Building a finance team is a critical milestone for growing Australian businesses, typically occurring between $2 million and $20 million in annual revenue. Understanding the true cost of finance team salaries, including superannuation, recruitment, training, and overhead, is essential for budget planning and evaluating alternatives to full-time hires.
Finance team salary costs in Australia range from $78,000 annually for a single bookkeeper to over $500,000 annually for a complete team including bookkeeper, accountant, finance manager, and CFO. These figures exclude recruitment costs averaging $15,000 to $30,000 per hire, software subscriptions, office space, and productivity ramp-up periods.
This guide breaks down finance team salary costs by role, oncosts, and business size, helping Australian businesses plan realistic budgets for building internal finance capability and compare against outsourced alternatives.
Finance teams evolve through predictable stages as businesses grow, with each role serving distinct functions and commanding different salary levels in the Australian market.
Bookkeepers handle transaction recording, bank reconciliation, accounts payable and receivable, payroll processing, and BAS preparation. They are typically the first finance hire for businesses between $1 million and $5 million revenue.
According to SEEK salary data for 2026, bookkeepers in Australia earn $60,000 to $75,000 annually depending on experience and location. Sydney and Melbourne bookkeepers average $68,000 to $75,000, while regional areas average $60,000 to $68,000. Part-time bookkeepers at 20 to 30 hours weekly cost $35,000 to $50,000 annually.
Including 11.5 percent superannuation, total employment cost is $67,900 to $83,625 annually or $5,658 to $6,969 per month. Add annual leave at 4 weeks valued at $4,615 to $5,769, sick leave at 10 days valued at $2,308 to $2,885, and public holidays at 11 days valued at $2,538 to $3,173. Software subscriptions for Xero and payroll tools add $1,500 to $3,000 annually.
Melbourne Retail Store at $3 million revenue hires a bookkeeper at $70,000 annually plus $8,050 superannuation, totalling $78,050 per year. Including leave entitlements valued at $10,000 and software at $2,000, the true cost is $90,050 annually or $7,504 per month for transaction processing and basic compliance.
Accountants manage tax compliance, financial statement preparation, audit coordination, regulatory reporting, and provide technical accounting advice. They join finance teams at businesses between $3 million and $10 million revenue when bookkeepers cannot handle increasing compliance complexity.
Accountants in Australia earn $70,000 to $95,000 annually according to SEEK. Sydney and Melbourne accountants with CA or CPA qualifications average $80,000 to $95,000, while regional accountants average $70,000 to $80,000. Senior accountants with 5 plus years experience earn $90,000 to $110,000.
Including 11.5 percent superannuation, total employment cost is $78,050 to $105,925 annually or $6,504 to $8,827 per month. Add leave entitlements valued at $12,000 to $16,000 annually and professional membership fees at $1,000 to $2,000.
Sydney Manufacturing Company at $8 million revenue employs an accountant at $85,000 annually plus $9,775 superannuation, totalling $94,775. Including leave at $14,000, memberships at $1,500, and dedicated software at $2,500, total cost is $112,775 annually or $9,398 per month for tax compliance and financial statement oversight.
Finance managers oversee bookkeeping and accounting teams, manage budgeting and forecasting, analyse financial performance, implement systems and controls, and support business decision-making. They typically join at businesses between $5 million and $20 million revenue requiring dedicated financial analysis and team coordination.
Finance managers in Australia earn $100,000 to $140,000 annually. Sydney and Melbourne finance managers with 7 plus years experience average $120,000 to $140,000, while regional managers average $100,000 to $120,000. Senior finance managers at larger businesses earn $130,000 to $160,000.
Including 11.5 percent superannuation, total employment cost is $111,500 to $156,100 annually or $9,292 to $13,008 per month. Add leave entitlements valued at $18,000 to $24,000 annually, professional development at $3,000 to $5,000, and recruitment costs at $20,000 to $30,000.
Brisbane Services Business at $12 million revenue hires a finance manager at $125,000 annually plus $14,375 superannuation, totalling $139,375. Including leave at $21,000, training at $4,000, software at $3,000, and amortised recruitment costs of $5,000 annually, total cost is $172,375 annually or $14,365 per month for financial management and team oversight.
