Sydney → Melbourne
$80,017
Equivalent gross · -20%
Need $80,017 in Melbourne (20% less)
Open compare
26 pair pages · April 2025
Australia Relocation Salary Comparison
Locked vignette ($100,000 gross · resident PAYG · 2026–27) — who needs less (or more) gross after rent/market COL?Sydney leads at COL 117.6; Hobart is lowest at 77.8.
By Sammy S. · Founder · AuthorUpdated for 2026
117.6
Sydney COL
77.8
Hobart COL
14
Featured corridors
26
Pair URLs
Compare any two Australian cities
Personalize your offer
Enter your gross and cities for live take-home, ABS rent, and bond stress-tests.
Cities by ABS rent COL
Highest COL first — ABS median weekly rent by state/territory ÷ national mean of the eight jurisdictions × 100 (Australia = 100). Gold Coast uses the Queensland series.
| # | City | State | COL | ABS median rent | Tax |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sydney | NSW | 117.6 | $650/wk | Federal PAYG |
| 2 | Perth | WA | 110.9 | $613/wk | Federal PAYG |
| 3 | Canberra | ACT | 107.6 | $595/wk | Federal PAYG |
| 4 | Brisbane | QLD | 101.3 | $560/wk | Federal PAYG |
| 5 | Gold Coast | QLD | 101.3 | $560/wk | Federal PAYG |
| 6 | Melbourne | VIC | 94.1 | $520/wk | Federal PAYG |
| 7 | Adelaide | SA | 89.5 | $495/wk | Federal PAYG |
| 8 | Hobart | TAS | 77.8 | $430/wk | Federal PAYG |
Featured corridors
Locked vignette ($100,000 gross · resident PAYG · 2026–27). Open either direction for scoreboard, housing, and salary ladder.
Sydney → Brisbane
$86,139
Equivalent gross · -14%
Need $86,139 in Brisbane (14% less)
Open compare
Melbourne → Brisbane
$107,651
Equivalent gross · +8%
Need $107,651 in Brisbane (8% more)
Open compare
Sydney → Perth
$94,303
Equivalent gross · -6%
Need $94,303 in Perth (6% less)
Open compare
Melbourne → Adelaide
$95,112
Equivalent gross · -5%
Need $95,112 in Adelaide (5% less)
Open compare
Brisbane → Adelaide
$88,351
Equivalent gross · -12%
Need $88,351 in Adelaide (12% less)
Open compare
Perth → Adelaide
$80,703
Equivalent gross · -19%
Need $80,703 in Adelaide (19% less)
Open compare
Melbourne → Perth
$117,853
Equivalent gross · +18%
Need $117,853 in Perth (18% more)
Open compare
Sydney → Adelaide
$76,105
Equivalent gross · -24%
Need $76,105 in Adelaide (24% less)
Open compare
Brisbane → Perth
$109,477
Equivalent gross · +9%
Need $109,477 in Perth (9% more)
Open compare
Sydney → Canberra
$91,497
Equivalent gross · -9%
Need $91,497 in Canberra (9% less)
Open compare
Melbourne → Hobart
$82,678
Equivalent gross · -17%
Need $82,678 in Hobart (17% less)
Open compare
Brisbane → Gold Coast
$100,000
Equivalent gross · +0%
Need $100,000 in Gold Coast (0% less)
Open compare
Canberra → Sydney
$109,294
Equivalent gross · +9%
Need $109,294 in Sydney (9% more)
Open compare
Key takeaways
- Locked vignette for 2026: $100,000 gross · resident PAYG · 2026–27. Equivalent gross scales with the COL ratio between cities.
- Sydney is the highest-COL metro here (index 117.6); Hobart is lowest (77.8).
- Featured: Sydney → Melbourne needs about $80,017 gross on the vignette (-20% vs Sydney pay).
- Federal PAYG only — modeled take-home at equal gross is the same in every Australian city (2026–27).
- 8 cities · 26 compare URLs — pick any two on the hub form.
What this Australia relocation salary comparison covers
Each corridor holds a locked PAYG vignette and ranks by equivalent gross from ABS median rent COL — not shipping cash or a full consumer basket.
Locked vignette
$100,000 gross · resident PAYG · 2026–27 — same inputs on every corridor so gaps are comparable.
COL × tax × housing
Equivalent gross from ABS median weekly rent COL; take-home from federal PAYG; pair pages also show ABS median rents, ABS house prices, and bond estimates.
Federal tax only
No state or city wage income tax — COL drives equivalent-salary differences, not PAYG brackets.
Cash vs salary
This hub ranks equivalent salary — not shipping or bond cash (see Australia relocation cost).
What we rank
Equivalent salary, not move cash
These pages answer “what gross do I need in city B to keep my city A lifestyle?” — not “how much cash to ship a container.” Pair with the Australia relocation cost calculator for bonds, shipping, and flights.
On ABS median weekly rent COL indexes (April 2025; Australia = 100), Sydney (COL 117.6) sits above Hobart (COL 77.8). Gold Coast uses the Queensland rent series.
Pair pages also show ABS median weekly rents (as monthly), ABS Total Value of Dwellings median house prices, state bond estimates, and a salary ladder with take-home. Utilities are not modeled.
