VIC vs NT teacher pay: which state pays more in 2026?

VIC vs NT at a glance

Pay and take-home at every career stage

Steps don't line up exactly between states, so we compare like-for-like career stages: the usual graduate entry step, about five years in, the top of the incremental classroom scale, and the highest classroom step (reached through HALT, Senior Teacher or a similar classification).

What's different about teaching in Victoria

Victoria is mid-reset: VGSA 2026 was approved by 93.1% of staff in September 2026 and, once the Fair Work Commission signs off, lifts graduate pay from $79,589 to $92,882 and the top classroom step from $118,063 to $133,456 from 1 October 2026, with back pay and a $2,000 lump sum. It gives more long service leave than NSW (3 months after 10 years), caps face-to-face teaching at 21 hours in primary and 18.5 in secondary, and pays up to $50,000 upfront to fill hard-to-staff rural schools.

Classroom teachers have 11 subdivisions: Range 1 (1-1 to 1-5) and Range 2 (2-1 to 2-6). You move up one subdivision per annual cycle (1 May to 30 April) after a successful performance and development assessment. It is not automatic, but there is no quota, and you need at least 6 months' eligible service at a subdivision in the cycle. Moving from Range 1 to Range 2 requires meeting the Range 2 standards. Starting salary is 1-1 plus one subdivision for each year of approved experience (including CRT work in Victorian schools since 2005) up to 2-6. Learning Specialist and Leading Teacher (Range 3) are promotion positions, usually fixed-term. From May 2027 VGSA 2026 adds a 1% top-of-range allowance for teachers at 2-6 or 3-2 for 12 months.

Full details: VIC pay scale, VIC salary after tax and VIC pay rise tracker.

What's different about teaching in Northern Territory

The NT pays Australia's highest classroom salaries ($96,180 for a graduate, $136,997 at CT9 in 2026, both rising 4.3% in January 2027) under an agreement that runs to the end of 2027. Remote teachers add a Remote Incentive Allowance of up to $10,319 a year ($12,345 with dependants), rent-free housing and free flights, and HALT allowances of $13,938 and $29,184 are the most generous in the country. The trade-offs are only the 12% minimum super and fewer paid parental leave weeks than the ACT.

Graduates start at CT1. Teachers with more than 12 months' post-qualification experience are placed by completed years of service (1 year = CT2). You move up one CT level after each 12 months' service, continuous or broken (cl. 39.2); increments are withheld only through inability or discipline processes, so CT1 to CT9 takes about 8 years. Under Rapid Incremental Progression (cl. 39.3) an early-career teacher can jump to CT4 at the start of year 3 after 2 years in NT government schools within 4 years plus 2 semester units of postgraduate study. 180 days of relief teaching count as 1 year of service (cl. 30.3). Senior Teacher (ST1-ST8) and Principal (PLO1-PLO7) levels are promotion positions set by job evaluation.

Full details: NT pay scale, NT salary after tax and NT pay rise tracker.

Country incentives, leave and the things salary tables miss

Headline salary is only part of the deal. Country and remote postings can add thousands a year, and leave rules change what a career is worth.