Physicist salary: what the data shows
If you are looking for a precise physicist salary figure, the official sources do not provide one. The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) does not publish median or average weekly earnings for physicists because the occupation has a small workforce—about 1,500 people according to Jobs and Skills Australia—and the survey sample is too small to produce reliable estimates. This means any exact number you see online is likely an invention or a guess.
The closest benchmarks
Without a physicist-specific figure, the best reference points are the averages for the broader Professional category and the national full-time average. According to the ABS Employee Earnings and Hours survey for May 2025, the average weekly total cash earnings for all Professionals was $2,049.60. That works out to about $106,580 per year (multiply by 52 weeks). The national full-time adult ordinary-time average from the ABS Average Weekly Earnings survey for May 2026 is $2,083.70 per week, or $108,352 per year. So the professional average is about $1,770 less than the national full-time average.
If you are a physicist earning at the professional average, you are well above the full-time median of $1,741 per week ($90,532 per year) and far above the all-employees median of $1,436 per week ($74,100 per year). You are also comfortably above the national minimum wage of $26.44 per hour, which equates to $1,004.90 per week or $52,255 per year on a 38-hour week.
Reading the same pay as a year, a week, and an hour
This site shows every salary as a yearly figure before tax, then converts it to a weekly amount (based on 52 weeks) and an hourly amount (based on a 38-hour week). The national full-time average of $108,352 a year becomes $2,083.70 a week and $54.83 an hour. The professional average of $106,580 a year becomes $2,049.60 a week and $53.94 an hour. You can place any salary on the line to see how it compares.
How physicists are paid
Physicists are classified as Professionals under the ANZSCO occupation code 234914. Most work full-time (87% according to the 2021 Census), and the median age is 41. The gender split is 26% female, which is lower than the all-occupations average of 49%. Pay is typically set by individual arrangement or collective agreement, and many physicists work in research, education, or the information media and telecommunications sector, where average weekly earnings are higher than the national average.
State and territory differences
The national full-time average masks significant variation across Australia. The highest full-time average is in the Australian Capital Territory at about $119,090 per year, followed by Western Australia at $115,825. New South Wales is $109,658, Victoria $106,137, Queensland $106,064, South Australia $102,450, the Northern Territory $103,173, and Tasmania $96,008. If you work as a physicist in the ACT or WA, you are likely to earn more than the national average, while in Tasmania you may earn less. See state and territory averages for more detail.
Tax on a physicist salary
For the 2026–27 income year, resident tax rates are: nil on the first $18,200, 15% on income from $18,201 to $45,000, 30% from $45,001 to $135,000, 37% from $135,001 to $190,000, and 45% above $190,000. A physicist earning the professional average of $106,580 would fall in the 30% bracket. After the Medicare levy of 2%, the total tax would be about $24,800, leaving about $81,780 after tax. The tax-free threshold means the first $18,200 is untaxed.
Where to find more occupation-specific data
If you want to compare physicist pay with other jobs, the ABS Employee Earnings and Hours survey provides medians and averages for broad occupation groups. For example, the median weekly earnings for full-time non-managerial employees in the Professional category was about $1,887 per week in May 2025. You can explore job medians on this site. For award rates, Fair Work Australia publishes the Professional Employees Award 2020, which sets minimums for physicists employed under that award.
The bottom line
Because the ABS does not publish a specific physicist salary, the best estimate is the professional average of around $106,580 per year. That is slightly below the national full-time average of $108,352 but well above the median for all employees. If you are a physicist, your actual pay will depend on your employer, location, experience, and whether you are covered by an award or enterprise agreement. For a personalised comparison, use the line tool to see where any salary sits against the national average.