CFOs provide strategic financial planning, capital raising support, investor and board reporting, risk management, M&A and business development guidance, and executive-level decision support. They join businesses above $10 million revenue requiring sophisticated financial strategy and external stakeholder management.
CFOs in Australia earn $150,000 to $280,000 annually, with significant variation by business size. Businesses $10 million to $30 million revenue pay $150,000 to $200,000. Businesses $30 million to $100 million revenue pay $200,000 to $250,000. Businesses above $100 million revenue pay $250,000 to $350,000 plus.
Including 11.5 percent superannuation, total employment cost is $167,250 to $312,200 annually or $13,938 to $26,017 per month. Add leave entitlements valued at $25,000 to $45,000 annually, executive coaching at $5,000 to $10,000, professional memberships at $2,000 to $3,000, and recruitment costs at $30,000 to $60,000.
Perth Tech Company at $25 million revenue employs a CFO at $190,000 annually plus $21,850 superannuation, totalling $211,850. Including leave at $32,000, coaching at $8,000, memberships at $2,500, software at $5,000, and amortised recruitment of $10,000 annually, total cost is $269,350 annually or $22,446 per month for strategic financial leadership.
Base salaries represent only 60 to 70 percent of true employment costs. Australian businesses must budget for statutory and discretionary oncosts when building finance teams.
Superannuation guarantee at 11.5 percent of ordinary time earnings adds $6,900 to $32,200 annually depending on salary level. Workers compensation insurance varies by state and industry but typically adds 1 to 3 percent of payroll, or $600 to $8,400 annually. Payroll tax applies in most states once total wages exceed thresholds ranging from $700,000 in Victoria to $2 million in Western Australia, adding 4.75 to 6.85 percent of wages above thresholds.
Annual leave at 4 weeks adds 7.7 percent to salary costs, worth $4,600 to $21,500 annually. Personal sick leave at 10 days adds 3.8 percent, worth $2,300 to $10,600 annually. Public holidays at 11 days add 4.2 percent, worth $2,500 to $11,700 annually. Long service leave accrues at 0.87 weeks per year after 7 to 10 years depending on state, adding 1.7 percent or $1,000 to $4,700 annually for eligible employees.
Combined leave entitlements add 17.4 percent to base salaries, or $10,400 to $48,500 annually per employee.
External recruitment through agencies costs 15 to 25 percent of first year salary, or $9,000 to $70,000 per hire depending on seniority. Job advertising and applicant tracking systems cost $500 to $2,000 per hire. Interview time from senior staff costs $1,000 to $3,000 in lost productivity. Onboarding and training for first 3 months costs $5,000 to $15,000 in reduced productivity and trainer time.
Total recruitment and onboarding costs average $15,000 to $90,000 per finance hire, typically amortised over 3 to 5 years for budgeting purposes, adding $3,000 to $18,000 annually to employment costs.
Accounting software like Xero or MYOB costs $50 to $150 per user monthly or $600 to $1,800 annually. Reporting and BI tools like Power BI or Spotlight cost $100 to $500 per user monthly or $1,200 to $6,000 annually. Payroll software like Employment Hero costs $5 to $15 per employee monthly. Computer hardware and monitors cost $2,000 to $4,000 upfront plus $500 annually for replacement reserves. Office space at $500 to $1,200 per square metre annually in metro areas costs $5,000 to $12,000 per employee.
Technology and infrastructure add $10,000 to $25,000 annually per finance team member.
CPA Australia or Chartered Accountants ANZ membership costs $800 to $1,500 annually. Continuing professional development required for certification costs $2,000 to $5,000 annually in courses and conferences. Professional subscriptions to accounting publications cost $500 to $1,000 annually. Industry networking and events cost $1,000 to $3,000 annually for senior roles.
Professional development adds $4,300 to $10,500 annually per finance professional.
Finance team composition and costs scale predictably with business revenue, though individual circumstances vary based on complexity and industry.
Businesses in this range typically employ one part-time or full-time bookkeeper handling all transaction processing, basic reporting, and BAS preparation. External tax accountant provides annual compliance at $3,000 to $6,000 per year.
