Ski Instructor, Gold Miner, Fuel Specialist: Crystal Ski Names The World’s 12 Coldest Jobs

• The coldest job is ‘Chief Technologist - Gold Mining’ in Verkhoyansk and Yakutsk, Russia. With an average temperature of -39°C and a salary of $57,108, this is -5% lower than the national average salary.
• The average salary for all coldest jobs analysed is $40,824.58 working in an average temperature of -26.02°C.
• Engine Installation Engineers in Harbin, Heilongjiang, China earn almost 78% less than other engineers across China, even though they work in -26°C temperatures.

You’d like to think that working in below-freezing conditions would lend itself to a chunky salary, but the Crystal Ski study reveals that this might not be the case. Below are the jobs with the highest and lowest percent differences between national average salaries for the same role:

Top three jobs with salaries higher than the national average:

1. Fuel/Hazmat Specialist in Barrow, Alaska, USA - Working in an average temperature of -26°C, these specialists earn $68,904 for a 40 hour week, a considerable 49.65% more than others in the country.
2. Truck Driver in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada - Truck Drivers here earn on average $63,700 for a 61.25 hour week and work in -16°C temperatures. They receive a salary 45.05% higher than the same job in the area.
3. Package Delivery Driver in Fraser, Colorado, USA - Earning $39,672, these drivers work in -10°C temperatures and receive a pay packet 29.74% higher than the same job in the area.

Bottom three jobs with salaries lower than the national average:

• Engine Installation Engineer in Harbin, Heilongjiang, China - Unfortunately for these Engineers, they work in -26°C temperatures for $17,403 - a huge -79.75% lower than those with the same career in the country.
• Mining Officer in Fort Selkirk, Yukon, Canada - Working in an average temperature of -27°C, these officers earn $50,000 for a 37.5 hour week, that’s -26.17% less than the average salary for that role in Canada.
• Airport Terminal Worker in Upernavik, Greenland - These Airport workers earn on average $24,960 in -17°C temperatures; -15.38% lower than others in the country.

The Five Coldest Jobs on the List

According to experts, frostbite can occur on skin exposed to temperatures of -28°C and below in just 30 minutes or less; meaning these jobs can sometimes be dangerously cold. So, how does the salary range between the coldest jobs? Surprisingly, the coldest career on the list isn’t the best paid; this instead falls with the Fuel/Hazmat Specialists in Barrow, Alaska who earn $11,796 more in 13 degrees warmer conditions.

Unfortunately for Engine Installation Engineers in Harbin, Heilongjiang, China, they earn $51,501 less than the Fuel/Hazmat Specialists in Barrow, Alaska who work in the same temperature of -26°C.

Cost of Living in the Cold

Not only are these individuals working in below-freezing temperatures, but they’re also living there too - so how much of their salaries should the expect to be spending on renting and which jobs are being left with the biggest bumps to their bank accounts?

The study reveals that Package Delivery Drivers in Fraser, Colorado, USA spend the highest percentage of their salary on renting, a total of 43.86% on average. Although Ski Instructors work seasonally, they also have to allocate one of the highest percentages of their income to rent. Ski Instructors use on average 38.69% of their salaries on renting. Mill Helpers working in temperatures of -24.5°C in Snag, Yukon, Canada can expect to be spending on average $687.03 on renting, equivalent to 38.36% of their salary.