The bands
These are the ranges I see in the Australian market. Treat the low end as a smaller or simpler business and the top end as a complex, high-growth or listed environment.
| Typical range | What moves you through it | |
|---|---|---|
| Senior Accountant | $120-140k + super | Completing the duties independently and to a high standard. First movers out of audit generally land below this at $105-120k + super. |
| Financial Analyst | $110-150k + super | Owning a forecast rather than a schedule of one. Industry, business size and location move it inside the range. |
| Finance Business Partner | $120-180k + super | A genuine partnering remit and the city. Sydney sits at the top of the band, Melbourne and Brisbane below it. |
| Finance Manager | $140-170k + super | Team size and whether the role owns the close end to end or just parts of it. |
| Financial Controller | $160-200k + super | Business complexity: multi-entity, audit, systems change or a group structure all push it up. |
| CFO / SVP Finance | $250-350k + equity | Stage. A Series B business hiring a proper executive should expect $325-375k plus equity. |
Some of those numbers are worth stating precisely. Senior Accountant duties completed independently and to a high standard justify $120-140k plus super.[1] Current ranges are $140-170k plus super for a Finance Manager and $160-200k plus super for a Financial Controller, depending on industry, business size and complexity, and location.[2] A Financial Analyst typically runs $110k to $150k plus super on the same caveats.[3]
The CFO end of the market
The CFO / SVP Finance band is $250-350k plus equity in 2026.[4] For a Series B business, founders should expect to pay $325-375k plus equity for a proper executive hire, someone who has typically raised capital, hired a team and sat in a board meeting before.[5] Interim mandates sit high too. A recent interim CFO role I recruited offered up to $350k plus super, with flexibility for an outstanding candidate.[6]
Equity is the part most candidates undervalue and most founders overvalue. Presenting an offer as an economic outcomes table, showing a clear salary versus equity trade-off, lets a candidate choose their own exposure and helps an early-stage company manage cash burn.[7] If you are offered equity without that framing, ask for it.
I break the CFO end down further by stage, from seed through to pre-IPO, with what founders actually pay at each point here.
Where the city differences show up
Location matters most in the middle of the market. Finance Business Partner salaries typically run $125k to $180k in Sydney, $120k to $165k in Melbourne, and $120k to $170k in Brisbane.[8][9][10] Sydney leads Australia in both the volume of these roles and the pay, driven by demand and cost of living.[11]
If you are moving out of audit, calibrate before you negotiate. For audit first movers, almost all commercial roles sit in the $105k to $120k plus super bracket.[12] That is a flat move for many people, and it buys commercial exposure that pays back later.
How to actually use a band
A benchmark tells you the range. What it will not tell you is where in that range you sit, and that argument is yours to make. Finance professionals operating at a high strategic level should negotiate based on their judgement and strategic value, not just technical skills, because discerning founders will pay for the peace of mind of having finance in capable hands.[13]
If you are hiring rather than negotiating, the same numbers work in reverse. Salary benchmarking is one of the things I give founders and CFOs for free, alongside role design advice and market trends, long before any commercial conversation.[14] Getting the band wrong at the top of a search is what produces an empty pipeline three weeks in.
If you are preparing to ask for a rise, I go through what actually moves the number and what does not here.
Where these numbers come from
I recruit two hire types: the first finance hire at a startup, usually a Head of Finance or Financial Controller at 10 to 20 headcount and $5-10M ARR or less, and the first CFO at 50-plus heads and $10M-plus ARR.[15] The bands here come from the roles I run and the conversations around them, so they are strongest in the Australian startup and scale-up market and should be sense-checked against a listed or enterprise environment.
Common questions
What do finance roles pay in Australia in 2026?
Broad bands, all plus superannuation: Senior Accountant $120-140k, Financial Analyst $110-150k, Finance Business Partner $120-180k depending on city, Finance Manager $140-170k, Financial Controller $160-200k, and CFO or SVP Finance $250-350k plus equity. A Series B business hiring a proper executive CFO should expect $325-375k plus equity. Every band moves with industry, business size and complexity, and location.
How much does location change finance salaries in Australia?
Most in the middle of the market. Finance Business Partner salaries typically run $125k to $180k in Sydney, $120k to $165k in Melbourne and $120k to $170k in Brisbane. Sydney leads the country on both the volume of these roles and the pay, driven by demand and cost of living. At the executive end the gap narrows, because the band is set more by business stage and complexity than by city.
How should I use a salary guide in a negotiation?
Use it to establish the range, then argue your position within it. Finance professionals operating at a high strategic level should negotiate on their judgement and strategic value rather than technical skills alone, because discerning founders will pay for the peace of mind that comes from having finance in capable hands. If equity is part of the package, ask for it as an economic outcomes table so you can see the salary versus equity trade-off clearly.
How much should a founder budget for a first finance hire?
For a first finance hire at 10 to 20 headcount, usually a Head of Finance or Financial Controller, budget in the $160-200k plus super range depending on complexity. For a first CFO at 50-plus heads and $10 million-plus ARR, the band is $250-350k plus equity, rising to $325-375k plus equity at Series B for someone who has raised capital, hired a team and sat in board meetings. Getting the band wrong at the start of a search is the most common cause of an empty pipeline.
References
- Tom Hunter on Senior Accountant pay: for individuals completing the duties independently and to a high standard, a salary increase to the $120-140k plus superannuation range is reasonable.
- Tom Hunter on current Australian market ranges: $140-170k plus super for a Finance Manager and $160-200k plus super for a Financial Controller, dependent on industry, business size and complexity, and location.
- Story Recruitment market data: the typical salary for a Financial Analyst ranges from $110k to $150k plus super.
- Story Recruitment 2026 salary banding: CFO / SVP Finance at $250-350k plus equity.
- Tom Hunter on Series B CFO pay: founders should expect $325-375k plus equity for a proper executive hire, who has typically raised capital, hired a team, and sat in a board meeting before.
- Story Recruitment interim CFO mandate: a salary of up to $350k plus super, with flexibility for outstanding candidates.
- Tom Hunter on equity offers: presenting them via an economic outcomes table lets employees choose their own equity exposure through a clear salary versus equity trade-off, which can reduce salary costs and cash burn for early-stage companies.
- Story Recruitment 2025 salary data: typical Finance Business Partner salaries in Sydney range from $125k to $180k.
- Story Recruitment 2025 salary data: typical Finance Business Partner salaries in Melbourne range from $120k to $165k.
- Story Recruitment 2025 salary data: typical Finance Business Partner salaries in Brisbane range from $120k to $170k.
- Story Recruitment market data: Sydney leads Australia in both the volume of Finance Business Partner roles and pay, driven by demand and cost of living.
- Tom Hunter on audit first movers in Australia: almost all commercial roles sit in the $105k to $120k plus super bracket.
- Tom Hunter on negotiating at a senior level: finance professionals operating strategically should negotiate on their judgement and strategic value, not just technical skills, because discerning founders will pay for the peace of mind of having finance in capable hands.
- Tom Hunter on the free support he provides CFOs and founders: salary benchmarking to ensure they attract the right calibre of candidate, support with ad writing and positioning, and introductions to external providers, offered long before any commercial conversation.
- Story Recruitment's two hire types: the first finance hire in a startup (Head of Finance or Financial Controller, 10 to 20 headcount, $5 to $10 million ARR or less) and the first CFO hire (50-plus heads, $10 million-plus ARR).