How this calculator works
Your take-home pay is the amount left after tax and other amounts are taken out of your gross pay. For most employees that means income tax (collected through PAYG withholding), the Medicare levy, and, if you have one, a compulsory study or training loan repayment. Employer super is usually paid on top of your salary, so it does not come out of your take-home pay unless you have salary-sacrificed extra contributions.
The Never Lose Interest pay calculator uses the official Australian resident tax rates the ATO publishes for 2025-26 and 2026-27, plus the standard 2% Medicare levy and the ATO's HELP repayment thresholds for those years. This explainer shows you what sits behind the result, and what the calculator cannot see, such as extra offsets or a Mid-Year variation.
This is general information only. It is not personal advice or tax advice, and it does not take into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. Your employer withholding is an estimate. Your final tax is worked out when you lodge your return.
What is take-home pay?
Gross pay is your salary or wages before deductions. Taxable income is a different figure. It starts with your assessable income and subtracts allowable deductions. Take-home pay, in everyday use, is what hits your bank account on payday: gross pay minus PAYG tax withholding, and minus any other amounts your employer is required or authorised to deduct, such as a study loan repayment.
Those payday deductions are not always the same as the tax you will ultimately owe. The ATO's withholding schedules are designed to approximate your annual tax, including the Medicare levy in most cases, on the assumption that the job is your only income and that you are entitled to the tax-free threshold. If you have two jobs, a side income, large deductions, private health insurance issues, or a study loan, the amount withheld during the year can be too high or too low. The difference is settled when you get your notice of assessment.
How is take-home pay calculated in Australia?
For a resident employee with one job and no study loan, a simple annual picture looks like this:
- Start with your gross salary for the year.
- Work out income tax on that amount using the resident tax rates for the year, assuming it is also your taxable income (that is, before extra deductions or other income).
- Subtract any low income tax offset (LITO) you are entitled to.
- Add the Medicare levy, usually 2% of taxable income, unless a reduction or exemption applies.
- Subtract the total from your gross salary. What remains is an estimate of take-home pay before other deductions, such as salary sacrifice, union fees or extra tax you have asked your employer to withhold.
If you have a HELP or other study and training loan, a compulsory repayment is also calculated on your repayment income, and your employer will usually withhold extra during the year once your pay is high enough.
Super is the item that most often confuses people. The super guarantee is currently 12%. For quarters up to 30 June 2026 it was calculated on ordinary time earnings. From 1 July 2026, under Payday Super, employers must pay super guarantee each payday, calculated as a percentage of qualifying earnings. In a standard arrangement the 12% is paid to your super fund in addition to your salary, so it does not reduce the cash you take home. If you salary-sacrifice into super, your taxable salary falls and your take-home pay usually falls too, in exchange for a larger super contribution. The calculator should say whether it is treating super as on top of salary or as part of a packaged amount. The Never Lose Interest super calculator, salary sacrifice and Payday Super explainers cover the contribution caps, the tax effect of paying extra into super, and what employees should check from 1 July 2026.
What are the tax rates for 2025-26 and 2026-27?
These are the ATO's resident rates for someone who was an Australian resident for tax purposes for the full year and is entitled to the full tax-free threshold. They do not include the Medicare levy.
2025-26
| Taxable income | Tax on this income |
|---|---|
| $0 to $18,200 | Nil |
| $18,201 to $45,000 | 16c for each $1 over $18,200 |
| $45,001 to $135,000 | $4,288 plus 30c for each $1 over $45,000 |
| $135,001 to $190,000 | $31,288 plus 37c for each $1 over $135,000 |
| $190,001 and over | $51,638 plus 45c for each $1 over $190,000 |
2026-27
| Taxable income | Tax on this income |
|---|---|
| $0 to $18,200 | Nil |
| $18,201 to $45,000 | 15c for each $1 over $18,200 |
| $45,001 to $135,000 | $4,020 plus 30c for each $1 over $45,000 |
| $135,001 to $190,000 | $31,020 plus 37c for each $1 over $135,000 |
| $190,001 and over | $51,370 plus 45c for each $1 over $190,000 |
The only change between these two years is the rate on income from $18,201 to $45,000, which falls from 16% to 15%. That cut was legislated in 2025. A further cut, to 14%, is legislated from 1 July 2027. Crossing a threshold does not re-tax the income below it. Only the dollars inside each band are taxed at that band's rate.
For a fuller walk-through of the brackets, including the low income tax offset and the $1,000 standard deduction that starts in 2026-27, see the Never Lose Interest income tax explainer.
How do I convert an annual salary to weekly or fortnightly take-home pay?
Once you have an annual tax and levy estimate, divide the leftover amount by the number of pay cycles in the year. A common method is:
- weekly: divide by 52
- fortnightly: divide by 26
- monthly: divide by 12
Some employers use 26.089 fortnights or 52.18 weeks to reflect a 365-day year. The difference is small for most people, but it can explain why a payday amount is a few dollars away from a simple division. Public holidays, unpaid leave and overtime will move the result around as well.
