Locum paramedic
Low $45.00Typical $65.00High $120.00
Rate benchmark
Locum paramedic rates Australia 2026
$65.00typical per hour
Indicative pay ranges for Australian locum paramedics in the current financial year. What's typical, what drives variance, and how to benchmark your own rate against the market.
Ledger | Indicative 2026 range
Low, typical, and high.
State ambulance EBA base is $80k to $95k/yr for Paramedic and $100k to $120k/yr for Intensive Care Paramedic, an hourly base of $38 to $55 before penalties. Event casual work (St John NSW and similar) pays $51 to $58/hr. Casual mine or event registered paramedic $65 to $70/hr. Permanent FIFO mine-site roles package $100k to $190k/yr on 2:1 or 2:2 rosters. Aeromedical and retrieval ICP-grade work sits at $120k+ package. The locum market is thin: most off-schedule work is casual pool or contractor FIFO, not ad-hoc shift.
| Rangeper hour | LowIndicative | TypicalIndicative | HighIndicative |
|---|---|---|---|
| Indicative 2026 range (per hour) | $45.00 | $65.00 | $120.00 |
Indicative 2026 range (per hour)
Figures are educated estimates. Sources include: Paramedicine Board of Australia (AHPRA) scope guidance; Australasian College of Paramedicine (ACP) guidance; State ambulance EBAs (NSW Ambulance, AV, QAS, SAAS, SJWA, TasAmbulance); Event-medic agency published rates (St John Ambulance commercial, Paramedical Services). Real rates vary by individual contract and market conditions. Sessional doesn't guarantee any specific rate and your individual outcome depends on your negotiation and the workplaces you work with.
01 | Market context
05Rate driversWhat drives the variance
Geography: Regional and remote postings (higher MMM areas) often run 10 to 30% above metro rates to attract cover. Capital-city metros sit near the national mean; rates compress where supply is deepest.
Urgency: Last-minute cover pays more. Workplaces covering a sudden gap often pay 20 to 30% above their standard rate.
Specialty: Out-of-hours, unplanned care, specialist wards, and complex caseload all uplift the base rate.
Volume: Regular weekly bookings are usually offered at a lower rate than ad-hoc shifts in exchange for certainty.
Route to market: Direct bookings pay more than agency routes because no one takes a cut.
02 | Your ledger
04Benchmarking stepsHow to benchmark your own rate
Write down the last ten bookings you accepted and the rate you charged or received.
Break them down by region, urgency, and duration.
Compare each against the typical range above. If you are consistently at or below the low end on standard bookings, you are probably underpriced.
Next time you are asked for your rate on a standard booking at a regional or hard-to-fill workplace, quote the typical figure from the headline above and see what happens. A refusal tells you about the booking, not your rate.
03 | 40 cities
Look up your city
01Locum paramedic in Sydney02Locum paramedic in Melbourne03Locum paramedic in Brisbane04Locum paramedic in Perth05Locum paramedic in Adelaide06Locum paramedic in Canberra07Locum paramedic in Gold Coast08Locum paramedic in Newcastle09Locum paramedic in Sunshine Coast10Locum paramedic in Wollongong11Locum paramedic in Geelong12Locum paramedic in Hobart13Locum paramedic in Cairns14Locum paramedic in Townsville15Locum paramedic in Darwin16Locum paramedic in Ballarat17Locum paramedic in Bendigo18Locum paramedic in Toowoomba19Locum paramedic in Launceston20Locum paramedic in Albury-Wodonga21Locum paramedic in Orange22Locum paramedic in Rockhampton23Locum paramedic in Mackay24Locum paramedic in Pilbara25Locum paramedic in Far North Queensland26Locum paramedic in Regional Northern Territory27Locum paramedic in Central Coast28Locum paramedic in Wagga Wagga29Locum paramedic in Dubbo30Locum paramedic in Tamworth31Locum paramedic in Port Macquarie32Locum paramedic in Coffs Harbour33Locum paramedic in Lismore34Locum paramedic in Mildura35Locum paramedic in Shepparton36Locum paramedic in Warrnambool37Locum paramedic in Bundaberg38Locum paramedic in Mount Gambier39Locum paramedic in Alice Springs40Locum paramedic in Broome
Last revised 24 April 2026
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