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Virtual Assistant salary in Australia
The median full-time salary for a virtual assistant is $49,300 per annum, before tax, up $10,200 since 2018.
DerivedIndicative estimate, not yet verified against official Jobs and Skills Australia / ABS data · Estimate
- Pay depends heavily on whether a virtual assistant is employed or running their own business, because sole traders set their own hourly or retainer rates and carry their own costs.
- Employees are usually covered by an award or enterprise agreement, while self-employed assistants build income by taking on more clients or specialising in work such as bookkeeping or executive support.
- Experience, the industries you serve and how reliably you fill your hours all move the figure.
The median salary rose by $10,200 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 virtual assistant
The largest typical pay rise is $46,000 a year, moving into Executive Assistant.
- Executive Assistant+$46,000/yr
- Personal Assistant+$46,000/yr
- Secretary+$35,300/yr
How to negotiate a higher virtual assistant salary
- Know the market rate before you ask. The median full-time virtual assistant salary is $49,300; 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 Data analysis and Bookkeeping and ledgers tend to command a premium over general virtual assistant experience, name them specifically when you ask.
- Bring a real alternative to the table. Executive Assistant pays a typical $46,000 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."
Virtual Assistant salary questions
How much do virtual assistants earn in Australia?
The median full-time salary for a virtual assistant is $49,300 a year before tax. Seniority, specialisation, sector and the award or agreement you're employed under all move it.
Is virtual assistant pay rising or falling?
The median virtual assistant salary is up $10,200 since 2018. Figures from 2025 onward on this page are a projection, not a measured result.
What pays more than virtual assistant?
Executive Assistant pays a typical $46,000 a year more and draws on similar skills to virtual assistant.
Related salaries
- Administration Officer salary
- Executive Assistant salary
- Personal Assistant salary
- Secretary salary
- Sales Coordinator salary
- Receptionist 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.