477,000 euros, 12% more: the average remuneration of directors of listed companies
The average remuneration of board members in the governing bodies of Ibex companies grew by 26.3%, to 2.4 million
BarcelonaThe average remuneration of directors of listed companies who held the position for the full financial year increased last year by 12.2%, to 477,000 euros per year. That of executive directors, who have management responsibilities, grew more than double that of non-executives, with a rise of 26.3% and an average of up to 2.4 million, according to the report by the National Securities Market Commission (CNMV) on corporate governance and remuneration of directors of listed companies in 2025. These documents include information from 113 companies listed on the stock exchange.
In listed companies, the highest remuneration corresponds to executive chairmen, whose average remuneration was 3.7 million euros in 2025. This figure represents an increase of almost 61% compared to the 2.3 million in 2024. Executive chairmen are followed by CEOs, whose average remuneration was 3 million euros (2.8 million in 2024). Next are the rest of the executive directors, with an average remuneration of 1.2 million euros (1 million in 2024), and, in fourth place, non-executive chairmen, with 411,000 euros (472,000 euros in 2024).
However, there are exceptions, especially in the Ibex, the main stock market reference, which distort the average. Last year Manuel Manrique, president of Sacyr, topped the remuneration ranking with 32.6 million euros, 384% more than the previous year, thanks to the bonus for the company's stock market rise since the pandemic. He multiplied by 628 times the average received by the staff of that company, which is about 52,000 euros.
Second place on this Ibex podium was occupied by the president of Banco Santander, Ana Botín, with 18.5 million, with a rise of 34.6% compared to 2024 and 299 times the average salary of the staff. Third place went to another regular, the president of Iberdrola, José Ignacio Sánchez Galán, with 15.8 million euros, 12.1% more, 193 times more than the average salary of his staff.
Unlike the average remuneration of executive directors, which grew by 26.3%, that of non-executive directors fell by 1.14%, to 173,000 euros, according to these reports. For its part, the average aggregate remuneration of the boards of directors of listed companies increased by 26.4%, to 5.4 million euros. Excluding the impact of the three extraordinary remuneration payments in one entity, amounting to 78 million (including the compensation for the departure from the presidency of Telefónica of José María Álvarez-Pallete and the chief executive officer, Ángel Vila), the increase would have been 10.3%, the CNMV highlights. In the governing bodies of the Ibex, the remuneration was 13.2 million, with a rise of almost 40%; and in those that are in the continuous market, 2.2 million, 0.8% less.
Gender gap between women and men
According to the report, the wage gap between the remuneration of female executive directors and that of men in the same position decreased by 1.9%, "although with strong dispersion depending on the company's capitalization". The remuneration of female executive directors was 48.6% lower than that of their male colleagues. But the small number of women in this position reduces the representativeness of the figures. In Ibex companies, the negative wage gap with respect to male executive directors was 51.6%.
It should also be noted that the remuneration of executive directors, excluding extraordinary items, was 42 times the average remuneration of the workforces of listed companies. The previous year it was 32.9 times. This ratio shoots up to 67 times in Ibex companies, compared to 55 times in 2024. In companies that are not part of this index, the difference is 22 times (18 in 2024). As in 2024, the average remuneration of non-executive directors in 2025, excluding extraordinary items, was three times the average of the workforce.
Other data from these reports reveal that 88.7% of companies follow the recommendations of the good governance code, five tenths more than in 2024, and that seven companies declared 100% compliance. The presence of women on boards stood at 37.4%, compared to 36.3% in 2024. And female executive directors increased by two percentage points, to 10.3%.