Understanding Salary On-Costs and the National Average
What Are Salary On-Costs?
Salary on-costs are the additional expenses an employer incurs beyond the base salary you see on your payslip. They include the superannuation guarantee, payroll tax (which varies by state and territory), workers' compensation insurance, leave loading, and other statutory obligations. For many employers, these on-costs add 15–20% or more to the base salary. A salary on-costs calculator Australia helps estimate this total employment cost, giving both employees and employers a clearer picture of the true cost of a role.
How the National Full-Time Average Is Set
The site's line is the national full-time adult ordinary-time average, published by the ABS in its Average Weekly Earnings series. For May 2026, that figure is $2,083.70 per week, or about $108,352 per year when multiplied by 52. This is the base salary before any on-costs. It is not a median or a minimum; it is the mean ordinary-time earnings for full-time adult employees across all industries and occupations. The ABS also publishes medians: the full-time median is about $90,532, and the all-employees median is about $74,100 (from the August 2025 Employee Earnings survey). The national minimum wage, set by Fair Work from 1 July 2026, is $26.44 per hour, $1,004.90 per week, or about $52,255 per year on a 38-hour week.
What Moves Pay Above or Below the Average
Several factors can push a base salary above or below the national full-time average. The most obvious is location. State full-time averages vary considerably:
- New South Wales: about $109,658
- Victoria: about $106,137
- Queensland: about $106,064
- South Australia: about $102,450
- Western Australia: about $115,825
- Tasmania: about $96,008
- Northern Territory: about $103,173
- Australian Capital Territory: about $119,090
If you work in the ACT or Western Australia, your base salary is more likely to be above the national average. In Tasmania, it is more likely to be below. See the States and territories page for more detail.
Occupation and industry also matter. The ABS Employee Earnings survey provides medians for specific jobs and sectors. For example, full-time median earnings across all occupations are about $90,532, but some industries, like mining or professional services, have much higher medians, while retail and hospitality sit lower. The Job medians and Industry medians pages break these down.
Another key factor is the minimum wage. Any full-time adult employee paid at the national minimum wage earns about $52,255 per year, well below the average. Award minimums, which rose 4.75% from 1 July 2026, cover many industries and set higher rates than the national minimum, but still often below the average.
How On-Costs Affect the Comparison
The salary on-costs calculator Australia adds superannuation, payroll tax, and other costs to your base salary. This can change the picture. For example, a base salary of $90,000 might be below the national average of $108,352, but once on-costs are added, the total employer cost could be $105,000 or more, depending on the state's payroll tax threshold and the superannuation guarantee rate. Conversely, a base salary of $120,000 is above the average, but its total cost to the employer is even higher.
However, the site's tool compares only base salary to the national average. It does not include on-costs in that comparison. The line is drawn using ordinary-time earnings, consistent with the ABS definition. So when you place a salary on the line, you are comparing your base pay to the average base pay of full-time adult Australians.
Using the On-Costs Calculator Alongside the Line
A salary on-costs calculator Australia is a separate tool that helps you understand the full cost of employment. It is useful for budgeting, negotiating, or comparing job offers. But for the purpose of seeing where your pay sits against the national average, the base salary is the relevant figure. The on-costs calculator can give context: if your base salary is below the average, but your total cost to the employer is above, that might reflect a role with high on-costs (e.g., a high super guarantee or payroll tax liability).
Summary
The national full-time average is $108,352 per year in base salary. Your pay may be above or below that line due to your state, occupation, industry, or the minimum wage. On-costs are additional and do not change the base salary comparison, but they do affect the total employment cost. Use the How the figures are set page for more on the methodology behind the averages and medians.