Aged Care Award Pay Rates 2026-27: Every Stream and Level
Minimum rates under the Aged Care Award 2010 (MA000018), effective from the first full pay period on or after 1 July 2026. All 17 classifications across the direct care and general streams, with casual, weekend and public holiday rates and what each level takes home after tax.
The short answer
Aged Care Award rates run from $27.77 an hour at general level 1 to $40.58 an hour at direct care level 6, Team Leader. A direct carer at level 2, the level for anyone with 3 months or more of aged carer experience, is paid $34.42 an hour or $1,307.80 a week full-time. A casual at the same level is paid $43.03 an hour, including the 25% casual loading. On the full-time wage, take-home pay after income tax and the Medicare levy is $55,724 a year, or $2,143 a fortnight.
This award covers residential aged care. Care in a client’s own home is paid under the SCHADS Award, and enrolled and registered nurses under the Nurses Award.
MA000018 rates by stream and level.
The award prints only a weekly rate for each classification. Every hourly figure below is that weekly rate divided by the 38-hour week in clause 22.1, the one thirty-eighth rule in clause 10.4(b), and every casual figure adds the 25% loading to that hourly rate.
Direct care
1 July 2026 · PR799299
Clause 14.3. Employees whose primary role is hands-on care of residents: personal care, help with daily living, and recreational and lifestyle activities.
| Classification | Weekly | Hourly | Casual hourly | Take-home a year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Level 1, Introductory | $1,239.00 | $32.61 | $40.76* | $53,291 |
| Level 2, Direct Carer | $1,307.80 | $34.42 | $43.03* | $55,724 |
| Level 3, Qualified | $1,376.70 | $36.23 | $45.29* | $58,160 |
| Level 4, Senior | $1,431.80 | $37.68 | $47.10* | $60,108 |
| Level 5, Specialist | $1,486.80 | $39.13 | $48.91* | $62,053 |
| Level 6, Team Leader | $1,541.90 | $40.58 | $50.73* | $64,002 |
General
1 July 2026 · PR799299
Clause 14.1. Every other classification in the award: food services, cleaning, laundry, administration, maintenance, gardening and driving.
| Classification | Weekly | Hourly | Casual hourly | Take-home a year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Level 1 | $1,055.40 | $27.77 | $34.71* | $46,799 |
| Level 2 | $1,097.20 | $28.87 | $36.09* | $48,277 |
| Level 3 | $1,139.40 | $29.98 | $37.48* | $49,769 |
| Level 4 | $1,152.80 | $30.34 | $37.93* | $50,243 |
| Level 5 | $1,191.80 | $31.36 | $39.20* | $51,622 |
| Level 6 | $1,256.00 | $33.05 | $41.31* | $53,892 |
| Level 7 | $1,278.60 | $33.65 | $42.06* | $54,691 |
Most senior food services employee
1 July 2026 · PR799299
Clause 14.2. A higher rate at general levels 4 to 7, paid only to the single most senior food services employee engaged by any employer at the facility or site.
| Classification | Weekly | Hourly | Casual hourly | Take-home a year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Level 4 | $1,287.00 | $33.87 | $42.34* | $54,988 |
| Level 5 | $1,330.70 | $35.02 | $43.78* | $56,534 |
| Level 6 | $1,402.50 | $36.91 | $46.14* | $59,072 |
| Level 7 | $1,427.50 | $37.57 | $46.96* | $59,956 |
Take-home is an estimate for a single Australian resident for tax purposes with no study loan debt and no Medicare levy surcharge, worked out with the same Wage Calculator used across this site. Superannuation is paid by your employer on top of these rates and is never deducted from them. A casual rate marked * is not published in the award and is the minimum hourly rate plus the 25% loading.
Which level applies.
The award sets a level by experience, qualification and duties, not by job title. Aged carer experience means previous work as a direct care employee under this award or as a home care employee in aged care.
Direct care, Schedule B.2
| Level | What the award requires | Hourly |
|---|---|---|
| Level 1, Introductory | Less than 3 months of aged carer experience. | $32.61 |
| Level 2, Direct Carer | 3 months or more of aged carer experience. | $34.42 |
| Level 3, Qualified | Holds a Certificate III in Individual Support (Ageing) or an equivalent qualification. | $36.23 |
| Level 4, Senior | Holds that Certificate III or an equivalent, and has 4 years of experience classified at level 3 after 1 January 2025. | $37.68 |
| Level 5, Specialist | Holds a Certificate IV in Ageing Support or an equivalent, which the employer requires for the duties. | $39.13 |
| Level 6, Team Leader | Holds that Certificate IV, required by the employer, and is required to supervise and train other direct care employees. | $40.58 |
A direct care employee classified at level 3 on or before 31 December 2024 and translated to level 2 keeps the higher of the level 2 rate and a retained $1,173.30 a week (Schedule I, I.1.2). The level 2 rate is now $1,307.80, $134.50 a week higher, so the retained rate changes nothing at present.
