How it's calculated
An employee costs more than their salary. For 2026–27 the calculator adds four things to the salary.
Super guarantee. From 1 July 2026 employers pay super on each payday at 12% of qualifying earnings, up to the maximum contributions base of $270,830 a year.Federal Register of Legislation If the salary you enter is a package that includes super, the calculator splits it into base salary plus super, so the super comes out of the package rather than on top of it.
State or territory payroll tax. Payroll tax is charged on the employer's whole wage bill, not on each employee separately. Nothing is due until the business's total Australian taxable wages (or its group's) pass a threshold, and every state and territory counts employer super contributions as taxable wages. The 2026–27 settings are:
| State or territory | Threshold or deduction | Rate |
|---|---|---|
| New South Wales | $1,200,000 | 5.45% |
| Victoria | $1,000,000, reduced by 50% of wages above $3,000,000 | 4.85%, plus surcharges above $10,000,000 |
| Queensland | $1,300,000, reduced by $1 for every $7 above it | 4.75% (4.95% above $6,500,000), plus the mental health levy |
| Western Australia | $1,000,000, tapering to nil at $7,500,000 | 5.5% |
| South Australia | $600,000 deduction; no tax up to $1,500,000 | Rising to 4.95% over the next $200,000 |
| Tasmania | $1,250,000 | 4%, then 6.1% above $2,000,000 |
| ACT | $1,750,000 | 6.75% to 8.75%, set by total wages |
| Northern Territory | $2,500,000, reduced by $1 for every $2 above it | 5.5% (6.5% from $100,000,000) |
Each figure comes from the state's Act or its revenue office.Revenue NSWVictorian LegislationQueensland Revenue OfficeWA Department of FinanceRevenueSAState Revenue Office TasmaniaACT Legislation RegisterNT Legislation
Workers' compensation. Premiums are set by each state's scheme or insurer for your industry and claims history, so there is no single rate. Enter the rate on your policy as a percentage of salary; it is 0 until you do.
Other costs. Equipment, training, leave cover and anything else you want to count.
The formula
- Super guarantee = 12% × the smaller of salary and $270,830.
- This employee's payroll tax wages = salary + super guarantee.
- Employer's payroll tax = the state's formula applied to the employer's total Australian wages, as if they were all paid in that state (threshold or deduction, rate, and for Victoria and Queensland the surcharges or levy).
- This employee's share = employer's payroll tax × this employee's wages ÷ total wages.
- Total cost = salary + super guarantee + payroll tax share + workers' compensation + other costs.
If you leave total wages at 0, or enter less than this employee's salary plus super, the calculator uses this employee alone, so no payroll tax shows unless that one employee's pay is above the state's threshold.
Worked example
| Line | Year | Month |
|---|---|---|
| Salary | $90,000.00 | $7,500.00 |
| Super guarantee (12%) | $10,800.00 | $900.00 |
| Victoria payroll tax (share) | $4,277.70 | $356.48 |
| Total cost | $105,077.70 | $8,756.48 |
The business's Victorian deduction is cut in half by the phase-out, so its payroll tax for the year is 4.244% of its wages. This employee's share is $4,277.70. The same employee at a New South Wales business of the same size would carry $3,845.52.
Assumptions and limitations
- One state. Payroll tax is worked out as if the whole wage bill were paid in the state you pick. A business that also pays wages interstate apportions its threshold by each state's share of wages, so treat its figure as an estimate.
- Full year, standard rates. Part-year employers, Victoria's regional rate, Queensland's regional discount, ACT university rates, exempt wages and rebates are not modelled.
- Grouping. Related businesses that form a payroll tax group share one threshold, so enter the group's total wages.
- Super above the guarantee. Extra employer super or salary sacrifice is not added; salary sacrifice does not change the super guarantee.
- Not included: fringe benefits tax, leave loading, redundancy provisions and the cost of paid leave cover unless you enter them as other costs.