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Country file

What it costs an employer to hire in Australia

An employer in Australia pays A$134,400 on a gross salary of A$120,000. That is 12.0% more than the salary.

At A$240,000 the employer adds 12.0%, because the contributions are largely uncapped.

Every rate below comes from a statutory source with the date it was read. The figures are for 2026.

A mid salary of A$120,000

Employer-side statutory contributions on a gross salary of A$120,000 a year. Each line is capped at the range shown, so the amount is the rate applied to the part of the salary that falls inside that range.
ContributionRateAnnual base chargedAmountSource
Superannuation Guarantee12.00%A$270,830A$14,400source checked 2026-08-21
Statutory employer contributionsA$14,400

Scroll sideways on a phone.

Everything the law obliges the employer to pay. It excludes anything discretionary, anything an EOR charges, and any insurance premium that is set per employer rather than by statute.
Gross salaryA$120,000
Statutory employer contributionsA$14,400
Total employer costA$134,400
Added on top of the salary12.0%

A senior salary of A$240,000

Employer-side statutory contributions on a gross salary of A$240,000 a year. Each line is capped at the range shown, so the amount is the rate applied to the part of the salary that falls inside that range.
ContributionRateAnnual base chargedAmountSource
Superannuation Guarantee12.00%A$270,830A$28,800source checked 2026-08-21
Statutory employer contributionsA$28,800

Scroll sideways on a phone.

Everything the law obliges the employer to pay. It excludes anything discretionary, anything an EOR charges, and any insurance premium that is set per employer rather than by statute.
Gross salaryA$240,000
Statutory employer contributionsA$28,800
Total employer costA$268,800
Added on top of the salary12.0%

The formula

total employer cost = gross salary + sum over each statutory contribution of rate x max(0, min(salary, ceiling) - band floor) (zero if the contribution applies only below a wage the salary exceeds) + gross salary x (mandatory extra months / 12) + gross salary x mandatory severance accrual rate

Each ceiling above applies only to its own line, which is why the employer percentage for Australia is not the same at both salaries. Employer contribution ceilings, country by country lists where every ceiling on this site sits.

Time off, extra pay and leaving

Statutory paid leave20 days
Public holidays10
Mandatory extra pay0 months
Minimum employer notice1 weeks

Four weeks' annual leave under the National Employment Standards. Public holidays are about eight national dates plus state-specific ones, so the total runs roughly 10 to 13 by state.

No statutory 13th month.

Redundancy pay under the National Employment Standards runs from four weeks' pay at one to two years of service up to sixteen weeks at nine to ten years. Employers with fewer than fifteen staff are generally exempt.

What the percentage hides

The Superannuation Guarantee reached 12.00% on 1 July 2025 and is the settled long-term rate. The maximum contribution base for 2026-27 is 270,830 dollars, above which super is not compulsory.

From 1 July 2026 super must be paid on each payday rather than quarterly. The rate and the cap are unchanged.

State payroll tax, roughly 4.85% to 5.45% on total wages above a state threshold, is separate from super and is not included above.

Not confirmed on a statutory source, and therefore not in any figure above: the public holiday count, which varies by state.

Using an employer of record in Australia

Everything above is what the state takes. An employer of record adds its own fee on top, and that fee is a flat monthly amount rather than a percentage, so it weighs far more on a junior salary than a senior one. The published prices are here, and the calculator will add one to the figures on this page.

Compare with another country

Written by Kaz, independent publisher. No commercial relationship with the providers named unless it is listed on the disclosure page.

Page last updated 2026-08-30. Sources: statutory bodies only, listed per figure. Rates last verified 2026-08-21. This is not legal, tax or payroll advice and we do not file anyone's payroll.

Every formula on this site is written out in full on Method. Ordering is by computed cost, never by what a provider pays us.

Corrections: contact form.