General, Schedule B.1
| Level | Indicative tasks in the award | Hourly |
|---|---|---|
| Level 1 | Entry level, under 3 months in the industry: general clerk, laundry hand, cleaner, assistant gardener, food services assistant. | $27.77 |
| Level 2 | General clerk or typist (3 months to under 1 year of service), gardener (non-trade), maintenance or handyperson (unqualified), driver (under 3 tonnes). | $28.87 |
| Level 3 | General clerk or typist (second year on), receptionist, pay clerk, driver (under 3 tonnes) who must hold a St John Ambulance first aid certificate, laundry hand, cleaner, cook, food services assistant. | $29.98 |
| Level 4 | Senior clerk, senior receptionist, maintenance or handyperson (qualified), driver (3 tonnes and over), gardener (trade or TAFE Certificate III or above), senior cook (trade). | $30.34 |
| Level 5 | Secretary interpreter (unqualified), chef. | $31.36 |
| Level 6 | Maintenance tradesperson (advanced), gardener (advanced), senior chef. | $33.05 |
| Level 7 | Clerical supervisor, interpreter (qualified), gardener superintendent, general services supervisor, chef or food services supervisor. | $33.65 |
Weekend and public holiday rates.
Ordinary hours on a weekend or public holiday are paid as a percentage of the ordinary hourly rate. For a casual the percentage replaces the 25% loading rather than adding to it, and weekend rates replace the shift loadings for the same hours.
| Ordinary hours on a | Full-time and part-time | Casual | Clause |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday | 150% | 175% | 23.1; 23.2(a) |
| Sunday | 175% | 200% | 23.1; 23.2(b) |
| Public holiday | 250% | 275% | 29.2(a), (b); 29.2(c) |
On a public holiday a full-time or part-time employee elects, when they start and then on each anniversary, between the 250% rate and ordinary pay with the same number of hours added to annual leave. A part-time employee is paid only for public holidays that fall on a day they are normally rostered to work.
| Classification | Full-time and part-time | Casual | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday | Sunday | Public holiday | Saturday | Sunday | Public holiday | |
| Direct care | ||||||
| Level 1, Introductory | $48.92 | $57.07 | $81.53 | $57.07 | $65.22 | $89.68 |
| Level 2, Direct Carer | $51.63 | $60.24 | $86.05 | $60.24 | $68.84 | $94.66 |
| Level 3, Qualified | $54.35 | $63.40 | $90.58 | $63.40 | $72.46 | $99.63 |
| Level 4, Senior | $56.52 | $65.94 | $94.20 | $65.94 | $75.36 | $103.62 |
| Level 5, Specialist | $58.70 | $68.48 | $97.83 | $68.48 | $78.26 | $107.61 |
| Level 6, Team Leader | $60.87 | $71.02 | $101.45 | $71.02 | $81.16 | $111.60 |
| General | ||||||
| Level 1 | $41.66 | $48.60 | $69.43 | $48.60 | $55.54 | $76.37 |
| Level 2 | $43.31 | $50.52 | $72.18 | $50.52 | $57.74 | $79.39 |
| Level 3 | $44.97 | $52.47 | $74.95 | $52.47 | $59.96 | $82.45 |
| Level 4 | $45.51 | $53.10 | $75.85 | $53.10 | $60.68 | $83.44 |
| Level 5 | $47.04 | $54.88 | $78.40 | $54.88 | $62.72 | $86.24 |
| Level 6 | $49.58 | $57.84 | $82.63 | $57.84 | $66.10 | $90.89 |
| Level 7 | $50.48 | $58.89 | $84.13 | $58.89 | $67.30 | $92.54 |
| Most senior food services employee | ||||||
| Level 4 | $50.81 | $59.27 | $84.68 | $59.27 | $67.74 | $93.14 |
| Level 5 | $52.53 | $61.29 | $87.55 | $61.29 | $70.04 | $96.31 |
| Level 6 | $55.37 | $64.59 | $92.28 | $64.59 | $73.82 | $101.50 |
| Level 7 | $56.36 | $65.75 | $93.93 | $65.75 | $75.14 | $103.32 |
Each figure is the hourly rate in the tables above multiplied by the percentage and rounded to the cent. Overtime, afternoon and night shift loadings, broken shifts and sleepovers are paid under other clauses and are not priced here.
