earning potential because managers are responsible for people, budgets, projects, operations or business performance.
However, not every management position is a high-paying occupation. The industry, size of the organization, responsibility level and specialization can make a substantial difference.
For example, Job Bank reports a Quebec median wage of $60.00 per hour for financial managers, while non-technical project managers have a lower published median wage.
This illustrates why it is more useful to compare the exact occupation and industry rather than assuming that every manager earns more than every specialist.
How Experience Affects Salary in Quebec
The highest compensation within a profession is often concentrated among people with substantial experience, specialized knowledge, professional credentials or management responsibility.
Graduates and professionals with limited experience generally earn less than established specialists and managers. Education, professional licensing and technical skills can affect starting compensation.
Several years of experience can increase earning potential, particularly when a professional develops specialized expertise or moves into more complex responsibilities.
Senior professionals with scarce technical, financial, healthcare, legal or engineering expertise can command significantly higher compensation.
Management positions add responsibility for teams, budgets, operations or business performance and can therefore carry higher compensation.
Executive, partner and ownership positions may have compensation structures that include salary, bonuses, commissions, profit sharing, equity or business income.
Salary, Bonuses and Total Compensation in Quebec
Base salary is only one part of compensation.
Depending on the occupation and employer, total compensation can include bonuses, commissions, overtime, pension contributions, employer benefits, paid leave, stock compensation or other benefits.
This is particularly relevant when comparing finance, sales, management and executive positions.
The Job Bank figures used on this page are wage statistics rather than individual job offers. They should therefore be used as market benchmarks rather than guarantees of total compensation.
Can Foreigners Get High-Paying Jobs in Quebec?
Yes. International professionals can work in Quebec when they satisfy the applicable Canadian immigration and work authorization requirements.
The exact requirements depend on the person's citizenship, immigration pathway, occupation, employer, qualifications and employment situation.
Regulated professions require additional attention. Lawyers, dentists, pharmacists, engineers and many healthcare professionals may need credential recognition, professional licensing or registration before they can practise their profession in Quebec.
French can also be important for employment in Quebec, depending on the occupation, employer and workplace.
Read our guide to jobs in Quebec for foreigners →Are High Salaries in Quebec Enough to Live Comfortably?
A high gross salary does not automatically mean a high level of disposable income.
When evaluating a Quebec job offer, consider housing, income taxes, transportation, food, childcare, insurance, healthcare-related costs, retirement contributions and other household expenses.
Costs can differ considerably between Montreal, Quebec City and smaller communities.
A salary that looks attractive in isolation should therefore be evaluated together with the location and the complete compensation package.
Gross Salary vs Net Salary in Quebec
The wage figures shown on this page are gross wage figures.
Employees in Quebec may have deductions including federal and provincial income taxes, Quebec Pension Plan contributions, Employment Insurance and other applicable deductions.
The exact amount of take-home pay depends on personal circumstances, including income, tax credits, deductions and other factors.
Calculate your Quebec net salary →How to Increase Your Salary in Quebec
Professionals who want to increase their earning potential can focus on several practical areas.
- Develop specialized technical or professional skills.
- Obtain required professional credentials or certifications.
- Build experience in industries with higher compensation levels.
- Move from generalist to specialist positions where appropriate.
- Develop management and leadership experience.
- Improve French and English communication skills where relevant to the target occupation.
- Compare employers and total compensation rather than salary alone.
- Regularly benchmark your compensation against current labour-market data.
- Consider geographic differences within Quebec when evaluating offers.
Quebec-Wide Salary Data vs Quebec City and Montreal
This page focuses on the province of Quebec rather than a single city. That distinction matters because Job Bank provides both provincial and regional wage information for many occupations.
For example, some occupations have separate wage data for the Capitale-Nationale, Montreal and other regions. The provincial median is therefore useful as a broad benchmark but should not be assumed to represent the exact salary offered by every employer.
If you are planning to work specifically in Quebec City, compare provincial figures with regional employment conditions and local job offers.
Explore Quebec Salary Guides by Profession
ToQuebec is building a growing directory of salary guides for individual professions in Quebec. Use the pages below to investigate specific occupations rather than relying only on a general salary benchmark.
Quebec Salary Data and Sources
The profession-specific wage figures on this page are based primarily on current wage information published by the Government of Canada's Job Bank for Quebec.
Job Bank publishes low, median and high wage levels for individual occupations. Its Quebec wage data uses different reference periods depending on the occupation and methodology. Many of the provincial wage tables currently displayed by Job Bank were updated on November 19, 2025 and use 2023–2024 Labour Force Survey data, while some occupations use 2024 Small Area Estimation data.
For example, current Job Bank data reports median Quebec wages of $53.60/hour for software engineers, $44.00/hour for financial analysts, $51.28/hour for lawyers, $49.74/hour for civil engineers and $46.00/hour for data scientists.
The Government of Quebec also publishes salary scales for many public service occupations. Those government salary scales should not be confused with province-wide occupation wage statistics because they apply to specific public-sector classifications.
Salary data changes as new labour-market information becomes available. ToQuebec therefore recommends using these figures as market indicators rather than guaranteed salary offers.
Primary sources: Government of Canada Job Bank – Quebec wages
Last reviewed: 2026-10-01
Find Your Potential Salary in Quebec
Quebec offers high-paying career opportunities across healthcare, finance, technology, engineering, law, aviation, aerospace and other specialized fields.
The most useful way to evaluate your earning potential is to look at your specific occupation, education, experience, professional credentials, industry and location.
A province-wide median wage can provide a useful starting point, but a specific job offer should also be evaluated using the employer, responsibilities, benefits, working hours, taxes and local cost of living.
Use the individual salary guides on ToQuebec to explore your profession in greater detail.