This visualisation uses data from the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) Taxation Statistics, specifically the Individual Sample Files from 2010-11 to 2023-24. The data represents all Australian individual taxpayers who lodged tax returns.
Key Metrics
Individuals: Number of taxpayers in each income bracket
Total Income: Combined taxable income of all individuals
Tax Paid: Total net tax paid after offsets and deductions
Effective Rate: Percentage of income paid as tax (tax ÷ income)
Income Brackets
The ATO groups taxpayers into income ranges. The highest bracket "$1,000,001 or more" includes all very high earners, which can skew averages in that bracket.
Inflation Adjustment ($24)
When enabled, this feature shows "equivalent earners" - people who had the same purchasing power in historical years as someone earning that amount in 2023-24.
How it works:
Uses RBA inflation data to convert historical incomes to 2023-24 dollars
Redistributes people into modern income brackets based on their inflation-adjusted income
Example: Someone earning $50,000 in 2010-11 had the purchasing power of $70,000 in 2023-24
Important: This shows where people would be distributed if their purchasing power was translated to today's dollars, not actual income growth.
View Options
Stack/Group (≡/⦀): Stack bars on top of each other or place side by side
Percentage (%): Show values as percentage of year total instead of absolute numbers
Cumulative (∑): Each bar includes all lower income brackets
Logarithmic (L10): Use log scale for better visibility of small values
Demographics
Age Groups: Based on age at end of financial year
Gender: As recorded in tax return
Taxable Status: Whether net tax was payable after deductions/offsets
Known Limitations
Negative incomes (business losses) can affect low bracket totals
Capital gains are included in taxable income
Excludes people who didn't lodge tax returns
Tax calculations include income tax, capital gains tax, Medicare levy and other levies
Income brackets are based on taxable income, which includes net capital gains