What is a day trader salary?
Day trading is not a standard occupation in Australia, and there is no official salary figure published by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, Fair Work, or the Australian Taxation Office. The ABS measures employee earnings through surveys such as Average Weekly Earnings and Employee Earnings and Hours, but these cover people who work for an employer under a contract of service. Day traders are almost always self‑employed, operating as sole traders, partners, or through a company. Their income is business profit, not a wage or salary, and it is not captured in those surveys.
Because there is no single “day trader salary”, the best way to understand where this type of income sits is to compare it with the benchmarks the site uses: the national full‑time adult ordinary‑time average, the full‑time median, and the all‑employees median.
The national full‑time average
The most recent ABS Average Weekly Earnings release (May 2026) puts full‑time adult ordinary‑time earnings at $2,083.70 a week, or about $108,352 a year when multiplied by 52. This is the figure the site draws as the line. A day trader whose net profit equals that amount would be earning exactly the national average. Above that line, they would be above average; below it, below average.
However, day trading income is far more variable than a typical salary. A trader might have months of strong gains followed by losses. The average is a point‑in‑time estimate for employees, not a target for self‑employed income.
Medians give a better sense of typical earnings
The full‑time median from the ABS Employee Earnings and Hours survey (August 2025) is about $90,532 a year. The all‑employees median (including part‑time) is about $74,100. These medians show that half of all full‑time employees earn less than $90,532, and half of all employees (full‑time and part‑time) earn less than $74,100. A day trader who consistently earns above these medians is doing better than many workers, but again, the comparison is imperfect because the medians are for employees, not the self‑employed.
Factors that move day trader income above or below the average
Several factors determine whether a day trader’s profit will be above or below the national full‑time average:
Capital and leverage
Day traders need sufficient capital to generate meaningful returns. A trader with $50,000 in capital might aim for a 10% annual return ($5,000), which is far below the average. A trader with $500,000 could aim for $50,000, still below the average. Only traders with very large capital or high leverage (and high risk) can regularly exceed $108,352 a year from trading alone.
Strategy and time commitment
Some day traders treat it as a full‑time occupation, spending 40+ hours a week on research and execution. Others trade part‑time. The ABS average is for full‑time employees working a standard 38‑hour week. A part‑time day trader would naturally expect lower income, all else equal.
Market conditions
Bull markets can produce strong returns for day traders, while bear markets or low‑volatility periods can reduce opportunities. The average employee salary is relatively stable; day trader income is not.
Tax treatment
Day trading income is taxed as business income at marginal rates. Unlike salary, there is no PAYG withholding, so traders must manage their own tax obligations. The 2026–27 tax rates apply: nil up to $18,200, 15% to $45,000, 30% to $135,000, 37% to $190,000, and 45% above that, plus the 2% Medicare levy. A trader earning $108,352 would fall into the 30% bracket (plus Medicare), so net income after tax would be lower than a salary earner on the same gross amount because salary earners have the tax withheld automatically.
How day trader income compares by state
The full‑time average varies by state and territory. For example, the Australian Capital Territory has the highest average at about $119,090 a year, while Tasmania has the lowest at about $96,008. A day trader living in the ACT would need to earn more to match the local average than one in Tasmania. See the states and territories page for full details.
The minimum wage as a floor
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. This is the legal minimum for employees, not for self‑employed traders. A day trader earning less than this amount would be well below the employee minimum, but there is no equivalent floor for business income.
Conclusion
Because day trading is not a standard employee occupation, there is no official day trader salary figure. The best approach is to compare your own trading profit (after expenses and before tax) with the national full‑time average of $108,352 a year. If your profit is above that line, you are earning more than the typical full‑time employee; if below, you are earning less. Remember that the average is a benchmark, not a target, and that day trading income carries much higher variability and risk.
For a personalised comparison, you can place a salary on the line and see how it stacks up against the national average, medians, and state averages.