Highest AFL salary: what top players take home after tax in 2025

Highest AFL salary in 2025: what top players take home after tax

If you are curious about the highest AFL salary and how much actually reaches a player's bank account, the 2025 season provides a clear picture. According to official figures released to clubs, 58 players were paid more than $1 million last year, with two earning $1.6 million or more . The average player payment across all listed players was $505,961, up 10.2% from 2024.

These are gross figures – before income tax, the Medicare levy, and any other deductions. To understand your take-home pay if you were an AFL player, you need to apply the latest Australian resident tax rates and the 2% Medicare levy.

How AFL salaries compare to the national minimum and full-time ordinary time

To put the highest AFL salary in perspective, compare it to the national minimum wage and full-time ordinary time earnings. The national minimum wage from 1 July 2026 is $26.44 per hour and $1,004.90 per week, which annualises to $52,255. Full-time adult ordinary time earnings (excluding overtime and employer super) average $2,083.70 per week, or $108,352 per year Benchmarks.

A top AFL earner on $1.6 million earns about 30 times the minimum wage and nearly 15 times the full-time ordinary time average. Even the average AFL player at $505,961 earns almost ten times the minimum wage and 4.7 times the full-time ordinary time figure.

Tax and Medicare on a $1.6 million AFL salary

Using the Australian Taxation Office's 2026–27 resident tax rates , the tax on $1.6 million is calculated as:

• $0 – $18,200: nil
• $18,201 – $45,000: 15c per $1 over $18,200 = $4,020
• $45,001 – $135,000: $4,020 plus 30c per $1 over $45,000 = $31,020
• $135,001 – $190,000: $31,020 plus 37c per $1 over $135,000 = $51,370
• $190,001 and over: $51,370 plus 45c per $1 over $190,000

For $1.6 million, the tax on the portion above $190,000 is 45c on $1,410,000 = $634,500. Total tax = $51,370 + $634,500 = $685,870. Then add the Medicare levy at 2%: $32,000. Total tax and Medicare = $717,870. Take-home pay = $1,600,000 – $717,870 = $882,130.

Note: This estimate excludes the Low Income Tax Offset (LITO) which phases out above $66,667, so it does not apply here. It also excludes HELP/HECS repayments and the Medicare levy surcharge.

Take-home pay for the average AFL player

For the average AFL player earning $505,961, the calculation is:

• Tax on $505,961: $51,370 plus 45c on $315,961 ($505,961 – $190,000) = $142,182.45. Total tax = $51,370 + $142,182.45 = $193,552.45.
• Medicare levy: 2% of $505,961 = $10,119.22.
• Total deductions: $203,671.67. Take-home: $302,289.33.

That is still a very high take-home, but remember these figures are before any salary packaging or super contributions. AFL players often have superannuation paid on top of their salary (the 12% super guarantee applies from 1 July 2026 on earnings up to $270,830). So the take-home above is from the gross salary, and super is additional.

How to estimate your own take-home

If you are not an AFL player but want to see what your salary would be after tax and Medicare, use our Take-home pay guide. For a detailed breakdown of tax rates and the Medicare levy, see Tax and Medicare. Remember that the figures here are estimates only and not a tax assessment. Your actual take-home may vary due to HELP/HECS, the Medicare levy surcharge, salary sacrifice, or payroll tax-table rounding.