Software Engineer salary: Sydney vs Melbourne
Sydney leads on finance and finance-adjacent tech; Melbourne leads on creative and consumer-tech roles. Salaries cluster close.
Software Engineer median · Sydney
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AU · live Adzuna
Software Engineer median · Melbourne
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AU · live Adzuna
Sydney market
Sydney hosts the largest tech, fintech and professional services market in Australia, with a strong concentration of US tech APAC HQs (Atlassian HQ, Canva, Google, Salesforce). Salaries quoted in AUD; senior tech roles match or exceed London on a take-home basis.
Melbourne market
Melbourne is Australia's second tech hub, anchored by financial services, retail tech and a growing AI ecosystem. Salaries sit broadly with Sydney for senior roles; cost of living is materially lower.
Software Engineer salary in Sydney (full report)
Percentiles, contract day rate, side-income context.
Software Engineer salary in Melbourne (full report)
Percentiles, contract day rate, side-income context.
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