Australia Income Tax Calculator
Estimate your 2026-27 Australian income tax including the Medicare levy, using current ATO brackets.
What this calculator does
Estimates your total Australian income tax bill including the Medicare levy, using the current 2026-27 ATO resident tax brackets, so you can see both your total tax and your effective tax rate. Australia's system combines a generous tax-free threshold with a separate flat-rate Medicare levy — two calculations that need to be added together, not blended into one bracket table.
Who this is for
Australian tax residents estimating their annual tax bill, anyone comparing a job offer's take-home pay, people wanting to understand the real-world impact of the 2026-27 bracket changes on their specific income, or anyone weighing a move across the Tasman and comparing against New Zealand's system.
How this calculator works
Uses the 2026-27 ATO resident tax brackets (0% to $18,200, 15% to $45,000, 30% to $135,000, 37% to $190,000, 45% above), the lower second-bracket rate that took effect 1 July 2026. The 2% Medicare levy is added on top, with a reduced phase-in rate for incomes between $29,207 and $36,509.
Worked example
$90,000 taxable income: the first $18,200 is tax-free. The next $26,800 (to $45,000) at 15% = $4,020. The remaining $45,000 (to $90,000) at 30% = $13,500. Income tax = $4,020 + $13,500 = $17,520. Add the 2% Medicare levy: $90,000 × 0.02 = $1,800. Total = $19,320, an effective rate of about 21.5% — well below the 30% marginal bracket rate, since only income within each bracket is taxed at that bracket's rate.
A second example at a higher income: $150,000 taxable income owes $36,570 in income tax across the brackets, plus a $3,000 Medicare levy, for a total of $39,570 — an effective rate of about 26.4%. Compare that to the 37% marginal bracket this income sits in, and the gap between marginal and effective rate is even larger than at $90,000, since more of the income has now passed through the lower brackets first.
How Australia Compares to New Zealand
Australia and New Zealand run one of the world's more unusual bilateral arrangements: under the Trans-Tasman Travel Arrangement, citizens of either country can live and work in the other without a visa — no employer sponsorship, no skills test, no points system. That makes this comparison more practically relevant than most cross-border tax comparisons, since actually moving is far simpler than between almost any other two countries.
On tax specifically, the two systems differ in a way that flips depending on income level. Australia's $18,200 tax-free threshold gives lower earners a real head start — New Zealand taxes income from the very first dollar at 10.5%, with no equivalent threshold at all. At $100,000, an Australian resident pays roughly 22% (including Medicare) versus a New Zealander at roughly 24% on the equivalent NZD income. But New Zealand's top rate (39%) is lower than Australia's (45% plus 2% Medicare), so very high earners can come out ahead in NZ.
The bigger structural gap is retirement savings: Australia's Superannuation Guarantee (11.5-12% for 2026-27) is paid entirely by the employer on top of salary, while New Zealand's KiwiSaver (around 3-3.5%) is partly deducted from the employee's own pay. Over a full career, this difference compounds into a substantially larger retirement balance in Australia — often cited as Australia's biggest long-term financial advantage over New Zealand, even in years where NZ's income tax comes out lower.
Where your income goes
Run the calculator above to see the income tax, Medicare levy, and take-home split.
Common mistakes
- Forgetting the Medicare levy is separate from income tax. Both are calculated independently and then added together — the Medicare levy isn't baked into the bracket rates shown.
- Not accounting for super separately. The 12% Superannuation Guarantee is paid by your employer on top of your salary, not deducted from your take-home pay shown here.
- Ignoring HECS/HELP repayments. If you have a student loan, repayments are an additional deduction on top of what's calculated here, based on a separate income-tested schedule.
- Assuming your top bracket rate applies to your whole income. Only the portion of income within each bracket is taxed at that bracket's marginal rate — your effective (overall) tax rate is always lower than your top bracket rate.
- Comparing Australian and New Zealand take-home pay without adjusting for super/KiwiSaver structure. Australia's 11.5-12% super is paid on top of salary by the employer; New Zealand's KiwiSaver is partly deducted from the employee's own pay — a naive gross-salary comparison misses this.
- Forgetting New Zealand has no tax-free threshold. If comparing offers, remember NZ taxes from the first dollar at 10.5% while Australia exempts the first $18,200 entirely.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What's my effective tax rate versus my marginal tax rate?
Your marginal rate is the bracket rate applied to your last dollar earned (30% for someone on $90,000). Your effective rate is total tax divided by total income — for $90,000 taxable income, that's about 21.5% including the Medicare levy, meaningfully lower than the marginal rate.
Is the Medicare levy the same as income tax?
No, it's a separate 2% levy added on top of income tax, funding Australia's public healthcare system. It has its own phase-in threshold for lower incomes.
Does this include superannuation?
No, the 12% Superannuation Guarantee for 2026-27 is paid by your employer in addition to your salary, not deducted from the take-home figure shown here.
What changed with the tax brackets for 2026-27?
The second bracket rate dropped, taking effect 1 July 2026 — see the full breakdown for the complete picture of what changed.
Can I move to New Zealand without a visa?
Yes, under the Trans-Tasman Travel Arrangement, Australian citizens can live and work in New Zealand indefinitely without a visa, and vice versa — one of the few genuinely open bilateral arrangements between two countries anywhere in the world.
Is take-home pay higher in Australia or New Zealand?
It depends on income level. Australia's tax-free threshold gives lower earners an edge, but New Zealand's lower top rate (39% vs Australia's 45%+2% Medicare) can favor very high earners. Australia's much larger employer-paid superannuation contribution is a separate, significant long-term advantage regardless of income level.