If your salary is quoted as a package including super, strip the super out before you apply the tax rates. A $90,000 package with 12% super on top of a base salary is not a $90,000 taxable salary. The base is $90,000 divided by 1.12, which is about $80,357. Tax is worked out on the base (plus any other assessable income), not on the whole package.
What else can change my take-home pay?
Medicare levy
Most residents pay a Medicare levy of 2% of taxable income. This is in addition to the tax rates above. If your income is low, the levy can be reduced or removed. For 2025-26, the ATO says a single taxpayer who is not entitled to the seniors and pensioners tax offset pays no levy if taxable income is $28,011 or less, and can receive a reduction up to $35,013. In that shade-in range, the ATO's published example is consistent with a 10% levy on the income above $28,011, until the levy reaches 2%. Seniors and pensioners entitled to SAPTO have higher thresholds ($44,268 and $55,335 in 2025-26). Family thresholds also exist.
As at mid-November 2026, the ATO page setting out those reduction thresholds was still labelled for 2025-26. Do not assume the 2026-27 figures until the ATO publishes them.
You may also have to pay the Medicare levy surcharge, of 1%, 1.25% or 1.5%, if you do not have an appropriate level of private patient hospital cover and your income for surcharge purposes is above the threshold. For 2026-27 the ATO's single thresholds start above $105,000, and the family thresholds start above $210,000, increasing by $1,500 for each surcharge dependant after the first child. For 2025-26 the single base threshold was $101,000 and the family base threshold was $202,000. Surcharge income is broader than taxable income. It includes reportable fringe benefits, net investment losses and reportable super contributions. The Never Lose Interest Medicare levy and surcharge guide sets out the full tiers and the cover test.
Study and training loans (HELP, VET Student Loan and others)
From 2025-26, compulsory repayments use marginal rates. You pay nothing until your repayment income is above the minimum threshold. Above that, you pay a rate only on the income over the threshold, until you reach the top band, where the repayment is 10% of your total repayment income.
The ATO's thresholds are:
2025-26
| Repayment income | Repayment |
|---|---|
| $0 to $67,000 | Nil |
| $67,001 to $125,000 | 15c for each $1 over $67,000 |
| $125,001 to $179,285 | $8,700 plus 17c for each $1 over $125,000 |
| $179,286 and over | 10% of your total repayment income |
2026-27
| Repayment income | Repayment |
|---|---|
| $0 to $69,528 | Nil |
| $69,529 to $129,717 | 15c for each $1 over $69,528 |
| $129,718 to $186,050 | $9,028 plus 17c for each $1 over $129,717 |
| $186,051 and over | 10% of your total repayment income |
Repayment income is not the same as taxable income. The ATO adds taxable income (excluding any assessable First Home Super Saver released amounts), reportable fringe benefits, total net investment losses, reportable super contributions and exempt foreign employment income. A salary-sacrificed super contribution can therefore increase your HELP repayment even as it reduces your taxable income.
These repayments are not a tax. They reduce your loan balance. They do, however, reduce the cash you take home. The Never Lose Interest HELP repayment explainer works through the thresholds, repayment income and the difference between employer withholding and the year-end assessment. For the effect of a pre-tax super contribution on repayment income, see salary sacrifice into super.
The low income tax offset
LITO is up to $700 if your taxable income is $37,500 or less. It then phases out: $700 minus 5 cents for each dollar over $37,500, up to $45,000, and $325 minus 1.5 cents for each dollar over $45,000, until it reaches zero at $66,667. It can only reduce your tax to nil. It is not refundable, and you do not claim it as a separate payment. The ATO works it out when you lodge. Payroll withholding usually builds it in for lower-paid employees.
The $1,000 standard deduction from 2026-27
From 2026-27, resident individuals who earn assessable labour income can deduct a standard amount for work-related expenses. Under the Act, the deduction is the lesser of $1,000 and your assessable labour income, reduced by the work-related deductions you otherwise claim (such as general work expenses, car expenses and certain depreciating assets used to earn labour income). If you claim no itemised work deductions, the standard deduction can be $1,000 (or your labour income, if lower). If you already claim $1,000 or more of those deductions, the standard amount is reduced to nil and you keep your itemised claims. This can change taxable income, and therefore take-home estimates that assume your taxable income equals your gross salary. See the work-related deductions explainer for the official examples and for which claims do not reduce the $1,000, and working from home and car expenses for those two methods.
Working Australians Tax Offset from 2027-28
A separate, non-refundable offset of up to $250 for labour income is legislated from the 2027-28 income year. It does not change 2025-26 or 2026-27 take-home pay.
