Nanny salary in Australia
The median full-time salary for a nanny is $69,700 per annum, before tax, up $14,600 since 2018.
- Pay is negotiated between you and the family, and there is no single national pay scale for private nannies, though agency placements often come with a set rate.
- Live-in roles usually trade some cash pay for board and lodging, while casual and part-time hours add up to less over a year than full-time work.
- A Certificate III or diploma in early childhood education and care, a driver's licence, or experience with children who have additional needs are the things that usually lift an offer.
The median salary rose by $14,600 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 nanny
The largest typical pay rise is $33,400 a year, moving into Childcare Centre Manager.
- Childcare Centre Manager+$33,400/yr
How to negotiate a higher nanny salary
- Know the market rate before you ask. The median full-time nanny salary is $69,700; use that, not a guess, as your anchor, and adjust for your experience and employer.
- Use demand as leverage. Nannys are on the national skills shortage list, so employers are more likely to move on price to keep or attract someone in a role they're struggling to fill.
- Lead with what's scarce, not just tenure. Skills like Personal care services and Pastoral care and wellbeing tend to command a premium over general nanny experience, name them specifically when you ask.
- Bring a real alternative to the table. Childcare Centre Manager pays a typical $33,400 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."
Nanny salary questions
How much do nannys earn in Australia?
The median full-time salary for a nanny is $69,700 a year before tax. Seniority, specialisation, sector and the award or agreement you're employed under all move it.
Is nanny pay rising or falling?
The median nanny salary is up $14,600 since 2018. Figures from 2025 onward on this page are a projection, not a measured result.
What pays more than nanny?
Childcare Centre Manager pays a typical $33,400 a year more and draws on similar skills to nanny.
Related salaries
- Early Childhood Educator salary
- Family Day Care Educator salary
- Residential Care Worker salary
- Out of School Hours Care Educator salary
- Childcare Centre Manager salary
- Reflexologist salary
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.