Australian Public Sector Pay Scales
Where to find the pay scales for Australian Government employees, the Defence Force and every state and territory public service, with the scales we publish in full.
Federal: APS, DSTG and ASD
Australian Public Service pay is set agency by agency in enterprise agreements. As an example, the Australian Public Service Commission pays $57,497 at the bottom of APS1 and $174,790 at the top of EL2 from 12 March 2026.
Australian Defence Force
ADF salaries depend on rank, pay grade and increment. From 5 November 2026, after a 3% rise, Permanent Forces salaries run from $81,469 for a Private, Seaman or Aircraftman up to $255,827 at the top of Colonel and its Navy and Air Force equivalents.
ADF pay rates by rank for Army, Navy and Air Force →
- Army pay calculator, Navy pay calculator and Air Force pay calculator: take-home pay for your rank each fortnight.
- ADF pay comparison: an ADF role against a civilian job or another rank.
State and territory public services
Each state and territory sets pay for its own public servants through awards and agreements. These are the official places to find them; each state’s pay calculator page also covers its public holidays and long service leave.
New South Wales
- Public Sector Awards in NSW (NSW Government): The awards that set pay and conditions across the NSW public sector.
- Crown Employees (Public Sector – Salaries 2024) Award (NSW Government): Salary rates for most non-executive public service employees.
- Pay calculator NSW: take-home pay, holidays and long service leave.
Victoria
- Victorian Public Service Enterprise Agreement 2024 (Department of Treasury and Finance): The agreement and salary tables for Victorian Public Service (VPS) employees.
- Wages Policy and the Enterprise Bargaining Framework (Victorian Government): The policy that guides pay rises across the Victorian public sector.
- Pay calculator VIC: take-home pay, holidays and long service leave.
Queensland
- State Government Entities Certified Agreement (ForGov, Queensland Government): The core agreement covering pay for most Queensland public servants, with updates on the current agreement.
- Pay calculator QLD: take-home pay, holidays and long service leave.
South Australia
- Enterprise agreements (South Australian Employment Tribunal): Copies of registered agreements, including the SA Public Sector salaried and weekly paid agreements.
- Pay calculator SA: take-home pay, holidays and long service leave.
Western Australia
- Agreements (Western Australian Industrial Relations Commission): Current industrial agreements registered in WA, listed A to Z.
- Pay calculator WA: take-home pay, holidays and long service leave.
Tasmania
- Awards – Public Sector (Tasmanian Industrial Commission): Awards covering Tasmanian public sector employees.
- Agreements – Public Sector (Tasmanian Industrial Commission): Registered public sector agreements.
- Pay calculator TAS: take-home pay, holidays and long service leave.
The Australian Capital Territory
- Find an enterprise agreement (Fair Work Commission): Where all current enterprise agreements are published, including those for the ACT Public Service.
- Pay calculator ACT: take-home pay, holidays and long service leave.
The Northern Territory
- Rates of pay (Office of the Commissioner for Public Employment): Pay rates for NT public sector employees.
- Enterprise agreements (Office of the Commissioner for Public Employment): Current NT public sector enterprise agreements.
- Pay calculator NT: take-home pay, holidays and long service leave.
How to read an enterprise agreement
- Find the salary schedule. Pay rates are usually in an attachment or schedule near the end, listed by classification and pay point.
- Check the date columns. Agreements often show several columns of rates, one for each pay rise date. Use the latest date that has passed.
- Pay points and increments. Each level has steps; you usually move up one after a year of satisfactory performance until you reach the top.
- Broadbands. Some agreements group levels (such as APS1–2) so you can advance between them without applying for a new job.
- Base salary only. The tables exclude allowances, loadings and super, which are set out in other clauses.
Sources
- APSC Enterprise Agreement 2024–2027 (Attachment A – Base salaries), Australian Public Service Commission
- Department of Defence Pay and Conditions Manual, salary schedules B.3, B.10 and B.12, and the November 2026 pay rates
- State and territory public sector sources as listed above