A worked example
Take a resident employee with a $80,000 salary, no deductions, no study loan, no Medicare levy surcharge, and no private circumstances that change the levy. Treat the $80,000 as taxable income, with super paid on top at 12%.
In 2026-27
- Tax on the first $18,200: nil
- Tax on the next $26,800 at 15%: $4,020
- Tax on the remaining $35,000 at 30%: $10,500
- Income tax: $14,520
- LITO: nil, because $80,000 is above $66,667
- Medicare levy at 2%: $1,600
- Tax and levy combined: $16,120
- Estimated annual take-home pay: $63,880
- Roughly $1,228 a week, or $5,323 a month
In 2025-26
The same salary produced $14,788 of income tax, because the 16% rate applied to the $18,201 to $45,000 band. With the same $1,600 Medicare levy, tax and levy combined were $16,388, and estimated take-home pay was $63,612. The legislated 1% rate cut is worth $268 a year at this income, which is 1% of the $26,800 that sits in that band.
If this person also had a HELP debt, a compulsory repayment would be calculated on repayment income. If repayment income was also $80,000, the 2026-27 repayment would be 15% of $80,000 minus $69,528, which is 15% of $10,472, or $1,570.80. That would come out of take-home pay in addition to tax and the levy.
These figures are rounded to the nearest dollar where the tax rates produce whole dollars. They ignore the standard deduction, extra offsets and any other income.
Why is my payslip different from the calculator?
A few common reasons:
- Your payslip uses a withholding schedule for that pay cycle, not a simple annual tax divided by 52.
- You did not claim the tax-free threshold, or you claimed it on more than one job.
- You have a study loan, a tax variation, or extra withholding.
- You salary-sacrifice super, a novated lease or other amounts.
- The calculator included or excluded super differently from your package.
- You have overtime, allowances, bonuses or leave loading in some pays and not others.
- Your taxable income will not equal your salary, because of deductions or other income.
If the gap is large, compare the year-to-date withholding on your payslip with an annual estimate, and check your tax file number declaration and any HELP variation. The ATO's own tax withheld calculator and income tax estimator are the official checks.
Frequently asked questions
Does a pay rise ever leave me worse off after tax?
A pay rise can increase your marginal tax rate on the extra dollars, but it does not re-tax the income you already earned. Income tax alone will not make you worse off for earning more. A higher income can, however, reduce income-tested offsets or family payments, increase a HELP repayment, or push you into the Medicare levy surcharge if you do not have private hospital cover. Those are separate from the tax brackets.
Is super taken out of my take-home pay?
Usually no. The 12% super guarantee is paid by your employer on top of a standard base salary. It comes out of take-home pay only if you have agreed to salary-sacrifice extra amounts, or if your advertised pay is a total package that already includes super.
How often does my employer have to pay super now?
From 1 July 2026, Payday Super requires employers to pay super guarantee each payday, and the contribution is on time if the fund receives it within 7 business days. Before that, contributions were due at least quarterly. The Payday Super explainer covers what employees should check.
Why do two calculators give different take-home figures?
They may be using different years, treating super differently, including or excluding HELP, or applying different Medicare levy assumptions. Check the year, whether the salary includes super, and whether a study loan is turned on. Then compare the result with the ATO rates in the tables above.
What if I am not an Australian resident for tax purposes?
Foreign residents do not get the tax-free threshold and do not pay the Medicare levy. The ATO has published foreign resident rates up to 2025-26: 30c for each $1 up to $135,000, then 37c up to $190,000, then 45c. As at November 2026 the ATO's foreign resident page had not yet published a separate 2026-27 table. Use the official page for the year that applies to you.
General information warning
This article, and the Never Lose Interest pay calculator, are general information only. They are not tax advice or personal financial product advice, and they do not take into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. Withholding during the year is an estimate. Your final tax is assessed when you lodge. Consider seeking advice from a registered tax agent if your affairs are not straightforward.
Sources
- Australian Taxation Office, Tax rates - Australian resident, last updated 13 August 2026.
- Australian Taxation Office, Personal income tax - new tax cuts for every Australian taxpayer.
- Australian Taxation Office, Low income tax offset, last updated 8 June 2026.
- Australian Taxation Office, Medicare levy reduction for low-income earners, last updated 30 June 2026.
- Australian Taxation Office, Medicare levy surcharge income, thresholds and rates.
- Australian Taxation Office, Study and training loan repayment thresholds and rates, last updated 30 June 2026.
- Australian Taxation Office, Super guarantee, last updated 17 April 2026.
- Australian Taxation Office, Tax rates - foreign resident, last updated 1 June 2026.
- Treasury Laws Amendment (Tax Reform No. 1) Act 2026, Schedule 4 (standard deduction for work-related expenses) and Schedule 3 (Working Australians tax offset).
Last reviewed: November 2026.