Mossad, Shin Bet lead the pack: Inside Israel's security sector salary report
Against the backdrop of nearly three years of war on multiple fronts, mounting pressure on Israel’s security services has driven demand for more personnel — from combat soldiers to technology and intelligence professionals — as well as longer hours of active duty.
The average monthly salary in Israel's secret security agencies - the Mossad and the Shin Bet - stood at NIS 32,225 in 2023-2024. This emerges from the security system salary report for 2023-2024 published by the Ministry of Finance.
According to the report, the highest salary in Israel's security establishment is earned by employees of the Israel Atomic Energy Commission - NIS 34,315 - while at the Israel Institute for Biological Research the average salary stood at NIS 31,932.
Israel has now been at war for close to three years - its longest war ever - and on multiple fronts simultaneously, a fact that has placed the security establishment under growing pressure for manpower, not only in quantity but also in the type of positions needed: more combat soldiers, more technology and intelligence personnel, and more hours of activity and fighting.
The number of IDF civilian employees grew from about 6,600 in 2021 to about 8,000 in 2024, mainly due to growth in the number of employees in the fields of intelligence, cyber, and technology. At the same time, their average age dropped from 50 to 44. The Finance Ministry attributes the salary increase in this group also to the absorption of technology workers, the wage agreement signed in 2024, and the increase in the scope of overtime work during the war.
The average salary of IDF civilian employees stood at NIS 22,926, in the IDF at NIS 18,756, in the police at NIS 20,562, and in the Israel Prison Service at NIS 18,889. The average salary of young career soldiers in the IDF rose by 17% within two years, reaching NIS 13,845 per month in 2024, compared to NIS 11,786 in 2022.
At the same time, the rise in the proportion of women in the security agencies continued. Women currently make up about a third of career soldiers in the IDF and 41.2% of employees at the Israel Institute for Biological Research. However, according to the report, the wage gaps between men and women widened slightly in 2024. The Finance Ministry attributes this mainly to salary supplements for level of activity and combat, which are largely given for field positions where the proportion of men is higher.
