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Quality Manager salary in Australia
The median full-time salary for a quality manager is $147,900 per annum, before tax, up $31,500 since 2018.
- Pay moves with the sector and the size of the site, since a quality manager in financial services or health care usually sits on a different band from one in a small food manufacturer.
- Enterprise agreements set rates at some manufacturing sites, and lead auditor certification or responsibility for a licensed product pushes pay up.
- Independent auditing and consulting work is billed by the day and can earn more than a permanent salary, without paid leave or the security that comes with it.
The median salary rose by $31,500 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 quality manager
The largest typical pay rise is $300 a year, moving into General Manager.
- General Manager+$300/yr
How to negotiate a higher quality manager salary
- Know the market rate before you ask. The median full-time quality manager salary is $147,900; 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 Auditing and assurance and Regulatory compliance tend to command a premium over general quality manager experience, name them specifically when you ask.
- Bring a real alternative to the table. General Manager pays a typical $300 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."
Quality Manager salary questions
How much do quality managers earn in Australia?
The median full-time salary for a quality manager is $147,900 a year before tax. Seniority, specialisation, sector and the award or agreement you're employed under all move it.
Is quality manager pay rising or falling?
The median quality manager salary is up $31,500 since 2018. Figures from 2025 onward on this page are a projection, not a measured result.
What pays more than quality manager?
General Manager pays a typical $300 a year more and draws on similar skills to quality manager.
Related salaries
- Operations Analyst salary
- General Manager salary
- Production Manager salary
- Work Health and Safety Officer salary
- ISO Auditor salary
- Quality Inspector 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.