Nick Shepherd
Founder and Managing Director
Desk Product, QA, Project and Delivery
Quality Assurance salaries, 2026
2 to 4% salary growth across the discipline
Automation expertise is now mandatory and manual testing is declining as AI tools advance. Performance, security and accessibility testing specialists command a 10 to 15% premium. The contract market here is significantly oversupplied.
6 titles, base salary
AUD per year, before super. The bar shows each range on the same scale as the whole guide ($70k to $450k). The day rate is the guide's own formula, annual × 1.35 ÷ 220, on the midpoint. Treat it as a floor, not a market rate.
Title and rangeMinimum day rate
Head of QA$200k+
From $1,230/dayQA Manager$170k–$190k
$1,100/daySenior Automation Engineer$140k–$192k
$1,020/daySenior QA Engineer$125k–$158k
$870/dayAutomation Engineer$109k–$147k
$790/dayQA Engineer$107k–$143k
$770/dayHiring in Quality Assurance?
No Quality Assurance roles are live today. See all 10 live roles, or send a brief or your CV either way.
Likely desk for this area
Figures as tekFinder publishes them (2026 Salary Guide and Market Report), read 23 October 2026.