Royal Australian Navy (RAN) Pay Scales (2025–2026)
Australian Navy ranks and pay on the 2025–2026 Military Salary spine: sailor and officer titles, pay grades, and 16.4% ADF Super — without adding a retired Service Allowance on top.
Last updated September 2026.
Key takeaways
- Australian Navy salary is Military Salary: Navy rank, increment, then pay grade.
- Do not add $15,411 Service Allowance. That allowance was rolled into salary on 13 May 2021.
- Navy Sub Lieutenant matches Army Lieutenant. Navy Lieutenant matches Army Captain.
- The published checksum is $111,517 only for pay grade 4, increment 1, on that Sub Lieutenant row.
- ADF Super is typically 16.4%, not the 12% civilian guarantee.
1. Australian Navy ranks — which PACMAN column to open
Orientation only. Dollar cells live in PACMAN. Do not add $15,411 Service Allowance to a current table.
| Navy rank | Army equivalent | PACMAN schedule |
|---|---|---|
| Recruit / Seaman / Able Seaman | Recruit / Private / Lance Corporal | Other Ranks — increment, then pay grade |
| Leading Seaman | Corporal | Other Ranks |
| Petty Officer | Sergeant | Other Ranks. “Petty officer salary” is this cell, not a flat rate. |
| Chief Petty Officer / Warrant Officer | Warrant Officer Class 2 / Class 1 | Other Ranks — still not the officer schedule |
| Sub Lieutenant | Lieutenant | Officers. Same pay grade and increment as the Army Lieutenant checksum ($111,517 at PG4, increment 1). |
| Lieutenant / Lieutenant Commander / Commander / Captain | Captain / Major / Lieutenant Colonel / Colonel | Officers. Navy “Lieutenant” is not an Army Lieutenant. |
2. Australian navy ranks and pay are one Military Salary cell
Searchers for Australian navy ranks and pay or Australian navy salary need the Navy column of the Defence salary tables, not a civilian award and not a second Service Allowance. PACMAN lists ranks by service. You find the Navy title, the increment, then the pay grade. Army, Navy, and Air Force members at the equivalent rank, same increment, and same pay grade read the same Military Salary.
The cluster query ADF pay scales belongs on the ADF pay directory. This page owns Navy titles. Convert a title you do not recognise on the tri-service ranks page before you open the PDF.
3. How to read the Navy column, including the Lieutenant trap
- Open the Officers or Other Ranks schedule for Permanent Forces (Reserves are a different table).
- Find your rank in the Navy column. Do not start in the Army column unless you have converted the title.
- Select the increment.
- Read across to your pay grade.
PACMAN’s public worked example is a Permanent Forces Army Lieutenant, pay grade 4, increment 1: $111,517 Military Salary. The Navy equivalent of that Army rank is Sub Lieutenant, not Navy Lieutenant. A Navy Lieutenant lines up with an Army Captain. Using $111,517 for “Lieutenant RAN” understates a Lieutenant and mislabels a Sub Lieutenant who is not at pay grade 4.
If a recruiter quote sits thousands under the PACMAN cell for that exact rank, increment, and pay grade, they are usually quoting a lower pay grade, a Reserve rate, or a trainee rate — not a missing Service Allowance.
4. Service Allowance $15,411 is the pre-2021 Navy stack
Until 13 May 2021 many Permanent Force sailors received a separate Service Allowance. The Tribunal then rolled Service, Reserve, Trainee and Uniform Allowances into salary so the published figure is Military Salary. DVA records the same roll-in. Adding $15,411 on top of a 6 November 2025 cell double-counts. Maritime disability, flying, and deployment allowances can still be paid. They live in the allowances determination, not as a flat Service Allowance column.
5. Petty Officer, Leading Seaman, and pay grades
Other-rank Navy pay is a matrix: rank × increment × pay grade 1–10. Two Petty Officers can sit on different PG cells if their employment categories differ. Leading Seaman is the corporal-equivalent sailor rank; it is not “Seaman plus a loading.” Officers do not use the other-rank PG grid. The Army pay page walks the same spine with Army titles if you are comparing a tri-service posting.
6. 16.4% ADF Super and take-home cash
Most Permanent Force members in ADF Super receive 16.4% employer contributions. The civilian Superannuation Guarantee is 12.0% from 1 July 2025. Super is not fortnightly cash. Model PAYG on the Military Salary cell with the take-home pay calculator after you lock the PACMAN figure. HELP debt uses civilian repayment rules — see the HECS-HELP guide. Defence housing and health cover change household cost, not the salary grid.
7. How to verify a Navy offer
- Confirm Permanent Forces versus Reserves, and SERCAT 6 non-working-day reductions if they apply.
- Open PACMAN, Navy column, Officers or Other Ranks.
- Match increment and pay grade. Treat the cell as Military Salary.
- Do not add $15,411.
- Checksum the table itself with Army Lieutenant / Navy Sub Lieutenant, PG4, increment 1 = $111,517 — then read your own rank’s cell.
Primary sources: PACMAN salary, DFRT Determination 2 of 2017 (Salaries), and the ADF Workplace Remuneration Arrangement 2023–2026. Defence pay enquiries: 1800 333 362.
Sources
- Defence Pay and Conditions — salary tables (rates from 6 November 2025)
- DFRT consolidated determinations — Determination 2 of 2017 (Salaries)
- ADF Workplace Remuneration Arrangement 2023–2026
- DVA CLIK — Service Allowance rolled into Military Salary from 13 May 2021
ADF pay scales directory
Tri-service hub for ADF pay scales 2026, then Army and Air Force spokes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Official Australian tax, superannuation, and take-home pay guidance grounded in current ATO rulings.
What is Australian Navy salary in 2025–2026?
Navy salary is Military Salary on the same ADF spine as Army and Air Force: Navy rank title, then increment, then pay grade. It is not base pay plus a standalone $15,411 Service Allowance. Confirm the cell in PACMAN (rates effective 6 November 2025).
What are Australian Navy ranks and pay?
Sailor titles run Recruit, Seaman, Able Seaman, Leading Seaman, Petty Officer, Chief Petty Officer, and Warrant Officer. Officer titles run Midshipman, Sub Lieutenant, Lieutenant, Lieutenant Commander, Commander, and Captain. Equivalent Army and RAAF titles sit on the same Military Salary cell — use the tri-service ranks page before you read the wrong column.
Is the $15,411 ADF Service Allowance still added on top of Navy pay?
No for current Permanent Force members. From 13 May 2021 the Defence Force Remuneration Tribunal rolled Service Allowance into Military Salary. A chart that prints Navy base plus $15,411 is the pre-2021 structure.
How much is a Navy Petty Officer paid?
Petty Officer is the Navy title equivalent to an Army Sergeant. Pay still depends on increment and pay grade (PG 1–10 on the Other Ranks schedule). There is no single Petty Officer dollar figure. Read the Navy column in PACMAN; do not add Service Allowance.
How much superannuation do Royal Australian Navy members receive?
Most Permanent Force members in ADF Super receive 16.4% employer contributions — above the 12.0% Superannuation Guarantee that applies to ordinary civilian employment from 1 July 2025.
Does sea pay change the Navy salary table?
Maritime disability and other environment allowances sit in the allowances determination. They can raise fortnightly cash. They are not a second Service Allowance line on the salary grid.