Prime Minister of Australia salary and the national average
When people search for the "prime minister of australia salary", they often want to see how it stacks up against what the typical full-time worker earns. On this site, we use the latest official data to put any salary on the line — showing it as a yearly figure, a weekly amount, and an hourly rate based on a 38-hour week. For the Prime Minister, the exact figure is not available from the sources we rely on, but we can still place it in context using the national full-time average.
The national full-time average as a benchmark
The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) publishes Average Weekly Earnings twice a year, for May and November. The most recent release, for May 2026, gives the full-time adult ordinary-time average as $2,083.70 per week. Multiplied by 52, that comes to about $108,352 a year. This is the line we use on Place a salary on the line. It is an average, not a median, and it covers all full-time adults across all industries and states.
For comparison, the full-time median (from the ABS Employee Earnings survey, August 2025) is about $90,532, and the all-employees median is about $74,100. The national minimum wage from Fair Work, effective 1 July 2026, is $26.44 per hour, or $1,004.90 per week on 38 hours — about $52,255 a year. Award minimums rose by 4.75% from that date.
How the Prime Minister's salary is set
The salary of the Prime Minister of Australia is determined by the Remuneration Tribunal, an independent body that sets remuneration for key public offices. The Tribunal's 2026 determination (which took effect on 1 July 2026) lists total remuneration packages for many roles — for example, the Chair of the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority receives $1,004,300 per year, and the Vice President of the Fair Work Commission receives $659,090. However, the Prime Minister's office is not included in the table of full-time public offices provided in the excerpts we have. The Tribunal may set the Prime Minister's salary in a separate determination or as part of a different schedule.
Because the exact figure is not published in the sources we use — the ABS Average Weekly Earnings, the Remuneration Tribunal determination we accessed, or Fair Work awards — we cannot give a precise number. What we can say is that the Prime Minister's salary is well above the national full-time average of $108,352, reflecting the seniority and responsibility of the role.
Reading any salary as a year, a week, and an hour
Our tool is designed to take any yearly salary before tax and show you what it looks like per week and per hour on a standard 38-hour week, plus how far it sits from the national full-time average. If you have a figure in mind for the Prime Minister's salary — perhaps from a news report or official announcement — you can enter it on Place a salary on the line to see the breakdown. The tax treatment would follow the 2026–27 resident rates: nil on the first $18,200, then 15% up to $45,000, 30% up to $135,000, 37% up to $190,000, and 45% above that, plus the 2% Medicare levy (with possible reductions).
State averages for further context
The national average masks variation across states. For instance, the full-time average in the Australian Capital Territory is about $119,090, while in Tasmania it is about $96,008. The Prime Minister's salary, whatever it is, would be higher than all state averages. You can explore state-by-state figures on our States and territories page.
Why the exact figure matters
Understanding the Prime Minister's salary in relation to the national average helps citizens gauge the relativity of political leadership to the broader workforce. It also feeds into discussions about public sector remuneration and fairness. While we cannot provide the exact number here, the framework of averages, medians, and minimums gives a solid basis for comparison.
For more on how the figures are set, see How the figures are set. And if you have a salary you'd like to check, use our line tool to see where it sits.
Key takeaways
- The national full-time adult ordinary-time average is $2,083.70 per week ($108,352 per year) from ABS Average Weekly Earnings, May 2026.
- The Prime Minister's salary is not explicitly listed in the ABS or Remuneration Tribunal data we use, but it is set by the Tribunal and is well above the average.
- You can compare any salary to the national average using our line tool.
- State averages, medians, and the minimum wage provide additional reference points.