Superannuation Guarantee Calculator: What Super Your Employer Owes

How the Super Guarantee works

The Super Guarantee (SG) is the compulsory super your employer pays into your fund. It is 12% of your ordinary time earnings, paid on top of your salary. On $80,000 of ordinary time earnings, that is $9,600 a year going into your super, or $2,400 a quarter. This calculator does the same sum the ATO and MoneySmart employer calculators do, and breaks it down per week, fortnight, month, quarter and year.

The rate rose to 12% on 1 July 2025, the last step in the legislated schedule, so it is 12% for both the 2025-26 and 2026-27 financial years. Super is on top of your pay unless your contract quotes a total package that already includes it, so it is worth checking whether your salary is stated as “plus super” or as a total remuneration figure.

What counts as ordinary time earnings

Super Guarantee is calculated on ordinary time earnings (OTE), not your total pay. OTE is what you earn for your ordinary hours of work, plus most over-award payments, shift loadings, commissions, allowances and bonuses. It generally excludes overtime hours paid at penalty rates. If most of your pay is ordinary hours, your OTE and your gross salary are usually the same figure.

The maximum super contribution base

There is a ceiling on the earnings that compulsory super is paid on, called the maximum super contribution base. For 2025-26 it is $62,500 per quarter, so an employer does not have to pay SG on earnings above that in a quarter. For 2026-27 it moves to an annual figure of $270,830, in line with the shift to paying super on payday. If you earn above the base, the calculator caps the super at that ceiling and flags it. Most people earn below it, so the full 12% applies to all of their pay.

Frequently asked questions