Total annual cost is $85,000 to $100,000 including bookkeeper at $75,000 all-inclusive, software at $4,000, external accountant at $5,000, and recruitment amortised at $3,000.
Canberra Consulting Firm at $2.5 million revenue employs a full-time bookkeeper at $68,000 plus oncosts totalling $88,000 annually, and pays an external accountant $4,500 for tax returns and planning. Total finance function cost is $92,500 annually or 3.7 percent of revenue.
Businesses in this range employ a bookkeeper for transactions and an accountant for compliance, reporting, and system oversight. The accountant may manage the bookkeeper and coordinate external advisors.
Total annual cost is $180,000 to $230,000 including bookkeeper at $90,000 all-inclusive, accountant at $110,000 all-inclusive, software at $8,000, external advisors at $10,000, and recruitment amortised at $5,000.
Adelaide Manufacturing Company at $7 million revenue employs a bookkeeper at $72,000 salary and an accountant at $88,000 salary. Including all oncosts, leave, software, and external tax advisors, total finance cost is $215,000 annually or 3.1 percent of revenue.
Businesses in this range employ a bookkeeper, accountant, finance manager, and potentially a part-time or fractional CFO. The finance manager leads the team with CFO-level support for strategy.
Total annual cost is $380,000 to $550,000 including bookkeeper at $90,000 all-inclusive, accountant at $115,000 all-inclusive, finance manager at $175,000 all-inclusive, fractional CFO at $60,000 to $120,000 annually for 1 to 2 days weekly, software at $15,000, and recruitment amortised at $8,000.
Sydney Retail Chain at $22 million revenue employs a bookkeeper at $71,000 salary, accountant at $89,000 salary, and finance manager at $128,000 salary, plus engages a fractional CFO at $90,000 annually for 1.5 days weekly. Total finance cost is $485,000 annually or 2.2 percent of revenue, providing comprehensive financial management and strategic planning capability.
Businesses in this range employ full finance teams including bookkeepers, accountants, finance manager, financial controller, and full-time CFO. Larger teams may include financial analysts and FP&A specialists.
Total annual cost is $650,000 to $1,200,000 including 2 bookkeepers at $180,000 all-inclusive, 2 accountants at $230,000 all-inclusive, finance manager at $180,000 all-inclusive, financial controller at $200,000 all-inclusive, CFO at $280,000 all-inclusive, software at $30,000, and recruitment amortised at $15,000.
Melbourne Manufacturing Business at $60 million revenue employs 6 finance staff with total employment costs of $920,000 annually or 1.5 percent of revenue, providing sophisticated financial reporting, analysis, treasury management, and strategic planning.
Beyond direct employment costs, businesses face additional expenses when building internal finance capability.
Average tenure for finance professionals in Australia is 3 to 5 years. Turnover costs include recruitment at $15,000 to $90,000, knowledge loss during transition, training new hires over 3 to 6 months, and productivity gaps while positions remain vacant. Total turnover cost averages 50 to 150 percent of annual salary, or $30,000 to $420,000 per departure depending on seniority.
Perth Services Company lost their finance manager after 3 years, incurring $28,000 recruitment costs, $15,000 in reduced productivity during the 2-month vacancy, and $12,000 training the replacement over 4 months. Total turnover cost of $55,000 equals 44 percent of the finance manager's $125,000 salary.
Managing finance teams requires oversight from the business owner or CFO. For businesses without a dedicated CFO, the owner typically spends 5 to 15 hours monthly managing finance staff, worth $5,000 to $15,000 annually in opportunity cost. Performance reviews, conflict resolution, and professional development planning add further time investment.
When finance team members take annual leave, businesses need backup coverage to maintain operations. Options include hiring temporary staff at premium rates, redistributing work to remaining team members reducing their productivity, or delaying critical work until the employee returns. Leave coverage costs average 10 to 20 percent of salary for key finance roles, or $6,000 to $56,000 annually.
