Salary Sacrifice Super Calculator
Compare your projected super balance with and without salary sacrificing, and see the real weekly cost to your take-home pay once the tax savings are factored in.
Your details
Extra super at age 65 from salary sacrificing
$630,371
Super without sacrifice
$1,629,529
Super with sacrifice
$2,259,900
Real cost per week
$68
Using a 4% withdrawal rate, extra retirement income at age 65 from sacrificing
Per week
+$485
Per fortnight
+$970
Per month
+$2,101
Assumes a base salary with super paid on top, private hospital cover, and 2026-27 income tax, Medicare levy and superannuation guarantee settings. Applies the 15% contributions tax to concessional super contributions. Does not account for investment fees, insurance premiums inside super, the concessional contributions cap, or Division 293 tax for high earners. This calculator gives an estimate only and is not financial or tax advice.
How to use this calculator
- 1. Use your current base salary (before any sacrifice) and your current super balance as a starting point.
- 2. Enter how much you'd sacrifice per week, month or year, your current age, and your expected investment growth rate. The projection runs through to age 65.
- 3. The calculator projects your super balance with and without sacrificing to age 65, shows the real cost to your pay, and converts the extra super into weekly, fortnightly and monthly retirement income.
FAQ
Why is the 'real cost' lower than the amount I sacrifice?
Because salary sacrifice comes out of your pay before income tax and the Medicare levy are calculated. You lose the sacrificed amount from your take-home pay, but you also stop paying tax on it at your marginal rate, so the actual hit to your bank account is smaller than the sacrifice itself.
Why does super only grow by 85% of what's contributed?
Concessional contributions, including salary sacrifice and your employer's super guarantee, are taxed at 15% when they land in your super fund. This calculator applies that 15% contributions tax before projecting investment growth.
Does having a HECS-HELP debt change the result?
It changes the take-home comparison, not the super projection. HECS-HELP repayment income adds reportable super contributions back, so sacrificing more doesn't reduce what you owe. Toggle this on if it applies to you to see an accurate real cost.
What about the concessional contributions cap?
Your salary sacrifice plus your employer's super guarantee contributions together can't exceed $32,500 for 2026-27 without extra tax applying to the excess. This calculator doesn't check your total against that cap, use the Salary & Take-Home Pay calculator to check.
How is the extra retirement income calculated?
It applies a 4% withdrawal rate to the extra super balance from sacrificing, the same rule of thumb used in our Retirement Savings calculator. It's a simplification: real drawdown depends on your account-based pension rules, investment returns in retirement, and how long your balance needs to last, not a fixed percentage.
Related reading
Transition to Retirement (TTR): How the Strategy Actually Works
How a transition to retirement strategy actually works, the two common ways people use it, a worked example, and the tax nuance most explainers get wrong.
What Is Superannuation? A Complete Beginner's Guide
What superannuation actually is, how contributions and tax work, and what happens to your super when you change jobs, explained in plain English.
Salary Sacrifice Super: How It Works (And Is It Worth It?)
How salary sacrificing into super actually reduces your tax bill, the concessional cap limit to watch, and whether it's worth it for your situation.
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Disclaimer
This calculator assumes a base salary with the 12% superannuation guarantee paid on top, private hospital cover, and applies 2026-27 Australian resident individual income tax brackets, the Medicare levy, and 15% contributions tax on concessional super contributions. It does not account for investment fees, insurance premiums inside super, the concessional contributions cap, Division 293 tax for high earners, or changes to your salary over the projection period. Investment returns are assumed to be constant and are not guaranteed. This tool provides estimates only and is not financial, tax or legal advice. Consider speaking with a licensed financial adviser or registered tax agent.