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Performance or perception: What’s actually driving CMO salaries in 2025?
Variable pay has also become a defining component, accounting for nearly 40% of total compensation. This is most pronounced in AI-heavy sectors, where Foundit reports that variable components can reach 45% of total pay — a sign of the heightened performance expectations from marketing leaders.
Some sectors are even getting specific about who they want in these hybrid marketing-tech roles. Brick-and-mortar businesses pivoting to D2C are increasingly scouting IIT-educated marketing heads or those with strong tech credentials.
The role of the Chief Marketing Officer is undergoing a profound transformation, and the compensation is beginning to reflect that change.
“There’s absolutely no dispute that a CMO will always enjoy strong compensation in fast-moving consumer goods or brand-led companies,” said Ashish Kaul, a professor of marketing. “But brand is just as important in tech. Otherwise, the iPhone wouldn’t be what it is today.”
Kaul points to the late Steve Jobs as a prime example of how technical prowess and marketing savvy can coalesce in rare but powerful ways. “A good marketing leader needs both, a head for numbers and a feel for human behavior,” he said.
Yet outside traditional bastions like FMCG and retail, Kaul argues, marketing is often misunderstood and undercompensated.
“Consider Zomato and Swiggy,” he said. “The IPO buzz was worlds apart. Zomato has built a brand that people like. Swiggy, on the other hand, plays the discount game. Its founders are technologists — they think in formulas. Zomato has tonality, character, humour. That’s marketing.”
For companies seeking to close the perception gap, Kaul believes the solution is clear: invest in brand, beginning with leadership. “There is no company where the CMO is overpaid. And AI doesn’t change that. A calculator doesn’t make you a mathematician, a strategist still matters.”
That strategic value is increasingly being acknowledged. Platforms with near-identical services, such as Ola and Uber or Zomato and Swiggy, often find differentiation not through technology, but through branding.
“Same drivers run on Ola and Uber,” Kaul said. “But I, as a customer, have a preference. If I’m more desi, I’ll pick Ola. If I buy international brands, I might prefer Uber. It’s the same car, same tech - but marketing defines the lens through which we experience it.”
Even the perception that marketers are overpaid, Kaul insists, is misplaced. “There’s no such thing,” he said. “If someone is overpaid, there’s an immediate correction. That doesn’t happen. Good marketers are undervalued only where marketing itself is undervalued.”
That perspective is gaining traction in boardrooms and business schools alike. “CMOs are no longer just responsible for campaigns or communications,” said Professor Pranav Jindal of the Indian School of Business. “They’re embedded in growth strategy and work closely with other CXOs. Compensation needs to reflect that.”
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Recent data suggest it’s beginning to. According to recruitment platform Foundit, CMO salaries in India now range from ₹28 lakh to ₹1.02 crore annually, with top roles in customer-centric firms reaching as high as ₹1.9 crore. Sectors such as banking, financial services, and insurance (BFSI) report the highest median pay at ₹98.5 lakh, followed by telecom and retail, where average compensation exceeds ₹83 lakh.
Mumbai, a hub for BFSI and legacy brand powerhouses, leads the geography-based pay scale, with CMOs in the city earning an average cost-to-company of ₹38.98 lakh, 14 percent above the national norm.
Variable pay has also become a critical component, now accounting for nearly 40 percent of total CMO compensation, and even more in AI-driven sectors. Foundit reports that variable pay can reach up to 45 percent in roles where data, automation, and performance marketing are key metrics.
“Over the past 12 to 18 months, there’s been a 17 percent year-on-year increase in CMO compensation, driven by the rise of AI, automation, and digital performance metrics,” said V. Suresh, CEO of Foundit. “Those who can speak the language of both creativity and code, they’re commanding pay at levels comparable to Chief Data or AI Officers.”
The evolution of the CMO has also blurred the lines between adjacent executive roles. “The lines between CMOs, Chief Digital Officers, and Chief Data Officers are blurring,” said Jaideep Kewalramani, COO of TeamLease Edtech. “Between 2019 and 2022, CDO compensation outpaced CMOs. But that’s now shifting — pay structures are realigning.”
Companies transitioning to direct-to-consumer models are also raising the bar on hiring criteria. “We’re seeing demand for marketing heads with IIT pedigrees or strong technology backgrounds,” said Siddharth Verma, Head of Executive Search at Xpheno. “In D2C and internet commerce, such hybrid talent can command a 45 to 60 percent premium.”
As marketing moves beyond storytelling into data-backed “storyselling,” the perception of the CMO as a cost center is vanishing. Increasingly, companies are treating them as architects of growth — and paying them accordingly.
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