Junior or inexperienced finance staff may make errors in BAS lodgement, payroll tax calculations, or financial reporting. ATO penalties for late or incorrect BAS filings range from $313 to $1,565 per instance. Payroll tax errors can trigger audits costing $10,000 to $50,000 to resolve. Incorrect financial reports may lead to poor business decisions with significant consequences.
Brisbane Hospitality Group's inexperienced accountant miscalculated payroll tax obligations for 2 years, resulting in $45,000 in back taxes plus $12,000 in penalties and $8,000 in external advisor fees to rectify. The total $65,000 cost exceeded the accountant's annual salary.
Many Australian businesses compare building internal finance teams against outsourced alternatives including traditional accounting firms and embedded finance services.
Traditional firms provide bookkeeping at $800 to $2,000 monthly, tax and compliance at $5,000 to $15,000 annually, and advisory services at $200 to $400 hourly. Total annual costs range from $20,000 for basic services to $80,000 for comprehensive support, significantly less than internal teams but with limited integration and responsiveness.
Embedded finance services like Scale Suite replace internal finance teams with integrated external teams providing bookkeeping, compliance, management accounting, and CFO services through daily Slack communication and shared systems.
Pricing ranges from $1,250 to $6,000 monthly or $15,000 to $72,000 annually depending on business size and scope. This typically represents 30 to 60 percent of internal team costs while providing broader expertise and no recruitment risk.
Comparison for $8 million revenue business shows internal team at bookkeeper $90,000 plus accountant $115,000 plus finance manager $175,000 totalling $380,000 annually, while embedded finance service costs $48,000 to $60,000 annually, saving $320,000 to $332,000 per year with equivalent or superior service levels.
Fractional CFOs provide part-time strategic leadership at $3,000 to $12,000 monthly or $36,000 to $144,000 annually for 1 to 3 days weekly. When combined with internal bookkeeper at $90,000, total cost is $126,000 to $234,000 annually compared to full internal team at $380,000 to $550,000, saving $146,000 to $424,000.
Despite higher costs, internal finance teams make sense in specific circumstances.
Build internal teams when revenue consistently exceeds $20 million requiring full-time strategic and operational finance support, complex operations demand dedicated teams for multiple entities, divisions, or countries, regulatory requirements mandate certain internal controls and segregation of duties, industry-specific expertise is critical and difficult to outsource such as in heavily regulated industries, or when finance drives core competitive advantage requiring deep internal integration.
Retain outsourced services when revenue is under $10 million unless extraordinary complexity exists, finance needs fluctuate seasonally or project-based, access to diverse expertise across multiple specialties is valuable, minimising fixed overhead is a strategic priority, or rapid scaling requires flexible capacity without long-term commitments.
Gold Coast Property Development Company at $35 million revenue builds internal finance team including bookkeeper, accountant, and finance manager totalling $380,000 annually for dedicated support managing construction contracts, retention accounting, and project-based reporting critical to their business model. The permanent team cost is justified by the complex, industry-specific requirements difficult to outsource effectively.
Conversely, Sydney SaaS Company at $8 million revenue uses embedded finance service at $4,200 monthly totalling $50,400 annually instead of building internal team costing $230,000, saving $179,600 while accessing CFO-level expertise for investor reporting, SaaS metrics, and strategic planning unavailable from a single internal hire.
Finance team costs range from $85,000 to $100,000 annually for a single bookkeeper at $1 million to $3 million revenue businesses, $180,000 to $230,000 for bookkeeper plus accountant at $3 million to $10 million revenue, $380,000 to $550,000 for full team with finance manager at $10 million to $30 million revenue, and $650,000 to $1,200,000 for senior team with CFO at businesses above $30 million revenue. Costs include salaries, superannuation, leave, recruitment, and software.
Finance managers in Australia earn $100,000 to $140,000 annually depending on location and experience. Sydney and Melbourne finance managers average $120,000 to $140,000 while regional managers average $100,000 to $120,000. Including 11.5 percent superannuation and leave entitlements, total employment cost is $145,000 to $185,000 annually.
Hire a bookkeeper first for businesses $1 million to $3 million revenue requiring transaction processing, BAS preparation, and basic compliance. Add an accountant when revenue exceeds $3 million or when increasing tax complexity, audit requirements, or financial reporting needs emerge. Use external tax accountants annually rather than hiring full-time accountants until revenue exceeds $5 million.
