Data engineer salary and the national average
If you are a data engineer in Australia or considering the career, you probably want to know how the pay stacks up against the national full-time average. The short answer is that the Australian Bureau of Statistics does not publish a separate salary figure for data engineers. However, we can use the published data for the Professionals occupation group, which includes data engineers, to get a reliable benchmark.
What the ABS says about Professionals
In the May 2025 Employee Earnings and Hours survey, the ABS reported that the average weekly total cash earnings for all Professionals was $2,049.60. That works out to about $106,579 a year (multiply by 52). This is a broad category covering everyone from software engineers to lawyers and accountants. Data engineers fall within that group, but their individual pay can be higher or lower depending on the industry, experience, and whether they work under an individual arrangement or a collective agreement.
The same survey found that the median weekly earnings for all employees was $1,436 (about $74,672 a year), and the full-time median was about $1,887 a week ($98,124 a year). Data engineers typically earn well above those medians because of the specialised skills in demand.
How the national full-time average is set
The national benchmark on this site is the ABS Average Weekly Earnings, May 2026. For full-time adults, average weekly ordinary time earnings were $2,083.70, or about $108,352 a year. This is the "line" that all salaries are measured against. The figure comes from the ABS survey of employers and is updated twice a year (May and November).
Compared to that line, the average for Professionals ($106,579) is about $1,773 a year below. But many data engineers, especially those in high-paying sectors like mining, finance, or IT services, earn significantly more. The state averages also matter: for example, the full-time average in New South Wales is about $109,658, in Victoria $106,137, and in Western Australia $115,825. A data engineer in Perth could expect to be above the national line, while one in Tasmania might be closer to it.
What moves a data engineer salary above or below the average
Several factors determine whether a data engineer’s pay sits above or below the national full-time average:
- Industry: The ABS data shows that Mining has the highest average hourly earnings ($74.10) and Manufacturing ($44.30). Data engineers in mining or professional services tend to earn more than those in retail or hospitality.
- Location: As noted, state averages vary. The Australian Capital Territory has the highest full-time average at about $119,090, while Tasmania is lowest at $96,008.
- Experience and seniority: The Professionals category includes junior and senior roles. A senior data engineer with specialised skills in cloud computing or machine learning will likely be above the average.
- Method of setting pay: The ABS reports that 38.5% of employees have their pay set by individual arrangement, which is common for professionals. This can lead to higher salaries compared to award or collective agreement rates.
Other benchmarks to keep in mind
It is useful to distinguish between averages, medians, and the minimum wage. The national minimum wage from 1 July 2026 is $26.44 an hour, $1,004.90 a week, or about $52,255 a year on a 38-hour week. Award minimums rose by 4.75% from that date. A data engineer would never be paid at the minimum wage; the role is skilled and typically covered by professional rates.
The all-employees median (including part-time) is about $74,100 a year, and the full-time median is about $90,532. These are useful for understanding the middle of the market. Data engineers are almost certainly above the full-time median.
Where to go for more detail
If you want to see how your own salary compares, you can Place a salary on the line and see the distance from the national average. For occupation-specific comparisons, the Job medians page shows how different roles stack up. And if you are considering a move between states, the States and territories page has the full-time averages for each region.
A note on the data
The figures in this article come from the ABS Average Weekly Earnings, May 2026, and the Employee Earnings and Hours survey, May 2025. The ABS does not release a separate figure for data engineers, so the Professionals average is the best available proxy. For the most current information, check the ABS website or the How the figures are set page on this site.