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Wages Permanent / award
Pay basis
Annual salary (before tax, excl. super)
$/yr
Weekly salary (before tax, excl. super)
$/wk
Same as annual salary, just expressed per week (× 52, since leave is paid).
Hourly rate & hours
$/hr
hrs
Full-time permanent, annualised over 52 weeks (leave is paid, so every week counts).
Employer super
%
Some employers pay above the guarantee, e.g. 12.75%, 14%, or 15.4% in parts of government.
Contract Daily or hourly rate
Rate basis
Daily rate (before tax)
$/day
Hourly rate & hours
$/hr
hrs
= $720/day billed
Super on the contract
Typical for labour-hire / payroll contracts: 12% super is paid on top of your day rate.
Contract super %
%
Adjust the year: leave, sick days, RDOs, public holidays, costs
Wages job
Paid annual leave
NES minimum is 4 weeks (20 days); shift workers often get 5. Leave loading is calculated on these days.
Paid personal / sick leave
NES minimum is 10 paid days for full-timers. This doesn't change your pay; it just shows how many days you're paid not to work.
%
RDOs (rostered days off)
Common under EBAs and awards: you bank extra worked hours and take paid days off. Same annual pay, fewer days actually worked, which lifts the wages job's value per day worked.
Contract
Annual leave the contractor takes (unpaid)
If you'd take the same time off as a contractor, those days earn nothing.
Sick / carer's days the contractor takes (unpaid)
Contractors just lose the day.
Extra unpaid days (contract gaps, bench time)
Time between contracts, shutdowns, or days the client doesn't need you.
Both sides
Public holidays falling on weekdays
NSW typically has 11–13, depending on the year and where weekends fall. Wage earners are paid for these; contractors aren't.
$/yr
Financial year (tax rates)
FY 2026-27 uses the legislated 15% rate on the $18,201–$45,000 bracket (was 16%).
Applies compulsory repayments to both sides using the marginal system: 15% of income between $67,000 and $125,000, 17% above. Assumes your remaining debt covers the year's repayment.
The verdict
$0
Wages package $0
Contract package $0
Per week $0
Your year in weekdays
260 weekdays in a year. Solid = days that earn money. Hatched = days off nobody pays for.
Wages
Contract
Worked & paid (wages)
Paid time off (leave · sick · RDOs · public holidays)
Billed days (contract)
Unpaid days off
Side by side, after tax
FY 2026-27 · resident rates · Medicare levy included
| Per year | Wages | Contract |
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How this works. The wages side annualises your salary or award hourly rate over 52 weeks: annual leave, personal leave, RDOs and public holidays are all paid, so the gross doesn't change when you take them (all adjustable above). Optional leave loading (17.5% by default, adjustable) is calculated on your annual leave days. RDOs don't change the wages gross; you're paid the same for fewer days actually worked, which shows up in the year strip and the per-day-worked figure. The contract side starts from 260 weekdays, then removes public holidays, the leave and sick days you'd realistically take, and any bench time; you only earn what you bill. Super is set separately for each side. 12% is the current guarantee, but many employers pay more, and contracts vary: on top of the rate, carved out of it, or absent (common on ABN day rates; if you pay your own, treat the rate as super-included). Tax uses Australian resident brackets with LITO and an approximate Medicare levy (2%, with the low-income shade-in; no MLS or offsets beyond LITO). The optional HELP/HECS toggle applies the marginal repayment system introduced from 2025-26. Contractor costs are treated as deductible. Both sides are compared on take-home pay + super so retirement money isn't ignored. Assumes the contractor is taxed as an individual (PAYG / sole trader under PSI rules); company or trust structures, GST, and payroll tax aren't modelled. Your inputs are saved into the page link: copy it to share a scenario or bookmark your own; your numbers are never sent to a server. This is a planning estimate, not financial or tax advice.
Frequently asked questions
How do I convert a day rate to an equivalent salary in Australia?
Enter your day rate on the Contract side and ContractRate works out the annualised package (take-home pay + super), then finds the permanent salary that would match it after tax, leave and super are accounted for. That figure shows up as "Contract ≈ [salary] salary" once you've entered your numbers. As a rule of thumb, a contractor needs to bill meaningfully more than an hourly-equivalent salary to make up for unpaid leave, sick days, public holidays and (often) self-funded super.
Is contracting worth it compared to a permanent job?
