Tax on $20,000 in Australia
$0 income tax plus $0 Medicare levy on a $20,000 salary in 2026-27: $0 in total (0.0% of salary), leaving $20,000 take-home.
$20,000 sits $1,800 into the 15% bracket, $25,000 short of the 30% rate that starts above $45,000.
How Much Tax Do You Pay on $20,000?
| Tax Bracket | Income in Bracket | Tax Rate | Tax Paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| $0 – $18,200 | $18,200 | 0.0% | $0 |
| $18,200 – $45,000 | $1,800 | 15.0% | $270 |
| Minus Low Income Tax Offset (LITO) | −$700 | ||
| Total Income Tax | $0 | ||
No income tax is payable on $20,000 in any year from 2023-24 to 2027-28: the offset cancels it each year. Tax bracket history.
What Is the Take-Home Pay Breakdown at $20,000?
| Component | Annual | Monthly | Fortnightly | Weekly |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gross Salary | $20,000 | $1,667 | $769 | $385 |
| Income Tax | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Medicare Levy | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Take-Home Pay | $20,000 | $1,667 | $769 | $385 |
Employer super: $2,400 (12%). Salary sacrifice saves no tax here: $1,000 sacrificed costs $1,000 of take-home and adds $850 to super after contributions tax. Up to $37,000 the low income super tax offset refunds 15% of concessional contributions, at most $500 a year (2026-27); employer super alone uses $360 of it. Salary sacrifice calculator.
Low Income Tax Offset on $20,000
The full $700 Low Income Tax Offset (2026-27) cancels the $270 of bracket tax on $20,000, so no income tax is payable. It covers the whole tax up to $22,866; past that, tax starts at 15c per dollar. How the Low Income Tax Offset works.
Medicare Levy on $20,000: the Low-Income Reduction
No Medicare levy on $20,000: singles pay none up to $28,011 (2025-26 threshold, the latest the ATO has published). Above it the levy is 10c per dollar over $28,011 until it reaches 2% of income at $35,013; families have a $47,238 threshold plus $4,338 per dependent child. Medicare levy guide.
Tax Thresholds Near $20,000
One threshold between $20,000 and $25,000, still ahead:
| Threshold | Above | What changes | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| LITO nil-tax limit2026-27 | $22,866 | The $700 Low Income Tax Offset no longer covers the whole 15% tax, so income tax becomes payable. | $2,866 above $20,000 |
Next further up: the Medicare levy low-income threshold at $28,011 (2025-26). The last one passed was the tax-free threshold at $18,200.
Tax on the Next $1,000 Above $20,000
A rise to $21,000 adds $0 of income tax and $0 of Medicare levy, so you keep $1,000 of the $1,000: 0% goes, below the headline 17% because the Low Income Tax Offset still cancels all the income tax and income is still under the Medicare levy threshold.
How Does $20,000 Compare to Other Salary Levels?
The steps are uneven because they cross the tax-free threshold ($18,200), the LITO nil-tax limit ($22,866) and the Medicare levy low-income threshold ($28,011). Any other figure: income tax calculator.
Where $20,000 Sits Among Australian Earners
$20,000 is $385 a week, below the 10th percentile of $450 a week: among the lowest-paid 10% of all employees, full-time and part-time (ABS Employee Earnings, August 2025). A full-time adult on the National Minimum Wage earns $52,255 a year from 1 July 2026, so $20,000 is usually part-time or casual pay: at the minimum $26.44 an hour it is about 14.5 hours a week. Average salary in Australia.
Pay Close to $20,000
More published pay from $17,500 to $22,499:
- Junior minimum wage, full-time (from 1 July 2026): Under 16 $19,230
Frequently Asked Questions
How this calculator works▼
ATO resident rates for 2026-27; headline figures leave out the surcharge and HECS-HELP. Our methodology.
Sources & References
- 1
- 2Medicare levy— ATO
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6National Minimum Wage Order 2026 (PR799279)— Fair Work Commission
Last verified: 9 October 2026. Our content is based on the latest information from official Australian government sources.
What to check next
People reading this page usually work these out too.