Methodology
How we calculate
Exactly where our numbers come from and the rules every calculator uses, so you can check our working.
Pay rates
Every state's pay data lives in one file per state and feeds every page and calculator, so a figure is only ever typed once. Each pay column records the date it takes effect and a status:
- Official: published in the agreement, award or the employer's pay table.
- Proposed: agreed (for example, voted up by staff) but not yet approved, so not yet paid.
- Calculated: our arithmetic from a published percentage rise where no table is published yet.
"Current" means the latest official or calculated column whose start date has passed on the day the site was last built.
| State | Instrument | Last verified |
|---|---|---|
| New South Wales | Crown Employees (Teachers in Schools and Related Employees) Salaries and Conditions Award 2024 | 16 October 2026 |
| Victoria | Victorian Government Schools Agreement 2022 | 16 October 2026 |
| Queensland | Department of Education State School Teachers' Certified Agreement 2022 | 16 October 2026 |
| Western Australia | School Education Act Employees' (Teachers and Administrators) General Agreement 2023 | 16 October 2026 |
| South Australia | South Australian School and Preschool Education Staff Enterprise Agreement 2024 | 16 October 2026 |
| Tasmania | Teachers Agreement 2025 | 16 October 2026 |
| Australian Capital Territory | ACT Public Sector Education Directorate (Teaching Staff) Enterprise Agreement 2023-2026 | 16 October 2026 |
| Northern Territory | Northern Territory Public Sector Educators' 2024-2027 Enterprise Agreement | 16 October 2026 |
Tax and take-home (2026–27)
- Resident income tax rates: 0% to $18,200; 15% to $45,000; 30% to $135,000; 37% to $190,000; 45% above.
- Low income tax offset up to $700, phasing out by $66,667.
- Medicare levy of 2%, with the low-income reduction using the 2025–26 thresholds ($28,011 to $35,013) until the 2026–27 figures are published, the same approach the ATO's withholding schedule uses.
- HECS-HELP compulsory repayments under the marginal system from $69,528 of repayment income.
- Per-pay withholding uses the ATO's Schedule 1 Scale 2 coefficients (tax-free threshold claimed).
- Salary sacrifice to super reduces taxable income but is added back for HELP repayment income; reportable fringe benefits are treated the same way.
Super
Employer super uses each state's actual employer rate (12% superannuation guarantee unless the agreement pays more). Concessional contributions are capped at $32,500 in 2026–27 and taxed at 15% in the fund. Projections show results in today's dollars using the return and inflation assumptions shown on each calculator.
What our figures don't include
Unless a calculator asks, we don't include allowances, overtime-style payments, other income, the Medicare levy surcharge, private health rebates, family tax benefits, or deductions. Your payslip can differ by a few dollars a fortnight because of rounding, 27-pay years and payroll timing.
AI coaches
Our AI coaches use Google's Gemini model with instructions specific to Australian schools and the AITSL Standards. They're told never to invent experience or facts. Your inputs are stored securely so we can review answer quality, and are never sold.