Tax
Federal PAYG — same schedule everywhere
Australian personal income tax is levied federally. Sydney through Hobart share the same modeled income tax and Medicare levy at equal gross on this tool — private hospital cover assumed so Medicare levy surcharge is $0; HELP/HECS is off.
Pension salary sacrifice and HELP repayments are not toggled on compare pages — add them on the Australia tax calculator if needed.
Planning guide
How to compare Australia relocation salaries
1
Pick a corridor
Open a featured pair (e.g. Sydney → Melbourne) or use the picker for any two metros.
2
Read the equivalent gross
See how much you need in the destination to match origin purchasing power.
3
Check the salary ladder
A$75k–A$200k rows show whether the % gap stays stable as pay rises.
4
Note federal take-home
At equal gross, take-home matches across cities — focus on COL and rent stress-tests.
5
Personalize
Override gross and cities on the Australia relocation salary calculator.
Worked examples
Sydney → Melbourne
Need $80,017 in Melbourne (20% less)
Open →Sydney → Brisbane
Need $86,139 in Brisbane (14% less)
Open →Melbourne → Brisbane
Need $107,651 in Brisbane (8% more)
Open →Sydney → Perth
Need $94,303 in Perth (6% less)
Open →Personalize your move
Change cities and gross on the Australia relocation salary calculator.
Open →Concepts
Equivalent gross
Origin gross × (destination COL ÷ origin COL) — salary needed for matching COL-relative purchasing power before tax.
ABS median rent COL
State/territory median weekly rent ÷ mean of the eight ABS jurisdictions × 100 (April 2025; released 28 May 2025).
Take-home at equivalent
Federal PAYG if you earn the equivalent gross in the destination (same schedule in every city).
Salary ladder
Same COL ratio applied across A$75k–A$200k so you can see whether the % gap stays stable as pay rises.
Myths vs facts
“Same take-home means same lifestyle.”
Australian metros share modeled take-home at equal gross; COL indexes drive purchasing-power differences.
“COL-adjusted salary is my real paycheck.”
It is a negotiation target from COL × your gross. The ATO cares about taxable pay — not the COL ratio.
“Sydney taxes more than Hobart.”
Cash take-home ties at equal gross. Hobart ranks easier on ABS rent COL — not a different TAS tax schedule.
“This tool uses Domain market rents for salary equivalence.”
Salary equivalence uses ABS median weekly rents by state/territory only — not Domain, realestate.com.au, or Cotality estimates.
Who these comparisons help
Good fit
- People negotiating an Australian city move or remote-to-office location change.
- Candidates comparing Sydney offers vs regional packages.
- Anyone weighing COL alongside federal take-home.
Use caution
- You need upfront shipping/bond cash — use Australia relocation cost instead.
- Cross-border moves outside Australia — use the global relocation salary calculator for US/Canada or the UK tool.
Checklist before you rely on a corridor
- Note origin and destination COL indexes on the ranked city table.
- Open a featured corridor or pick any two cities.
- Confirm equivalent gross and % change on the vignette.
- Scan the salary ladder for your band.
- Personalize gross on the Australia relocation salary calculator.
Common mistakes
- Comparing offers without aligning gross to COL.
- Assuming a different state income-tax schedule between cities.
- Treating average rents as a guarantee for your exact suburb.
- Using this total as a substitute for a full budget (housing, childcare, commute).
Glossary
- Equivalent gross
- Origin gross × (destination COL ÷ origin COL) — salary needed for matching purchasing power before tax.
- COL index
- ABS median weekly rent by state/territory ÷ mean of the eight ABS jurisdictions × 100.
- Federal PAYG
- ATO income tax + Medicare levy for 2026–27 — no state wage tax on this model.
- Bond estimate
- Typical rental bond from official state/territory caps (usually ~4 weeks’ rent) applied to ABS median monthly rent.
Related Australia tools
- Australia relocation salary calculator — personalize gross, cities, and housing stress-tests
- Australia relocation cost calculator — bonds, shipping, and flights in AUD
- Australia tax calculator — federal PAYG with HELP / private-health toggles
- UK relocation salary calculator — COL-adjusted UK city offers
FAQ
Each corridor uses the same locked vignette ($100,000 gross · resident PAYG · 2026–27). Equivalent gross = current gross × (destination COL ÷ origin COL), then take-home via federal PAYG (income tax + Medicare levy). Private hospital cover assumed (MLS $0); no HELP.
Sydney leads this set at COL 117.6; Hobart is lowest at 77.8. Indexes are ABS median weekly rent by state/territory ÷ the mean of the eight ABS jurisdictions × 100.
Moving from Sydney to Melbourne at $100,000 needs about $80,017 gross in Melbourne (-20% change).
Yes — use the picker for any of the 8 metros, or open /australia-relocation-salary-calculator/compare/{from}-to-{to}. Featured corridors are listed below; reverse directions resolve.
People search both ways (e.g. Sydney to Melbourne and Melbourne to Sydney). Each URL runs the engine for that origin → destination.
Equivalent gross is COL × tax only. The main calculator results also show ABS median rents (as monthly), ABS median house prices, and state bond estimates. Utilities are not modeled. Shipping and visas are not included — use the Australia relocation cost calculator for upfront cash.
No — Australian personal income tax is federal only. Modeled take-home at equal gross is identical across cities; COL drives the equivalent-salary gap.
Example: Sydney → Melbourne needs about $80,017 on the locked vignette.