*Capability HR Sydney Salary Guide 2026 *

Slightly later than planned but our updated Salary Guide is released.

This year it is extended to include Six Role Sub-Sections and Seven Sector Categories. It details Annual Base Salary, Superannuation, STI and LTI for over 50 HR Roles.

*Organisations are Rewarding strategic HRBP's but resisting Inflating the Salaries at the Executive-level of the profession*

Below I have shared a snippet of by far the largest part of the HR Workforce - HR Generalists.

These roles have seen a modest growth at the junior and mid-level, around 4-6% and unfortunately little or no increase in the most senior positions which perhaps equals a decline in real terms.

Where we have seem some growth is in the upper mid-level roles (around 10%). In this Generalist category that means HR Business Partners, particularly Senior/Lead HRBPs, where salary levels have lifted meaningfully year‑on‑year. This reflects sustained demand and tightening supply for HR professionals who can operate as genuine commercial partners, reshaping operating models and driving workforce performance.

*How do we come up with these numbers?*

Our salary guide is built from real‑world market data — not a survey. Throughout the year we track salaries from advertised roles across the major job boards, combine this with our own data from job seekers and registered vacancies, and then sense‑check everything against the prior year to produce an accurate, market‑reflective guide.

Click here if you would like to download the full survey.