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

VIC vs TAS 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 Tasmania

Tasmania's headline pay is among the lowest, $85,313 for a Level 5 graduate and $122,393 at the top of Band 1, but its Teachers Agreement 2025 locks in 3% in March 2027 and 2.75% in March 2028. Isolated schools add a Level 8 start ($99,010), a $5,000 settling-in payment and retention payments, and TRB registration costs $121.32 a year.

One Band 1 scale of 13 levels with annual increments. Your starting level depends on your training: 4-year trained teachers start at Level 4 and 5-year trained at Level 5, and DECYP says the usual beginning salary is Level 5 (Level 8 in isolated schools). Moving to Level 13 needs full TRB registration and 12 months at Level 12. In the 3-year trained and transition streams, Levels 9 and 10 each take two years.

Full details: TAS pay scale, TAS salary after tax and TAS 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.