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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.
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.
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.