Salary sacrifice in Australia: how it affects take-home pay

Salary sacrifice means asking your employer to pay part of your pre-tax salary into super. You take home less, but you pay less tax too.

How the maths works

Sacrificed money is taxed at 15% in your super fund instead of at your marginal rate. At a 30% marginal rate plus 2% Medicare, every $1,000 sacrificed saves about $170 in tax while costing about $680 of take-home pay.

Use "More options → Salary sacrifice" in the calculator to see the effect on your own pay.

Who benefits most?

People on the 30% rate and above benefit most. Very low earners gain little, and the Low Income Super Tax Offset may already apply to them.

Watch the cap

Concessional contributions (employer super plus salary sacrifice) are capped each year. Going over the cap means extra tax, so add up all contributions before sacrificing.