One country, one income tax.
Australia has no state income tax. Income tax, the Medicare levy and HECS/HELP are all federal, so the same salary produces the same take-home pay everywhere: $90,000 leaves $70,680 after tax in 2026–27, in Sydney, Perth or Hobart alike. What differs by state is cost of living, public holidays, long service leave, and a payroll tax your employer pays.
2026–27 ATO rates · last verified 15 August 2026Looking for a pay calculator for NSW, Victoria, Queensland, WA — or for Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane or Perth? There's only one, and it's the same one, because the maths is federal.
Use the Australian pay calculator → The result applies wherever you live.
What never changes with your postcode
Every one of these is federal legislation administered by the ATO. Your state, territory, city or suburb has no effect on any of them.
| Component | Set by | Varies by state? |
|---|---|---|
| Income tax brackets | Federal legislation, administered by the ATO | No |
| Tax-free threshold ($18,200) | Federal | No |
| Medicare levy (2%) | Federal | No |
| Low Income Tax Offset | Federal | No |
| HECS/HELP repayments | Federal | No |
| Super Guarantee (12%) | Federal | No |
| National minimum wage | Fair Work Commission (national) | No |
We previously published a table listing all eight states with the same $70,680 figure repeated in each row. It was accurate and useless, so it's been replaced with the point it was trying to make.
What actually differs between states
Four things genuinely vary — and only one of them can change what lands in your account.
1. Public holidays and penalty rates — this one can change your pay
Each state and territory declares its own public holidays. Victoria has AFL Grand Final Friday and the Melbourne Cup; Western Australia has WA Day; South Australia and the ACT have their own. If you're covered by a modern award and you work those days, you earn public holiday penalty rates — so a hospitality, retail or healthcare worker genuinely can earn more in one state than another on the same base rate.
This is the only item on this list that touches your gross pay. Everything else is either your employer's cost or a non-cash entitlement. Model the hours with the hourly rate calculator, and check the declared holidays for your state and year with Fair Work — they change annually and some are region-specific within a state.
2. Payroll tax — paid by your employer, never by you
Every state and territory levies payroll tax on employers whose total wage bill exceeds a threshold. It is a cost to the business. It never appears on your payslip, is not deducted from your salary, and does not reduce your take-home pay by a cent.
Thresholds and rates differ substantially between jurisdictions and are changed at each state budget, so rather than publish figures that go stale, here is where each one is authoritative:
- Revenue NSW
- State Revenue Office Victoria
- Queensland Revenue Office
- RevenueWA
- RevenueSA
- State Revenue Office Tasmania
- ACT Revenue Office
- Territory Revenue Office (NT)
If you're an employee, you can stop reading at "your employer pays it".
3. Long service leave
Long service leave is state legislation, and it is the one area where moving interstate has a real effect on what you're owed. Qualifying periods, the rate of accrual and whether you can take leave pro-rata after a shorter period all differ, and some industries — construction and community services in particular — have portable schemes that follow you between employers. Check your state's industrial relations department, or Fair Work's summary, before you assume it transfers.
It changes your entitlements, not your tax. When it's paid out on termination it's taxed under its own rules — see the redundancy calculator.
4. Cost of living — the one that actually decides your standard of living
This is the real answer to "which state pays best". Take-home pay on the same salary is identical everywhere, so the entire difference is what that money buys — and overwhelmingly that means housing. The same $70,680 net supports a very different life in Adelaide or Hobart than in Sydney.
When comparing offers across cities, don't look for a tax difference. Take the same net figure from the pay calculator and set it against local rents and commuting costs. That comparison is meaningful; a state-by-state tax comparison isn't, because there is nothing to compare.
Moving interstate mid-year
For tax purposes, nothing happens. You lodge one federal return with the ATO regardless of where you lived or worked during the year. Your employer keeps withholding under the same PAYG tables. There is no state return, no apportionment between states, and no change to your brackets.
Two things worth checking: your long service leave position, if you're changing employer as well as state; and, if you're award-covered, whether your new state's public holidays differ from your old one's.
Frequently asked questions
Is take-home pay different in NSW, Victoria or Queensland?
No. Australia has no state income tax — income tax, the Medicare levy and HECS/HELP are all federal. A $90,000 salary produces exactly the same take-home pay in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide, Hobart, Canberra or Darwin: about $70,680 for 2026–27.
Why do people search for a pay calculator for their state?
Usually out of habit from countries like the US, where state income taxes genuinely change net pay. In Australia the differences between states are in living costs, payroll tax paid by employers, public holidays that trigger penalty rates, and long service leave rules — not in the income tax you pay.
Does payroll tax reduce my salary?
No. Payroll tax is a state tax paid by employers on their total wage bill once it passes a threshold. It never appears on your payslip and doesn't reduce your take-home pay. Thresholds and rates are set by each state revenue office and change at state budgets — links to all eight are above.
Do public holidays change my pay by state?
They can — this is the one item that genuinely affects gross pay. Each state declares its own public holidays, and award-covered employees earn penalty rates on those days. A hospitality or retail worker can earn more in a state with an extra public holiday. Model the hours with the hourly rate calculator.
Which state has the highest real take-home pay?
Take-home on the same salary is identical everywhere, so the real difference is cost of living — especially rent. The same net pay typically stretches further in Adelaide, Hobart or regional areas than in Sydney. Compare the same net figure against local housing costs rather than looking for a tax difference.
What happens if I move interstate during the financial year?
Nothing changes for your tax — you lodge one federal return with the ATO regardless of where you lived or worked, and your employer keeps withholding under the same PAYG tables. Do check your long service leave position, since that's state legislation and doesn't always transfer.