# Average premium rate workers compensation (3 figures)

> The Workers Comp Premium Index carries 3 published figures read from 3 sources' own pages, from 1.34 to 1.85 percent, read 12 October 2026.

Employee Cost Australia · https://employeecostaustralia.com/datasets/workers-comp-premium-index/ · computed 2026-10-18

**Range of the published figures:** 1.34 to 1.85 % (range 1.34 to 1.85 %; 3 published figures; 4 of 14 sources read publish one).

4 of the 14 named sources read in full publish a figure; 10 publish none, read 12 October 2026.

## By jurisdiction

| Breakdown | Median | Range | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|
| jurisdiction Australia, standardised average | 1.34 % | 1.34 to 1.34 % | 1 |
| jurisdiction Victoria | 1.8 % | 1.8 to 1.8 % | 1 |
| jurisdiction Queensland, per $100 of wages | 1.34 AUD | 1.34 to 1.34 AUD | 1 |
| jurisdiction South Australia | 1.85 % | 1.85 to 1.85 % | 1 |

## Every figure, with its source

One row per source: the figure the source's own page publishes, the page, and the day it was read.

| Source | Figure | Breakdown | Read |
|---|---|---|---|
| [ReturnToWorkSA, premium calculations](https://www.rtwsa.com/insurance/insurance-with-us/premium-calculations) | 1.85 % | South Australia | 2026-09-12 |
| [WorkSafe Victoria, industry rates and key dates](https://www.worksafe.vic.gov.au/industry-rates-and-key-dates) | 1.8 % | Victoria | 2026-10-12 |
| [WorkCover Queensland, premiums held steady for 2026-27](https://www.workcoverqld.com.au/news-and-events/news/2026/workcover-queensland-holds-premiums-steady-for-the-second-year) | 1.34 AUD | Queensland, per $100 of wages | 2026-09-12 |
| [Safe Work Australia, premiums (comparison of arrangements)](https://www.safeworkaustralia.gov.au/book/comparison-wc-arrangements-29ed/chapter-8/premiums) | 1.34 % | Australia, standardised average | 2026-10-12 |

## The sentence each figure was read from (4)

- [ReturnToWorkSA, premium calculations](https://www.rtwsa.com/insurance/insurance-with-us/premium-calculations), read 2026-09-12: "The average premium rate for 2026-27 is 1.85%."
- [WorkSafe Victoria, industry rates and key dates](https://www.worksafe.vic.gov.au/industry-rates-and-key-dates), read 2026-10-12: "The average premium rate for 2026–27 is 1.8% of the state's rateable remuneration."
- [WorkCover Queensland, premiums held steady for 2026-27](https://www.workcoverqld.com.au/news-and-events/news/2026/workcover-queensland-holds-premiums-steady-for-the-second-year), read 2026-09-12: "The target average premium rate will remain at $1.343 per $100 of wages, with no increase for the coming financial year."
- [Safe Work Australia, premiums (comparison of arrangements)](https://www.safeworkaustralia.gov.au/book/comparison-wc-arrangements-29ed/chapter-8/premiums), read 2026-10-12: "In 2021–22, the Australian standardised average premium rate was 1.34% of payroll, consistent with the previous year 2020–21 (1.34% cent of payroll)."

## Read in full, publishes no figure

- [icare NSW, understanding WICs and premium rates](https://www.icare.nsw.gov.au/workers-compensation/employers/new-policy/understanding-wics-and-premium-rates), read 2026-09-12: read in full and no accepted figure on the page
- [icare NSW, 2026-27 premium settings](https://www.icare.nsw.gov.au/news-and-stories/2026/icare-confirms-2026-27-workers-compensation-premium-settings), read 2026-09-12: read in full and no accepted figure on the page
- [icare NSW, premium calculation, experience-rated](https://www.icare.nsw.gov.au/workers-compensation/employers/new-policy/premium-calculation-experience-rated), read 2026-09-12: every candidate on the page was refused
- [WorkSafe Victoria, WorkCover insurance premiums order](https://www.worksafe.vic.gov.au/resources/workcover-insurance-premiums-order), read 2026-09-12: read in full and no accepted figure on the page
- [ReturnToWorkSA, average premium rate for 2026-27 maintained](https://www.rtwsa.com/about-us/news-room/articles/returntoworksa-average-premium-rate-for-2026-27-maintained), read 2026-09-12: every candidate on the page was refused
- [WorkSafe Tasmania, workers compensation insurance for employers](https://worksafe.tas.gov.au/topics/compensation/workers-compensation/information-for-employers/workers-compensation-insurance), read 2026-09-12: read in full and no accepted figure on the page
- [NT WorkSafe, workers compensation](https://worksafe.nt.gov.au/workers-compensation), read 2026-09-12: read in full and no accepted figure on the page
- [Comcare, how premiums are calculated](https://www.comcare.gov.au/scheme-legislation/premium-payers/how-premiums-are-calculated), read 2026-09-12: read in full and no accepted figure on the page
- [Comcare, premium performance of employers in the scheme](https://www.comcare.gov.au/scheme-legislation/premium-payers/premium-performance), read 2026-09-12: every candidate on the page was refused
- [Safe Work Australia, comparative performance monitoring report, 24th edition](https://www.safeworkaustralia.gov.au/comparative-performance-monitoring-report-24th-edition), read 2026-09-12: every candidate on the page was refused

