Average NRL salary and the national full-time average
If you are looking for a single official figure for the average NRL salary, the short answer is that the Australian Bureau of Statistics, Fair Work, and the Australian Taxation Office do not publish one. The NRL is a professional sports league, and player salaries are set by individual contracts and collective bargaining agreements, not by an award or a government survey. This site uses only publicly available data from those three organisations, so we cannot give a precise number.
What we can do is show you how any salary – including a typical NRL player’s pay – compares to the national full-time adult average, the median earnings, and the minimum wage. You can then place a salary on the line to see where it sits.
The national full-time average as a reference
The most widely used benchmark is the ABS Average Weekly Earnings series. For May 2026, the seasonally adjusted full-time adult average weekly ordinary time earnings was $2,083.70. Multiplied by 52 weeks, that is about $108,352 a year before tax. This is the line that this site draws. It covers all full-time adult employees across all industries and occupations in Australia.
Men’s full-time average ordinary time earnings are higher, at about $2,181 per week ($113,412 a year), while women’s are about $1,934.50 per week ($100,594 a year).
Medians tell a different story
Averages can be pulled up by high earners, so the median is often a better guide to what a typical worker earns. The ABS Employee Earnings survey for August 2025 gives:
- Median weekly earnings for all employees in their main job: $1,425 (about $74,100 a year).
- Median for full-time employees: $1,741 per week (about $90,532 a year).
NRL players, even at the lower end of the roster, are almost certainly above both medians. The median full-time wage is a useful comparison point for someone considering a career change or negotiating a contract.
Minimum wage and award rates
Fair Work sets the national minimum wage, which from 1 July 2026 is $26.44 per hour, $1,004.90 per week, or about $52,255 per year on a 38-hour week. Award minimums rose by 4.75% from that date. NRL players are not covered by an award; their minimums are set by the NRL Collective Bargaining Agreement, which is not a source this site uses. Even a development player would earn well above the national minimum.
A resident take-home sketch
To give a sense of what a typical NRL salary might look like after tax, we can use the 2026–27 resident tax rates:
- Nil on the first $18,200
- 15% on income from $18,201 to $45,000
- 30% on income from $45,001 to $135,000
- 37% on income from $135,001 to $190,000
- 45% on income above $190,000
Plus the Medicare levy of 2% (before any reductions).
If an NRL player earns, say, $150,000 a year (a common estimate for a mid-tier player), the tax and Medicare levy would be roughly:
- $0 on first $18,200
- 15% on $26,800 = $4,020
- 30% on $90,000 = $27,000
- 37% on $15,000 = $5,550
- Medicare levy 2% on $150,000 = $3,000
- Total tax and levy: about $39,570
- Take-home: about $110,430
That is slightly above the national full-time average before tax. A marquee player on $500,000 would face the top marginal rate and Medicare, leaving roughly $295,000 after tax.
State-by-state averages
If you are comparing a potential NRL contract to local wages, here are the full-time adult average weekly ordinary time earnings by state (ABS, May 2026, original estimates):
- New South Wales: $2,108.80 per week ($109,658 a year)
- Victoria: $2,041.10 ($106,137)
- Queensland: $2,039.70 ($106,064)
- South Australia: $1,970.20 ($102,450)
- Western Australia: $2,227.40 ($115,825)
- Tasmania: $1,846.30 ($96,008)
- Northern Territory: $1,984.10 ($103,173)
- Australian Capital Territory: $2,290.20 ($119,090)
Most NRL clubs are concentrated in NSW and Qld, where the state averages are near or above the national figure. States and territories page has more detail.
How the figures are set
The ABS publishes Average Weekly Earnings twice a year (May and November). The Employee Earnings survey is a separate survey with a longer lag. Fair Work sets the minimum wage annually. The ATO provides tax tables. How the figures are set explains the methodology.
Final note
Because the average NRL salary is not an official Australian Bureau of Statistics, Fair Work, or ATO figure, this site cannot give a precise number. But you can place a salary on the line to see how any salary compares to the national average, the medians, and the minimum wage. Use the ABS Average Weekly Earnings, May 2026 as the reference.