Payday Super cost calculator

Estimate what paying super with every pay run costs your business compared with paying quarterly or monthly, and what one late payday could cost under the new charge.

Figures checked 5 November 2026. Free to use, no sign-in.

Your team

$

Before tax, per employee.

Before and after

How you paid super before 1 July 2026
How often you run pay

Your costs

%

What the money earns in the bank, or costs on an overdraft, a year.

hours
$

Your estimate

Estimated yearly cost of Payday Super

$2,633

Compared with paying super quarterly: interest forgone plus extra admin.

Super a year
$187,200
Interest forgone
$1,313
Extra admin
$1,320

Cash flow

Annual wages
$1,560,000
Super guarantee (12%)
$187,200
Days super is held before (quarterly)
73
Days super is held under Payday Super
9
Interest forgone at 4%
$1,312.96

If one payday’s super is paid late

Super for one pay run, all employees
$7,200.00
Notional earnings (30 days at the general interest charge rate)
$68.43
Administrative uplift (40%)
$2,907.37
Super guarantee charge
$10,175.80
  • Cash flow: each dollar of super is assumed to leave the business 9 days after payday (7 business days), instead of about 73 days on average when paid quarterly at the deadline.
  • Extra admin: 22 more super payments a year at your admin time and cost. Clearing-house or software fees are not included.
  • The charge example uses the ATO’s rates for October to December 2026 and assumes no ATO-initiated charge in the past 2 years and no voluntary disclosure. A 25% choice loading applies on top if choice-of-fund rules were not followed.

An estimate for planning, not tax or financial advice. The ATO calculates and assesses any super guarantee charge.

How this works

Payday Super moves super out of your bank account sooner. The calculator puts a dollar figure on that and on the extra admin.

  • Super a year: employees × average weekly pay × 52 × 12%, with each employee capped at the 2026–27 maximum contribution base of $270,830.
  • Interest forgone: super a year × your interest rate × the days you no longer hold the money ÷ 365. Paying quarterly at the deadline held super for about 73 days on average (wages paid mid-quarter plus 28 days); paying monthly, about 43 days; under Payday Super, about 9 calendar days (7 business days).
  • Extra admin: the extra super payments a year (one per pay run, less the 4 or 12 you made before) × your admin hours × hourly cost.
  • Late payment example: one pay run’s super unpaid for every employee. Payday Monday 2 November 2026, due Wednesday 11 November 2026, assessed 30 days after the due date. Notional earnings use the October–December 2026 general interest charge daily rate of 0.03153425%, and the administrative uplift is 40%.

Not included: clearing-house or software fees, the 25% choice loading, the general interest charge on an unpaid charge, and any tax effect.

Legal basis

Checked against these sources on 5 November 2026. Spotted a figure that looks wrong? Tell us.

Questions

What is Payday Super?

From 1 July 2026, employers must pay super guarantee for each payday instead of each quarter. The contribution must reach the employee’s super fund within 7 business days after the day you pay their wages.

Is there more time for a new employee?

Yes. The first contribution for a new employee, or to a new fund for an existing employee, must be received within 20 business days after payday.

What counts as a business day?

Any day except a Saturday, a Sunday, or a public holiday that applies to the whole of any Australian state or territory, even one you don’t operate in. A holiday in only part of a state, such as Melbourne Cup Day, is still a business day.

What happens if super is paid late?

The ATO assesses a super guarantee charge for that payday: the unpaid super, notional earnings at the general interest charge rate compounded daily, an administrative uplift of up to 60% (less for employers with no recent ATO-initiated assessment or who make a voluntary disclosure), and a 25% choice loading if the choice-of-fund rules weren’t followed.

Is the super guarantee charge tax-deductible?

For paydays from 1 July 2026, yes: all four components of the charge are deductible. General interest charge on a late-paid charge, and late payment penalties, are not.

Related tools

All tools
CalculatorPayroll tax calculatorEstimate annual payroll tax for 2026–27 in any Australian state or territory, including each jurisdiction’s threshold, deduction taper and rate tiers.Open calculator CalculatorSuper guarantee charge calculatorEstimate the super guarantee charge on late or unpaid super: per payday under Payday Super from 1 July 2026, or per quarter for periods to 30 June 2026.Open calculator CalculatorPayday Super deadline calculatorFind the date a super fund must receive an employee’s super for a payday under Payday Super: 7 or 20 business days, with every state’s public holidays counted.Open calculator

Questions the calculator can’t answer?

Workfloor answers pay, award, leave and termination questions for your team, with the Fair Work Act section or award clause behind each answer.

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