## Methodology

Every row is a verbatim sentence read from the named source's own page through our fetch service on the date shown, hash-pinned to the stored read (the sha of the page's visible text; the raw page is mirrored to R2). 4 of the 14 named sources that could be read published a usable figure; 10 published none and are recorded as not published, never filled in; 1 could not be read (blocked, dead or unreachable) and count nowhere. The headline figures (median, minimum, maximum, quartiles) are over ONE figure per source in % (a source's median where its page yielded several accepted sentences), so N counts sources, never sentences; 29 candidate sentence(s) were refused by a reviewer with the reason recorded. The fuller derivation this dataset is chartered to grow into (not yet what the figures above are; they are each source's own published figure as read): one cell per industry classification per jurisdiction, taken from that scheme's gazetted or recommended rate and stated per $100 of wages or as a percentage of remuneration, beside the scheme's average premium rate; the derived figure is the ratio between the dearest and cheapest scheme for the same classification and the five-year trend per scheme, which only Safe Work Australia attempts and only at an aggregate level

## Sources

- [icare NSW, understanding WICs and premium rates](https://www.icare.nsw.gov.au/workers-compensation/employers/new-policy/understanding-wics-and-premium-rates) (the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- [icare NSW, 2026-27 premium settings](https://www.icare.nsw.gov.au/news-and-stories/2026/icare-confirms-2026-27-workers-compensation-premium-settings) (the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- [icare NSW, premium calculation, experience-rated](https://www.icare.nsw.gov.au/workers-compensation/employers/new-policy/premium-calculation-experience-rated) (the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- [WorkSafe Victoria, industry rates and key dates](https://www.worksafe.vic.gov.au/industry-rates-and-key-dates) (the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- [WorkSafe Victoria, WorkCover insurance premiums order](https://www.worksafe.vic.gov.au/resources/workcover-insurance-premiums-order) (the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- [WorkCover Queensland, premiums held steady for 2026-27](https://www.workcoverqld.com.au/news-and-events/news/2026/workcover-queensland-holds-premiums-steady-for-the-second-year) (the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- [ReturnToWorkSA, average premium rate for 2026-27 maintained](https://www.rtwsa.com/about-us/news-room/articles/returntoworksa-average-premium-rate-for-2026-27-maintained) (the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- [ReturnToWorkSA, premium calculations](https://www.rtwsa.com/insurance/insurance-with-us/premium-calculations) (the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- [WorkSafe Tasmania, workers compensation insurance for employers](https://worksafe.tas.gov.au/topics/compensation/workers-compensation/information-for-employers/workers-compensation-insurance) (the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- [NT WorkSafe, workers compensation](https://worksafe.nt.gov.au/workers-compensation) (the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- [Comcare, how premiums are calculated](https://www.comcare.gov.au/scheme-legislation/premium-payers/how-premiums-are-calculated) (the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- [Comcare, premium performance of employers in the scheme](https://www.comcare.gov.au/scheme-legislation/premium-payers/premium-performance) (the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- [Safe Work Australia, premiums (comparison of arrangements)](https://www.safeworkaustralia.gov.au/book/comparison-wc-arrangements-29ed/chapter-8/premiums) (the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- [Safe Work Australia, comparative performance monitoring report, 24th edition](https://www.safeworkaustralia.gov.au/comparative-performance-monitoring-report-24th-edition) (the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)
- [WorkCover WA, 2026-27 recommended premium rates](https://www.workcover.wa.gov.au/news/2026-27-recommended-premium-rates/) (the publisher's own terms; quoted for reporting and comment)

## Cite or embed

- The Workers Comp Premium Index carries 3 published figures read from 3 sources' own pages, from 1.34 to 1.85 percent, read 12 October 2026.
- 4 of the 14 named sources read in full publish a figure; 10 publish none, read 12 October 2026.
- Workers Comp Premium Index, jurisdiction Australia, standardised average: median 1.34 percent across 1 source, read 12 October 2026.
- Workers Comp Premium Index, jurisdiction Victoria: median 1.80 percent across 1 source, read 12 October 2026.
- Workers Comp Premium Index, jurisdiction Queensland, per $100 of wages: median 1.34 AUD across 1 source, read 12 October 2026.
- Workers Comp Premium Index, jurisdiction South Australia: median 1.85 percent across 1 source, read 12 October 2026.

Cite as: "employeecostaustralia.com Workers Comp Premium Index", updated 2026-10-18, https://employeecostaustralia.com/datasets/workers-comp-premium-index/.

CSV: https://employeecostaustralia.com/datasets/workers-comp-premium-index.csv
JSON: https://employeecostaustralia.com/datasets/workers-comp-premium-index.json
Embed (plain HTML, static link back): see https://employeecostaustralia.com/datasets/workers-comp-premium-index/#median