Therapist salary in Australia
If you are considering a career as a therapist in Australia or are already working in the field, you may be wondering how your pay compares to the national full-time average. The term 'therapist' covers a range of professions including psychologists, psychotherapists, counsellors, and other allied health roles. The most reliable published data on earnings for this group comes from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) and Jobs and Skills Australia, which reports on psychologists and psychotherapists as a specific occupation group.
How it compares to the national full-time average
According to Jobs and Skills Australia, the median full-time weekly earnings for psychologists and psychotherapists is $2,204 (ABS Survey of Employee Earnings and Hours, May 2025). This translates to approximately $114,608 per year before tax. By comparison, the national full-time adult average weekly ordinary time earnings is $2,083.70 (ABS Average Weekly Earnings, May 2026), or about $108,352 per year. This means the typical therapist earns around $120 per week more than the national full-time average.
It is important to note that the national average is a mean figure, while the therapist figure is a median. Medians are less affected by very high or low earners and give a better sense of what a typical full-time worker earns. The full-time median across all occupations is about $1,887 per week (ABS Employee Earnings and Hours, August 2025), or roughly $98,124 per year. Therapists also sit well above that benchmark.
State and territory comparisons
The national full-time average varies across states and territories. The ABS Average Weekly Earnings release for May 2026 provides state-level full-time adult average weekly ordinary time earnings. These are:
- New South Wales: $2,108.80 per week (~$109,658 per year)
- Victoria: $2,041.10 per week (~$106,137 per year)
- Queensland: $2,039.70 per week (~$106,064 per year)
- South Australia: $1,970.20 per week (~$102,450 per year)
- Western Australia: $2,227.40 per week (~$115,825 per year)
- Tasmania: $1,846.30 per week (~$96,008 per year)
- Northern Territory: $1,984.10 per week (~$103,173 per year)
- Australian Capital Territory: $2,290.20 per week (~$119,090 per year)
The therapist median of $2,204 per week is above the state averages in most jurisdictions, except the ACT and Western Australia where the state averages are higher. This suggests that therapist pay is competitive nationally, but location matters.
Other benchmarks
For context, the national minimum wage from 1 July 2026 is $26.44 per hour, or $1,004.90 per week on a 38-hour week, amounting to about $52,255 per year. The therapist median is more than double that. The all-employees median weekly earnings (including part-time) is $1,436 (ABS Employee Earnings and Hours, August 2025), or about $74,672 per year. Therapists working full-time earn significantly more than the typical employee overall.
What this means for you
If you are a therapist, your salary is likely above the national full-time average, but it is always worth checking how your individual circumstances compare. You can place a salary on the line to see where it sits relative to the national average and other benchmarks. For a broader view, explore job medians for other occupations or industry medians to see how different sectors compare.
A note on the data
The therapist earnings data comes from the ABS Survey of Employee Earnings and Hours, which is conducted every two years. The most recent available is May 2025. Jobs and Skills Australia publishes occupation profiles based on this survey. The national average weekly earnings are updated twice a year by the ABS in the Average Weekly Earnings release (May and November). The figures used here are from May 2026. All figures are before tax and include salary sacrifice amounts. For more detail on how these figures are set, see How the figures are set.