See how much tax you can save by sacrificing salary into superannuation.
Updated October 2026Built and checked by MaverickHow it's calculatedReport an error
Super boost
$4,250
After 15% contribution tax
Take-home loss
$3,400
Less in your pocket
Tax saved
$850
Income tax and Medicare vs super taxes
Concessional cap used
$19,400
of $32,500, incl. $14,400 SG
Total bar height = gross income. Sacrifice converts tax (red) into super (green).
Salary sacrifice means having part of your pre-tax salary paid into super instead of to you. Your fund pays 15% contributions tax on it instead of the money being taxed at your marginal rate, which can be up to 45% plus the 2% Medicare levy. This calculator compares your take-home pay, super and total tax with and without the sacrifice, using 2026-27 tax rates, and checks it against the concessional cap together with your employer's super guarantee.
Across 50 MySuper products, the typical return over the ten years to 30 June 2026 was 8.0% a year after fees and tax, and the typical fee on a $50,000 balance was $408 a year, from APRA's data.
Alex earns $90,000 and sacrifices $5,000.
Alex's top dollars are taxed at 30% plus the 2% Medicare levy, while super takes 15%, so the $5,000 saves $850 in tax. Take-home pay falls by $3,400 and super gains $4,250. With his $10,800 of SG, he uses $15,800 of the cap.
Sam earns $220,000 and sacrifices $6,000.
Sam's SG is $26,400, leaving $6,100 of the concessional cap. Sacrificing $6,000 of income taxed at 45% plus the Medicare levy saves $1,920 in tax. Income plus contributions stays under $250,000, so Division 293 doesn't apply.