This comparative cross-sectional quantitative study was aimed at comparing the overall perceptions of male and female professional staff at the Polokwane local municipality regarding their career adaptability. The sample size comprised 282 (149 [52.84 percent] male and 133 [47.16 percent] female) professionals. The items that measured adaptability were reliable and measured in accordance with Cronbach's alpha at 0.9017. Results from structural equation modelling indicate that career adaptability can be measured by career curiosity, career confidence and career concern and that these factors significantly correlated with one another (p < 0.001). Pearson's chi-square test results revealed that a significantly higher proportion of male participants kept upbeat (p = 0.044), had concerns about their careers (p = 0.004), made decisions for themselves (p = 0.022), and took responsibility for their actions (p = 0.025) as compared