Self-Employed Painter Hourly Rate in Australia
Build a sole-trader charge-out from real costs, not a recycled average.
A self-employed painter hourly rate in Australia should be a charge-out built from your costs, not a recycled average. Cover drawings, overheads, non-billable time and profit, then spread that across the hours you actually bill. Use the calculator below with your own numbers.
General information for Australian painting businesses, not legal, financial, tax or safety advice. Rules change and vary by state or territory. Confirm anything you rely on with the relevant regulator (the ATO and ACCC) before acting.
Why hourly rate is not take-home pay
Searching for a single “painter hourly rate” usually returns someone else’s marketing figure. As a sole trader you set a charge-out: the rate a client pays so the business still works after costs and downtime. Take-home is what is left after that.
Charge-out formula for sole traders
(Drawings + on-costs + overheads + profit) ÷ billable hours per year = charge-out per hour. Billable hours are lower than the hours you work. Quoting, travel and weather do not go on the invoice unless you price them in.
On-costs and overheads to include
| Include | Why |
|---|---|
| Your drawings / equivalent wage | What you need to take home before tax planning |
| Super (if you employ staff) | Super guarantee is 12% of ordinary time earnings from 1 July 2025 (ATO) |
| Workers compensation | Compulsory when you have employees; state schemes differ |
| Public liability and tools | Insurance that keeps you on site |
| Vehicle, phone, shed, software | Overheads spread across billable hours |
| Non-billable time | Quotes, travel, admin, weather, chasing payment |
| Profit / buffer | The margin the business must return after costs |
Set your rate
Enter your real costs:
Hourly vs per m²
Once the hourly charge-out is solid, convert it to per-m² rates for the surfaces you paint, or keep hourly for messy prep jobs. Painter rates method →
Common undercharging mistakes
- Copying a mate’s rate without knowing their overheads or utilisation.
- Ignoring quote and travel time when counting billable hours.
- Confusing markup with margin when adding profit.
- Forgetting GST presentation rules on consumer-facing prices.
Frequently asked questions
What should a self-employed painter charge per hour?
There is no single honest national figure. Build a charge-out from your drawings, overheads, non-billable time and profit target, then check it against the market. The calculator on this page does that maths from your numbers.
Why is charge-out higher than a wage?
A wage ignores overheads, downtime, insurance, tools and profit. Charge-out recovers the full cost of being in business across the hours you actually bill.
Should GST be in the hourly rate?
If you are registered for GST, a price shown to a consumer must be a single GST-inclusive total under Australian Consumer Law. You can still track an ex-GST charge-out internally; lead with the inclusive figure for homeowners.
Hourly vs m² pricing?
Per-m² is fast on standard surfaces. Hourly protects you on heavy prep and awkward access. Many painters quote per m² but sanity-check the total against hours times charge-out.