Hays Salary Guide 2026 and the National Average
The Hays Salary Guide FY26/27 is a widely used resource for salary benchmarks across Australia, covering 23 industries and over 1,000 roles. While the guide helps you see what others in your field earn, it does not publish a single national full-time average. That figure comes from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).
The ABS National Full-Time Average
According to the ABS Average Weekly Earnings, May 2026, the national full-time adult ordinary-time average is $2,083.70 per week. Multiplied by 52 weeks, that is about $108,352 per year. This is the line on this site: the reference point for every salary you enter.
The ABS also reports that annual growth in average weekly earnings slowed to 3.7% in May 2026, the lowest since November 2022. The gender pay gap fell to a record low of 11.3%.
A Resident Take-Home Sketch
If you earn the national average of $108,352 in 2026–27, here is a rough estimate of your weekly take-home pay as a resident for tax purposes.
Tax on $108,352 (2026–27 rates):
- Nil on the first $18,200
- 15% on the next $26,800 ($4,020)
- 30% on the remaining $63,352 ($19,005.60)
- Total tax: $23,025.60
Medicare levy: 2% of taxable income = $2,167.04 (before any reductions or surcharges).
Total deductions: $25,192.64
Annual take-home: about $83,159.36 Weekly take-home (52 weeks): about $1,599.22
This is a simplified calculation. Your actual tax may differ due to offsets, deductions, or the Medicare levy surcharge. The point is that the average salary leaves you with roughly $1,600 per week in hand.
How the Hays Guide Complements the Average
The Hays Salary Guide FY26/27 is built from a survey of over 7,000 professionals and hiring managers. It gives salary ranges for specific job titles, locations, and experience levels. For example, you can check whether a marketing manager in Sydney or an IT project manager in Brisbane is above or below the national average. The guide also covers trends in skills demand, AI adoption, and benefits.
Use the Hays guide alongside the ABS average to benchmark your role. If your salary is above $108,352, you are above the national full-time average. If it is below, you may be in an industry or region where pay is lower, or you may be part-time or casual.
State and Territory Averages
The national average masks significant variation across Australia. The ABS data shows full-time average weekly ordinary time earnings by state and territory. Here are the annualised figures (× 52):
- New South Wales: $109,658
- Victoria: $106,137
- Queensland: $106,064
- South Australia: $102,450
- Western Australia: $115,825
- Tasmania: $96,008
- Northern Territory: $103,173
- Australian Capital Territory: $119,090
If you live in the ACT or WA, your local average is well above the national line. In Tasmania, it is noticeably lower. The States and territories page on this site lets you compare your salary to your region’s average.
Medians and the Minimum Wage
Averages can be pulled up by high earners. The median gives a better sense of the typical worker. According to the ABS Employee Earnings and Hours survey (August 2025), the full-time median is about $90,532 per year, and the all-employees median (including part-time and casual) is about $74,100. The national average of $108,352 is well above both medians, reflecting the influence of higher-paid roles.
At the other end, the national minimum wage from 1 July 2026 is $26.44 per hour, or $1,004.90 per week on a 38-hour week, about $52,255 per year Fair Work. Award minimums rose by 4.75% from that date. If you earn the minimum wage, you are about 48% below the national full-time average.
Putting It All Together
The Hays Salary Guide 2026 is a valuable tool for understanding your market worth, but the national average from the ABS remains the single best benchmark for comparing your pay across the whole workforce. Use this site to place a salary on the line and see how it stacks up against the average, the median, and the minimum wage. For more detail on how these figures are calculated, see How the figures are set.
Whether you are negotiating a raise, considering a move, or just curious, knowing where you sit relative to the national average gives you a clear starting point.