Professions making $120K/year span tech, healthcare, finance, and skilled trades, including Data Scientists, Engineers, Nurse Practitioners, Pharmacists, Lawyers, Financial Managers, and Senior Accountants, as well as roles like Project Managers, Sales Directors, and even high-level trade positions like Elevator Mechanics and Electricians, often requiring experience, certifications, or specialized skills rather than just a degree, according to sources like Reddit and Indeed.com.
Yes, $120,000 is generally considered a very good salary in Australia, well above the average full-time wage (around $90k-$100k) and median income, allowing for comfortable living, savings, and investments, though perceptions vary greatly depending on location, family size, and lifestyle goals, with some feeling it's barely enough due to high costs like housing in major cities.
Jobs paying $150k+ in Australia span various sectors, including Tech (Senior Business Analysts, IT roles), Healthcare (Podiatrists, Clinical Managers), Construction & Trades (Construction Managers, Electricians, Site Supervisors, Drillers), Finance (Finance Managers, Financial Planners, Accountants), Sales, and Leadership (HR Directors, Operations Managers, School Principals, Government Directors). High-demand areas often involve senior or specialized roles in Engineering, Mining, Digital Marketing, and Management, with opportunities both with and without degrees.
In Australia, many jobs pay over $100,000, spanning sectors like Tech (ICT Manager, IT Specialist), Healthcare (Psychiatrist, Dentist, Pharmacist), Engineering (Mining, Aerospace, Construction), Finance (Accountant, Business Analyst), Construction (Project Manager, Site Manager, Trades like Electrician), Sales/Marketing (Business Development, Digital Marketing), and Management (HR Manager, Project Manager, Store Manager), with high potential in specialized trades, public service (Air Traffic Controller, Police Detective), and even roles like Pilot, often requiring specific skills, experience, or certifications.
It is also adjusted for family size. In the U.S., the median income is $74,580, which puts the range for the middle class between $49,745 and $149,160. However, when adjusting for family size, a $120,000 salary for a single person puts you squarely in the upper class in every metro area in the United States.
To be in Australia's top 1% of individual taxpayers, you generally need an annual income of around $375,000 to $390,000, though figures vary slightly by source and year, with higher thresholds for households (around $530,000). For context, the median individual income is much lower (around $55,000), and while top earners often include surgeons and anaesthetists, reaching the top 1% of net worth requires significantly more wealth, often exceeding $7 million.
The median wage is $113.2K / yr. $120.2K is the 75th percentile. Wages above this are outliers.
No experience $100,000 jobs
Jobs paying $200k+ in Australia are common in specialized fields like Medicine (Surgeons, Anaesthetists, Specialists), Technology (Data Scientists, Cloud Engineers), Engineering, Executive Management (C-Suite, Directors), Law, and high-end Sales, with significant opportunities also in the Mining sector, alongside specialized roles in Finance, Construction Management, and Healthcare Administration, often requiring significant experience or niche skills.
High-paying jobs in Australia without a degree often involve skilled trades (electrician, plumber), technology (ethical hacker, ICT Manager), management (Construction Manager, HR Manager, Sales Manager), and specialized roles (Air Traffic Controller, Pilot, Drillers/Miners), relying on certificates, apprenticeships, or on-the-job training for high earning potential.
The "easiest" high-paying jobs often involve leveraging existing skills (like sales or IT) or finding niches like insurance broking, high-level tech roles (remote/deliverable-focused), sales, truck driving, personal training, or specialized roles like medical coding or elevator mechanics, balancing ease with good income depends on your definition of easy (low stress, low formal education, or flexible) and industry demand. Roles like sales representative, IT support, or even transcription can offer good returns, especially when remote or freelance, but building up clients or expertise is key to high earnings.
The top tax bracket kicks in at $190,000 a year and is often cited as shorthand for high income. But just 4.4 per cent of taxpayers had a taxable income that high in 2021-22. In fact, even in Australia's richest state – WA – just 5.5 per cent of taxpayers are in the top tax bracket.
What qualifies a job as high paying 2025?
Calculation details
On a £120,000 salary, your take home pay will be £76,157.40 after tax and National Insurance. This equates to £6,346.45 per month and £1,464.57 per week. If you work 5 days per week, this is £292.91 per day, or £36.61 per hour at 40 hours per week.
Most Americans Earn Far Less Than $100k
According to last year's YouGov data, only 18% of U.S. adults earn more than $100,000 annually. And the biggest earners are mostly men—25%—and those aged 35 to 44—25%. For comparison, just 12% of women make six figures.
Australia has high demand for workers in Healthcare (nurses, aged/disability carers, allied health), Tech (software engineers, cybersecurity, data analysts), Construction & Trades (managers, electricians, fitters, civil engineers), and Education (teachers, early childhood educators) due to an aging population, infrastructure projects, and digital transformation, with roles like Chefs, Project Managers, and Automotive Technicians also sought after across various industries.
To be in Australia's top 1% of individual taxpayers, you generally need an annual income of around $375,000 to $390,000, though figures vary slightly by source and year, with higher thresholds for households (around $530,000). For context, the median individual income is much lower (around $55,000), and while top earners often include surgeons and anaesthetists, reaching the top 1% of net worth requires significantly more wealth, often exceeding $7 million.
How to Get a Job that Pays $200k a Year
10 highest paid jobs without a degree
There's no single #1 happiest job universally, but Firefighters consistently rank high for job satisfaction due to their sense of purpose, while Care Workers, Counsellors, Content Creators, and IT roles (Java Devs, Systems Analysts) also appear frequently on "happiest" lists for fulfillment, autonomy, or good pay/balance. Overall, jobs with meaning, helping others, nature connection, strong coworker bonds, or good work-life balance tend to be cited as happiest.
The 15 highest-paying jobs you can land without a 4-year degree, according to new report
$100,000 per year is $48.08 an hour.
If you're earning $120,000 annually, your hourly wage is approximately $57.69 . To calculate this, divide your yearly salary by the average number of working hours per year — typically 2080 hours (52 weeks x 40 hours). So, $120,000 divided by 2080 equals an hourly income of $57.69.
Based on these numbers, a household of higher-income earners between $117,000 and $150,000 would still put you among American upper-middle-class individuals in most cities around the country in 2026. However, because location is such a major factor, some sources even say the upper limit can be as high as $250,000.