Radiographer salary vs the national full-time average
Radiographers (officially Medical Diagnostic Radiographers under ANZSCO 251211) are part of the broader Medical Imaging Professionals group. According to Jobs and Skills Australia, the median full-time weekly earnings for this group is $2,360, or about $122,720 a year before tax. That is comfortably above the national full-time adult average ordinary-time earnings of $2,083.70 a week ($108,352 a year) from the ABS Average Weekly Earnings, May 2026.
How the figures are set
The radiographer median comes from the ABS Survey of Employee Earnings and Hours, May 2025, as reported by Jobs and Skills Australia. It is a median for full-time non-managerial employees paid at the adult rate, so it excludes part-time workers, managers, and juniors. The national full-time average is from the ABS Average Weekly Earnings release, which measures ordinary-time earnings for full-time adults across all industries. The two figures are not directly comparable – one is a median, the other a mean – but together they give a clear picture: radiographers typically earn more than the average full-time worker.
How radiographer pay compares with other benchmarks
- All-employees median: The ABS Employee Earnings, August 2025, puts the median weekly earnings for all employees (full-time and part-time) at $1,425, or about $74,100 a year. The radiographer median of $2,360 is 66% higher.
- Full-time median: The same ABS release gives a full-time median of $1,741 a week ($90,532 a year). Radiographers earn about 36% more.
- National minimum wage: From 1 July 2026, the national minimum wage is $26.44 an hour, $1,004.90 a week on 38 hours. The radiographer median is more than double that.
State and territory differences
The national full-time average hides significant variation by location. The ABS Average Weekly Earnings, May 2026, shows state full-time averages ranging from $96,008 a year in Tasmania to $119,090 in the Australian Capital Territory. Radiographer pay may also vary by state, but Jobs and Skills Australia does not publish state-level medians for this occupation. The States and territories page on this site shows how the line moves across Australia.
Who are radiographers?
Jobs and Skills Australia notes that 76% of Medical Imaging Professionals are female, and the median age is 36. About 64% work full-time, compared with 69% across all occupations. The average full-time hours are 40 per week, slightly below the all-occupations average of 44. This suggests radiographers often work standard hours, and the median weekly earnings reflect that.
What about other imaging roles?
The Medical Imaging Professionals group also includes sonographers, nuclear medicine technologists, and medical radiation therapists. Their earnings may differ. For example, sonographers often command higher pay due to demand. However, the $2,360 median covers the whole group. If you are a radiographer, your actual salary will depend on experience, location, and whether you work in the public or private sector. The public sector full-time average across all occupations is $2,263.10 a week, while the private sector is $2,034.10 – so public hospital radiographers may earn more than their private counterparts.
How to use this information
If you are considering a career as a radiographer, the median salary is a strong indicator of earning potential. Use the Place a salary on the line tool to see how any salary compares with the national full-time average, and check Job medians for other health professions. Remember that the figures here are before tax; the ATO's 2026–27 tax rates apply, with the Medicare levy adding 2%.
A note on data sources
The radiographer median is from Jobs and Skills Australia, which draws on the ABS Survey of Employee Earnings and Hours, May 2025. The national full-time average is from the ABS Average Weekly Earnings, May 2026. The all-employees and full-time medians are from the ABS Employee Earnings, August 2025. The national minimum wage is from Fair Work, effective 1 July 2026. All figures are in Australian dollars and refer to earnings before tax.
Frequently asked questions
Is the radiographer salary an average or a median? It is a median – the middle point of all full-time radiographer earnings. Half earn more, half earn less. The national full-time figure from the ABS is an average (mean). Medians are less affected by very high or low salaries, so they often give a better sense of typical pay.
Does the radiographer median include overtime? No. The Jobs and Skills Australia figure is for ordinary-time earnings only, not total earnings including overtime. The ABS Average Weekly Earnings also reports ordinary-time earnings for the national average. So the comparison is fair.
Where can I find award rates for radiographers? Radiographers are typically covered by the Health Professionals and Support Services Award 2020 or an enterprise agreement. Fair Work publishes the award rates, which include minimum pay for each classification level. The median of $2,360 a week is well above the award minimums, which rose by 4.75% from 1 July 2026.