Who the Aged Care Award covers.
The Aged Care Award 2010 covers employers in the aged care industry and their employees in the classifications it lists. The award defines the industry as accommodation and care services for aged persons in a hostel, nursing home, aged care independent living units, aged care serviced apartments, a garden settlement, a retirement village or any other residential accommodation facility. It also covers labour hire businesses placing staff with those employers.
A home's non-care staff are on the general stream, whose Schedule B.1 tasks name clerks, cleaners, gardeners and drivers. The Gardening and Landscaping Services Award does not cover employers this award covers (its clause 4.3(a)), so a gardener employed by the home is paid here, from assistant gardener at general level 1, not at the rates on Gardening and Landscaping Award Pay Rates. A driver is general level 2 or 3 under 3 tonnes and level 4 at 3 tonnes and over, a different scale from the road transport grades worked through on Truck Driver Pay Rates.
The Fair Work Ombudsman lists three groups outside it: health professionals such as nurses, physiotherapists and occupational therapists; rehabilitation centres not specifically dealing with aged persons; and home care services provided to aged persons. Home care sits on the SCHADS Award home care aged care scale, at SCHADS Award Pay Rates. Enrolled and registered nurses in aged care are paid under the Nurses Award, at Nurses Award Pay Rates.
The same residential rates, arranged by job and set beside the SCHADS home care scale, are on the Aged Care Worker Pay Rate page. This page is the award itself: every stream and level, the level tests, and the weekend and public holiday rates.
Coverage exclusions from the Fair Work Ombudsman award summary, last updated 18 March 2026.
What changes next.
Checked on 19 September 2026: the award text published by the Fair Work Commission is consolidated to 1 September 2026, the same version these tables were read from. The variation operative from that date changed allowances only: a temporary vehicle allowance increase under clause 15.7(a) from 1 September 2026 to 28 February 2027. Nothing the Commission or the Fair Work Ombudsman had published by then schedules a change to any wage rate on this page before the next Annual Wage Review, whose increases apply from the first full pay period on or after 1 July.
The Commission now lists the aged care work value case among its previous major cases. Its last Aged Care Award determination, PR791119, was issued on 27 August 2025, and the Fair Work Ombudsman records the case’s additional increase for direct care employees from the first full pay period on or after 1 October 2025. The 1 August 2026 rise in that case applied to aged care nurses under the Nurses Award, not to this award.
Where these figures come from.
Provenance
Verified- Award
- Aged Care Award 2010 (MA000018)
- Effective from
- 1 July 2026
- Wage determination
- PR799299
- Consolidated to
- 1 September 2026 (PR813673)
- Award text read
- 6 September 2026, rechecked 19 September 2026
- Weekly rates
- 17 of 17 by two independent reads
- Against the pay guide
- 153 of 153 figures match
- Hourly and casual
- 34 derived, none printed in the award
Every weekly rate was read from the award text at the Fair Work award library twice, once from the tables in clauses 14.1, 14.2, 14.3 and once by searching the raw text for each classification name, and both reads agreed. The award prints no hourly or casual rate and has no rates summary schedule, so the hourly and casual figures are worked out from the weekly rate by the rule in clause 10.4(b), and the weekend and public holiday figures from the percentages in clauses 23 and 29. All of them were then checked against the Fair Work Ombudsman pay guide published 31 August 2026, which prints each one. Nothing here is copied from another pay site.
What this page does not cover.
Listed as plainly as what it does, because a rate page that hides its gaps is how the wrong number ends up on a payslip.
Overtime and shift loadings
Overtime (clause 25), afternoon and night shift loadings (clause 26), broken shifts and sleepovers are set separately in the award and are not priced here.
Allowances
Clause 15 allowances, including the temporary vehicle allowance increase, are not published here.
Apprentices
Cooking, gardening and adult apprentices are paid under clauses 14.4 to 14.6, mostly as a percentage of the general level 4 rate. Those rates are not worked out here.
Old to new classifications
Schedule I maps the direct care levels used until 31 December 2024, and Nurses Award nursing assistants, onto the current levels. That mapping is not reproduced here; its one retained rate is shown above. The nursing assistant translation is on Assistant in Nursing Pay Rate.
Supported wage
Employees with a disability paid under the supported wage system in Schedule C are paid a percentage of these rates, which is not worked out here.
Enterprise agreements
Where a registered agreement applies it replaces the award, and its base rates cannot be lower than the award rates for the same work.
Aged Care Award Pay Rates questions, answered.
