Composer salary in Australia
The median full-time salary for a composer is $70,200 per annum, before tax, up $14,700 since 2018.
DerivedIndicative estimate, not yet verified against official Jobs and Skills Australia / ABS data · Estimate
- Pay moves more with the type of work than with years of experience: a feature film or a national advertising campaign sits on a different scale from a community theatre commission, and fees usually arrive in instalments across the project.
- Performance, broadcast and streaming royalties collected through APRA AMCOS can keep paying long after delivery, and many composers steady their income with teaching, session work or library music.
The median salary rose by $14,700 between 2018 and 2024; the dashed line shows a projection to 2028 based on the real ABS Wage Price Index growth rate, not a role-specific forecast.
Roles that pay more than composer
The largest typical pay rise is $32,500 a year, moving into Video Editor.
- Video Editor+$32,500/yr
- Musician+$21,600/yr
- Music Producer+$7,800/yr
How to negotiate a higher composer salary
- Know the market rate before you ask. The median full-time composer salary is $70,200; use that, not a guess, as your anchor, and adjust for your experience and employer.
- Lead with what's scarce, not just tenure. Skills like Creative software production and Content creation and writing tend to command a premium over general composer experience, name them specifically when you ask.
- Bring a real alternative to the table. Video Editor pays a typical $32,500 a year more and draws on similar skills, even mentioning you're weighing it up is a legitimate data point in a pay conversation.
- Time it deliberately. Reviews, the end of a project you delivered, or taking on responsibility beyond your job description are stronger moments to ask than an arbitrary date on the calendar.
- Ask for a number, not a raise. "Based on the market rate and [specific contribution], I'd like to move to X" gets a clearer answer than "I think I deserve more."
Composer salary questions
How much do composers earn in Australia?
The median full-time salary for a composer is $70,200 a year before tax. Seniority, specialisation, sector and the award or agreement you're employed under all move it.
Is composer pay rising or falling?
The median composer salary is up $14,700 since 2018. Figures from 2025 onward on this page are a projection, not a measured result.
What pays more than composer?
Video Editor pays a typical $32,500 a year more and draws on similar skills to composer.
Related salaries
Pay advice
- How to ask for a pay rise, and back it up with real numbersWhat national wage growth looks like right now, how to work out a figure for your own role, wording you can adapt for the conversation, and what to do if the answer is no.
- The average salary in Australia (2026)Full-time adults in Australia averaged $2,083.70 a week in May 2026. Several measures get called the average salary, and this explains which one fits your situation.
- Overtime pay, time in lieu and what your award saysOvertime rates come from your award or agreement, not one national rule. How rates work, what happens on a salary, and how time off in lieu works.