Pay is a key factor in attracting the best talent to your Sales team. This article is for recruiters and candidates who want to understand the salary bands used in France, mainly for permanent (CDI) contracts.
👉 Hiring a salesperson? See our dedicated page: Sales and Business Developer recruitment agency.
The criteria that most affect a salesperson’s salary in France
The salesperson’s location
The location of the role and of the company has a direct impact. In Île-de-France (Paris region), salaries are often 15 to 25% higher than in the regions. Large cities such as Lyon, Lille or Bordeaux follow a similar trend, but to a lesser extent.
At fully remote companies, pay can also be lower, particularly the fixed salary.
The salesperson’s management responsibilities
A salesperson who manages a team (Sales Manager, Head of Sales) generally receives a higher package. On top of a higher fixed salary, someone in a management role can earn larger commissions thanks to their team’s performance.
The salesperson’s industry
Some industries pay better than others. SaaS, tech, financial services and high value-added industry offer more attractive packages on average than other sectors. The more competitive or technical the market, the more salespeople are valued.
Average deal size and sales cycle
B2B salespeople working on complex sales cycles (several months, multiple stakeholders) are often better paid than those in fast or transactional sales, partly because margins in these sectors are much higher. In theory, the longer and more complex the sale and the higher the average deal size, the higher the salesperson’s pay.
In practice, an Account Executive selling complex SaaS software can fairly quickly reach a package of €100,000 in their career.
Degree and education
In France, education has a strong impact on candidates’ pay. On average, graduates of a grande école de commerce (one of France’s elite business schools) reach higher pay, and reach it faster. The gap is even wider between people with a bac+5 (master’s-level degree) and people with a bac+2 or bac+3 level of education.
Salaries by sales role in France
Business Developer salary
The Business Developer, or salesperson, is responsible for sales prospecting. Depending on the company, they may also close deals directly.
The titles SDR and BDR are used for people who specialise in sales prospecting or lead qualification, particularly when they play no part at all in selling and closing.
SDR salary
The SDR, or Sales Development Representative, handles the first part of the sales cycle. They are responsible for prospecting and qualifying leads.
Sales Ops salary
Sales Ops, or the Sales Operations Manager, sits halfway between sales and operations. Their job is to optimise processes and track and drive the Sales team’s performance.
Their pay is mainly fixed, with smaller commissions.
Account Manager salary
The Account Manager is responsible for “farming” client accounts. They take over once the first contract is signed. Their role is to secure renewals, upsell and cross-sell. Their goal is to retain clients while maximising the revenue generated from each one.
Account Executive salary
The Account Executive is the closing expert. Depending on the company, they may cover the entire cycle, up to contract signature.
For a Sales Executive role, salaries are broadly similar to those of an AE.
Customer Success Manager (CSM) salary
The Customer Success Manager role sometimes sits within the sales function. The CSM is responsible for customer satisfaction from the moment the contract is signed. The management-level equivalent, the Head of Customer Success, leads the team and owns the retention targets.
Sales Manager salary
The Sales Manager (Responsable Commercial) is a middle manager who sits between the Sales team’s individual contributors and the Sales Director. They may be responsible for:
- A region / a country,
- A specific product,
- A stage of the sales cycle.
Their pay depends on the performance of the area they are responsible for.
Sales Director salary
The Sales Director defines the sales strategy and leads the entire sales department.
Hiring? See our dedicated page: Sales Director recruitment agency.
Head of Sales salary
Head of Sales is another name for Sales Director. We treat it separately because this job title is mostly found in tech and startups, where seniority varies widely. In larger companies, the title VP Sales is also used.
How is a salesperson’s pay package structured?
How is it split between fixed and variable pay?
Generally, the fixed part represents 60 to 80% of a salesperson’s package, and the variable part 20 to 40%. However, more and more salespeople are on pay plans where the variable part equals, or even exceeds, the fixed part. These plans are very common in tech companies.
How is a salesperson’s variable pay calculated?
There are many ways to calculate it, and it also depends on which of the roles above the salesperson holds. Common approaches include:
- Commissions per qualified meeting booked,
- Commissions on revenue,
- Tiered targets based on deals signed.
As mentioned earlier, managers are also measured on their team’s performance, which is factored into their pay.
👉 Our article on sales variable pay may interest you.
How do you hire salespeople?
Hiring salespeople is a real challenge for companies. Salespeople are in high demand, and their level can vary considerably.
Here is an approach to help your sales hiring succeed:
Clarify the need and define the ideal profile
Salespeople are not interchangeable: it is crucial to choose someone who matches your specific needs.
- Define the role precisely: objectives (short, medium and long term) and where it sits in the company’s sales cycle.
- Tailor the profile to your context: target market, company size, sales maturity, etc.
- Identify the right skills, experience and personality.
Use multiple sourcing channels
- Use job boards, direct headhunting, referrals and specialised agencies.
- Together, these channels make sourcing more comprehensive and targeted.
The complexity of these hires may lead you to use a sales recruitment agency.
Build a solid hiring process
- Define a clear process with rigorous steps: shortlisting, interviews, tests, validation.
- Keep candidates transparently informed of where their application stands.
Further reading on salaries
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