Full-time CFOs cost $167,250 to $312,200 annually including superannuation for businesses $10 million to $100 million revenue. Fractional CFOs cost $36,000 to $144,000 annually for 1 to 3 days weekly, providing strategic leadership without full-time commitment. Embedded finance services offering CFO-level expertise cost $48,000 to $72,000 annually, suitable for businesses $5 million to $20 million revenue.
Budget 30 to 40 percent above base salary for total employment costs including 11.5 percent superannuation, 17.4 percent for leave entitlements covering annual leave, sick leave, and public holidays, 1 to 3 percent for workers compensation insurance, recruitment costs amortised over 3 to 5 years adding 3 to 6 percent annually, and software and infrastructure at $10,000 to $25,000 per employee annually.
Consider internal finance teams when revenue consistently exceeds $10 million and requires dedicated financial management beyond what bookkeepers and external accountants provide. Businesses $3 million to $10 million typically optimize costs using bookkeeper plus external accountant or embedded finance services. Businesses under $3 million rarely justify more than a part-time bookkeeper plus annual tax accountant.
Sydney and Melbourne command 10 to 20 percent higher salaries than Brisbane and Perth, and 20 to 35 percent higher than regional areas. A finance manager earning $135,000 in Sydney CBD might earn $115,000 in Brisbane or $100,000 in regional Queensland. Oncosts like superannuation and leave scale proportionally with base salaries.
Finance staff turnover costs 50 to 150 percent of annual salary including recruitment at $15,000 to $90,000 depending on seniority, knowledge loss during transition, training new hires over 3 to 6 months costing $5,000 to $20,000 in reduced productivity, and vacancy costs if positions remain unfilled. Total turnover for a $125,000 finance manager typically costs $62,500 to $187,500.
Outsourced and embedded finance services effectively replace internal teams for businesses under $20 million revenue, providing equivalent or superior service at 30 to 60 percent of internal team costs. Services integrate through daily communication platforms like Slack, access shared accounting systems, and deliver bookkeeping, compliance, management accounting, and CFO strategy without recruitment or turnover risks.
Budget $600 to $1,800 annually per user for accounting software like Xero or MYOB, $1,200 to $6,000 per user for reporting tools like Power BI, $5 to $15 per employee monthly for payroll software, $2,000 to $4,000 per workstation for hardware, and $500 to $2,000 annually for professional subscriptions. Total software and technology costs average $5,000 to $15,000 per finance team member annually.
Scale Suite provides embedded finance teams for Australian businesses seeking comprehensive financial management without building internal staff. Our Sydney-based team delivers integrated bookkeeping, compliance, management accounting, and strategic CFO services through daily Slack communication and shared Xero platform.
Our fixed monthly packages replace the need for separate bookkeepers, accountants, and finance managers, providing equivalent or superior outcomes at 40 to 60 percent of internal team costs. Services include complete transaction processing and Xero management, BAS preparation and lodgement through registered agents, monthly management reporting and variance analysis, cash flow forecasting and working capital planning, strategic CFO advisory and board reporting, and payroll processing and compliance.
Businesses choose Scale Suite when evaluating the cost of building internal finance teams and seeking an alternative that provides senior expertise, eliminates recruitment and turnover risks, scales flexibly with business growth, and delivers predictable monthly costs. Our typical clients operate between $2 million and $50 million revenue across professional services, technology, retail, and manufacturing sectors.
For businesses comparing finance team salary costs against integrated solutions, Scale Suite typically saves $150,000 to $400,000 annually compared to equivalent internal teams while providing broader expertise and faster implementation.
Visit www.scalesuite.com.au/services/finance to explore whether embedded finance teams suit your requirements.
Scale Suite delivers embedded finance and human resource services for ambitious Australian businesses.Our Sydney-based team integrates with your daily operations through a shared platform, working like part of your internal staff but with senior-level expertise. From complete bookkeeping to strategic CFO insights, we deliver better outcomes than a single hire - without the recruitment risk, training time, or full-time salary commitment.
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