What is the Aged Care Award?
The Aged Care Award 2010, code MA000018, is the modern award that sets minimum pay and conditions in the aged care industry: hostels, nursing homes, aged care independent living units, serviced apartments, garden settlements, retirement villages and any other residential accommodation facility for aged persons. It sets 17 minimum weekly rates in three tables: 6 direct care levels, 7 general levels, and a higher rate at general levels 4 to 7 for the most senior food services employee at a site.
What are the Aged Care Award pay rates for 2026-27?
From the first full pay period on or after 1 July 2026, direct care runs from $32.61 an hour ($1,239.00 a week) at level 1, Introductory, to $40.58 an hour at level 6, Team Leader. The general stream runs from $27.77 to $33.65 an hour across levels 1 to 7. A casual adds the 25% loading, so a casual direct carer at level 2 is paid $43.03 an hour. The rise came from the Annual Wage Review 2026, determination PR799299, which the Minimum Wage Increase 2026 page covers.
What is a direct care employee under the Aged Care Award?
An employee whose primary responsibility is to directly provide personal care services to residents under the supervision of a registered or enrolled nurse, or recreational and lifestyle activity services to residents. That includes help with daily living, personal hygiene, emotional care and social support, and clinical care where qualified to give it. Direct care pays more than the general stream at every level it shares with it: $32.61 an hour at direct care level 1 against $27.77 at general level 1.
Is the Aged Care Award 2010 still the current award?
Yes. Many modern awards were remade in 2020 and carry that year in their title, the Nurses Award 2020 among them, but this one kept its original title. It is current and has been varied many times, including by the aged care work value increases between 2023 and 2025 and by the 1 July 2026 rise. The version these tables were read from is consolidated to 1 September 2026 (PR813673).
Does the Aged Care Award cover home care?
No. The Fair Work Ombudsman lists home care services provided to aged persons as outside this award. Aged care delivered in a person's own home is covered by the SCHADS Award on its home care aged care scale, which has its own rates: see SCHADS Award Pay Rates. Experience in home care aged care does count as aged carer experience under this award, which matters for the step from direct care level 1 to level 2.
Are nurses covered by the Aged Care Award?
Registered and enrolled nurses are not. They are covered by the Nurses Award, which carries its own aged care scale, set out at Nurses Award Pay Rates. Nursing assistants are the exception: those in residential aged care who were covered by the Nurses Award before 1 January 2025 have been covered by the Aged Care Award since that date, and keep the more generous Nurses Award annual leave entitlement. Where each one lands, and what that pays against a private hospital, is on Assistant in Nursing Pay Rate. What an enrolled nurse is paid under the Nurses Award, including its aged care scale, is set out on Enrolled Nurse Pay Rate.
What does a casual earn on a weekend under the Aged Care Award?
A casual is paid 175% of the ordinary hourly rate on a Saturday, 200% on a Sunday and 275% on a public holiday. Those percentages replace the 25% casual loading rather than stacking on top of it (clauses 23.3 and 29.2(c)). For a casual direct carer at level 2 that is $60.24, $68.84 and $94.66 an hour.
Where is the Aged Care Award pay guide?
The Fair Work Ombudsman publishes it as a PDF. The current edition was published on 31 August 2026 and applies from 1 September 2026, the day a temporary vehicle allowance increase started. Its wage rates are the 1 July 2026 rates. Every weekly, hourly, casual, Saturday, Sunday and public holiday figure on this page was checked against that edition on 19 September 2026, 153 figures in all, and each one matches. The pay guide also prices overtime, shift loadings and allowances, which this page does not.
Is another aged care award pay rise due in 2026?
None is scheduled for this award as at 19 September 2026. The last Aged Care Award determination in the aged care work value case, PR791119, was issued on 27 August 2025, and the case's additional increase for direct care employees applied from the first full pay period on or after 1 October 2025. The 1 August 2026 work value rise went to aged care nurses under the Nurses Award, not to this award. The only change since 1 July 2026 is a temporary vehicle allowance increase from 1 September 2026 to 28 February 2027, which is not a wage rate. Minimum rates next move with the Annual Wage Review, from the first full pay period on or after 1 July.
How is the most senior food services employee paid?
Clause 14.2 sets a higher rate at general levels 4 to 7 for the single most senior food services employee engaged by any employer at the facility or site. At level 4 that is $1,287.00 a week against $1,152.80 on the ordinary general rate, $134.20 a week more. It attaches to one person per site, not to every senior cook or chef.
See what an award rate leaves you with.
Enter your hourly rate and hours to work out take-home pay for your own roster.
Open the pay calculator