It depends on your day rate, how many days a year you can realistically bill, and how much paid leave and super you'd be giving up. A permanent role keeps paying through annual leave, sick leave and public holidays, and almost always includes 12%+ super automatically. A contractor only earns on days actually billed, and super is often something you have to negotiate or fund yourself. Enter your own numbers above and the verdict card shows which one comes out ahead on take-home pay + super for your situation.
Do contractors get superannuation in Australia?
It depends on how you're engaged. Labour-hire and many payroll-based day-rate contracts pay the Superannuation Guarantee (12% from 1 July 2025) on top of the rate, the same as an employee. On an ABN/sole-trader arrangement, super isn't automatic: some contractors negotiate it on top of the rate, some treat the quoted rate as already including it, and some don't contribute at all. ContractRate lets you model all three under "Super mode."
How do I work out what day rate to charge?
A common approach is to start from the permanent salary you'd otherwise accept, work out how many days a year you can realistically bill (after public holidays, leave and any gaps between contracts), and find the day rate that gets your take-home pay + super to match or beat that salary. That's exactly the "break-even day rate" ContractRate shows once you've entered your numbers.
Does this calculator include tax, super and HELP/HECS debt?
Yes. It uses current Australian resident tax brackets (with FY 2025-26 and FY 2026-27 both selectable), applies the Low Income Tax Offset and an approximate Medicare levy, and has an optional toggle for HELP/HECS repayments using the marginal repayment system. Superannuation is included in the final "package" comparison on both sides so retirement savings aren't ignored.
Is this financial or tax advice?
No. ContractRate is a planning estimate to compare two scenarios side by side. It doesn't model every tax situation: the Medicare Levy Surcharge, salary sacrifice, company/trust structures, GST and payroll tax aren't included. Talk to a registered tax agent or financial adviser before making a decision based on these numbers.
New to contracting?
Do contractors still get paid for public holidays?
Usually not. Permanent and award employees are paid their normal rate for public holidays that fall on a day they'd normally work, even if the business is closed. Most contractors are only paid for days they actually bill, so a public holiday is simply a day with no income unless the contract says otherwise. ContractRate already factors this into both sides of the comparison.
Do contractors get paid overtime?
Generally no. Many awards and enterprise agreements include overtime rates (often time-and-a-half or double time) plus penalty rates for nights, weekends and public holidays worked, on top of the base rate. A contractor's day rate or hourly rate is usually flat regardless of how many hours the job actually takes, unless that's explicitly negotiated into the contract.
Do contractors get sick leave?
No, not automatically. Permanent employees accrue paid personal/carer's leave (10 days a year minimum under the National Employment Standards). Contractors aren't employees, so if they're unwell or need to care for someone, it's simply a day they don't bill. This is one of the bigger hidden costs of contracting worth budgeting for, which is why it's a slider in the calculator above.
Do contractors accrue long service leave?
Almost never. Long service leave is a state-based entitlement that builds up over years of continuous service with one employer, typically becoming payable after 7 to 10 years (around 8.67 weeks after 10 years in NSW). It's tied to an ongoing employment relationship, so contractors moving between clients or engagements generally don't accrue it, even over a long career. ContractRate doesn't model long service leave since it varies so much by state and industry.
What are the longer-term benefits of staying on an award or permanent wage?
Beyond the pay itself: permanent employees get unfair dismissal protections and, in most cases, redundancy pay if their role is cut, they build up long service leave over time, and many awards include overtime and penalty rates that push real earnings well above the base rate. There's also the less visible stuff: automatic workers' compensation cover, employer-paid super without having to negotiate it, and steadier income that's easier to get a home loan against. None of that shows up in a simple rate comparison, so it's worth weighing alongside the numbers this calculator gives you.
Are there any legal protections for contractors in Australia?
Some, but far fewer than employees get. Contractors aren't entitled to minimum wage, paid leave or unfair dismissal rights, but the Fair Work Act does protect them from "adverse action" (such as a client ending a contract in retaliation for exercising a legal right), and the Independent Contractors Act lets you apply to a court to review a contract you believe is harsh or unfair. Since 2024, a new "regulated workers" category also gives some minimum standards to gig-economy and road transport contractors specifically. See Fair Work's independent contractors hub for details.
What award or industry standard applies to my job?
If you're comparing a contract rate against a specific award, common ones include the General Retail Industry Award, Building and Construction General On-site Award, Manufacturing and Associated Industries Award, Clerks Private Sector Award, and Hospitality Industry (General) Award, among many others. Fair Work's Find my award tool can tell you exactly which award covers a role and what its minimum pay and conditions are, or browse the full list of awards by industry.