People working in law earn a median base salary of $147K, in The Aussie Corporate 2026 Salary Survey. In-house lawyers and lawyers at top-tier firms take home about the same base pay on average. In-house lawyers work fewer hours, so each hour is worth more.
How does law pay compare with other industries?
Law's median of $147K sits just below Finance and Tech, at $150K each, and just above Corporate at $145K. Investment Banking leads the eight industries compared, at $175K.
Law has the second-longest hours of those eight industries. 47% of lawyers work 45 hours or more a week, behind only Investment Banking at 66%. In Finance it is 23% and in Tech 20%.
Do in-house lawyers earn more than law firm lawyers?
Per hour, yes. Base pay is about the same on average, and the hours are where the two jobs split.
| Share of lawyers who | In-house | Top-tier firm |
|---|---|---|
| Work 50+ hours a week | 15% | 28% |
| Work 45+ hours a week | 41% | 53% |
| Can switch off after work | 50% | 25% |
| Work from home 3+ days | 29% | 13% |
In-house lawyers against lawyers at top-tier firms, from The Aussie Corporate 2026 Salary Survey.
28% of lawyers at top-tier firms work 50 hours or more a week, against 15% of in-house lawyers.
The gap shows after hours too. Half of in-house lawyers can switch off after work. At top-tier firms it is a quarter.
How many hours do lawyers work?
Long ones, across the profession. 47% of lawyers work 45 hours or more a week, against a survey average of 23%.
In-house roles bring that down to 41%. At top-tier firms it rises to 53%.
Across the survey, longer weeks pay less for each hour worked. A 60-hour week pays 20% less per hour than a 40-hour week.
Can lawyers work from home?
Less than most. Only 17% of lawyers are home 3 or more days a week, against 35% of everyone else.
In-house roles offer more room. 29% of in-house lawyers work from home 3 or more days, against 13% at top-tier firms.
How does legal pay grow over a career?
For lawyers working inside a company, the survey counts Legal among the support roles, with Finance, HR, IT and Risk. Support roles keep pace with front office pay for a decade, then fall 10% behind.
After 20 years the median is $205K in front office roles and $185K in support roles. Front office roles are 60% more likely to clear $200K.
Support staff get time back for it. They are more likely to work from home (40% against 29%) and work 5 fewer hours a week. Front office earns more per year and less per hour.
Do lawyers get bonuses?
34% of people in Legal have no annual bonus, about the same as the survey-wide figure of 1 in 3.
For people with a target bonus, the typical target across the survey is 15% of base pay. Most receive 79% of their target, and 7 in 10 people do not achieve it.
Are lawyers happy with their pay?
At top-tier firms, more than most. Only 1 in 5 people at top-tier law firms are unsatisfied with their pay.
Across employer types, a median of 32% say their pay is unfair. At the Big 4 it is 51%.
How do you check your own pay?
Compare your salary with people in the same job, industry and level in AusCorp Vault, our free salary benchmark.
The original legal slide, and the results for every other industry, are on our 2026 Salary Survey page under by industry.
For how pay grows across a career and what bonuses look like, read the first part of the survey, 10 things nobody tells you about your pay.
More from the 2026 Salary Survey
- How much do Big 4 consultants earn in Australia?
- How much do investment bankers earn in Australia?
- What is a typical bonus in Australia?
- Which corporate jobs pay well with low stress?
Source: The Aussie Corporate 2026 Salary Survey, data as at September 2026. Spotted an error? Correct something.
