Marine pasture fish farming in Russia was the only industry across the national economy where average monthly salaries exceeded one million rubles during the first half of 2026, according to figures released by state news agency RIA Novosti.
Employees working at commercial aquaculture organizations, excluding small enterprises, received an average gross income of 1.05 million rubles per month during the six-month period.
Under Russian state statistical reporting standards, official monthly earnings data for this category excludes small businesses, focusing on medium and large enterprise payrolls to track broader sector compensation trends.
The sector covers the harvesting of fish raised in marine waters from fry originally bred under artificial hatchery conditions. In marine pasture fish farming, young fish are spawned and nurtured in hatcheries before being released into ocean waters or coastal sea pastures where they grow to maturity prior to harvest.
Marine aquaculture, often known as mariculture, involves cultivating aquatic organisms in open ocean waters, coastal enclosures, and sea pastures. Russia maintains expansive marine borders across the Pacific, Arctic, and Black Sea basins that host commercial fisheries and fish farming operations. RIA Novosti is a major state-owned news agency headquartered in Moscow that regularly reports on economic data and government statistics.
Highest paying industries in Russia
Several other specialized financial and business management fields recorded average monthly earnings above 500,000 rubles in the first half of 2026, according to the report.
Personnel at securities management companies earned an average of 681,000 rubles per month, while employees in the reinsurance sector received 554,000 rubles. Investment fund managers averaged 553,000 rubles monthly, risk insurance workers brought in 526,000 rubles, and staff at holding companies earned 514,000 rubles.
The published figures refer to average monthly accrued salaries calculated before tax deductions and include performance bonuses. National labor accounting methods calculate these totals across all staff at registered enterprises, meaning high compensation among senior executives elevates the overall numerical average for a sector.
Rising courier compensation and job market growth
The high earnings in fish farming come alongside wage growth in other parts of the Russian workforce. In the second quarter of 2026, the offered median salary for delivery couriers reached 125,550 rubles per month, representing a 23 percent increase compared to the same period in the previous year.
Employer demand for logistics workers also expanded significantly across the country, with total courier job postings rising by 124 percent year on year over the same quarter.
The ruble is the official currency of the Russian Federation. While average accrued salary measures total gross payroll divided by employee headcount, median salary indicates the middle income point where half of offered salaries fall above and half below.
