Being a content creator has quickly become one of the most desired jobs for Gen Z, and it’s not hard to see why. Popularity, recognition, loads of free stuff, and brands seemingly paying you large sums of money to merely exist and pose around at fancy events and exotic locations – sounds like a total dream, right?
But how much do content creators actually make in Australia? And what does it take to make a living as one? Is it a sustainable career path? Let’s take a look.
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The term “content creator” can be used to describe anyone who produces and shares information or media content for specific audiences, particularly on social media. It can sometimes be used interchangeably with “influencer,” but “content creator” has become more popular since “influencer” started to pick up negative associations around 2017 or 2018.
The material they make can take the form of photos, videos, or blog posts, but the picture most people have in mind is someone who creates engaging short-form videos for platforms such as Instagram Reels or TikTok.
Content creation could be someone’s full-time job (such as a freelancer), something they do as part of their job (such as a journalist or entertainer), something they do to supplement their income or build a following, or just for fun. Generally, a content creator will grow a following off the back of their personal brand or knowledge niche. “The terms ‘influencer,’ ‘content creator,’ ‘storyteller,’ ‘writer,’ even ‘journalist’ all seem to be used interchangeably,” Ashley Mateo writes for The Rundown. “But there doesn’t seem to be much distinguishing between the type of content creators.”
There are various ways content creators make money, including getting paid by a brand or business for sponsored content or posts, advertising, affiliate links, or signing up for a brand partnership. A content creator may also sell merchandise directly to their followers or offer paid subscriptions.
The answer to the average content creator salary in Australia really depends on who you ask. Career websites such as Glassdoor and Seek place the average annual salary for content creator roles anywhere between AU$60,000 and AU$85,000. (We can assume that the data refers to staff roles where you’d be creating on behalf of a company.)
Meanwhile, a top influencer like fitness mogul Tammy Hembrow, who has 17.4 million followers, can reportedly earn AU$83,000 for a single post! Of course, there are many different types of influencers, and how much money they can earn will depend on things such as how many followers they have, how engaged their audience is, how well they match with a particular brand, and how much of a marketing budget that brand has to spend. You don’t necessarily need a million followers or even content that goes viral.
According to Wise, nano influencers (with roughly 1,000 to 10,000 followers) can earn anywhere from AU$16 to $156 for a single Instagram post, while micro influencers (10,000 to 100,000 followers) could earn AU$150 to $750 per post. Macro influencers (100,000 to 1 million followers) can earn AU$7,500 to $15,000, and celebrity influencers (over 1 million followers) can earn upwards of AU$15,000 per post.
Many people assume that becoming a content creator is an easy way to make lots of money. According to the Fujifilm Forecast: Content Creation Trends for 2025 Report, however, 51% of Australian creators aren’t currently earning any money from content. A further 27% earn money only sporadically. It’s worth having a backup plan if you pursue this line of work.
Of course, earning money may not be your primary motivation as a content creator. For Sydney-based Hayden Moon, getting paid to post is not his top priority for his social media presence – and he says that helps him to lead a happy life, while also benefitting his career.
Hayden, an advocate for queer rights, trans rights, and disabled and Indigenous communities (as well as an academic, writer, dancer, and actor), says becoming a content creator happened accidentally. He says he hasn’t pursued direct payments from brands for posts to his highly engaged audience of almost 4,000 followers, but his online profile has created leads for other paid work, as well as tickets for events and other occasional gifts and trades.
“People do assume that everything is monetised, and you make money through your posts and stuff like that,” Hayden says. “For some people, that’s true, but you need to be a very specific kind of influencer for that.”
“I wouldn't say I don’t make money from social media. I do. I just make it in a different way,” he says. “Instead of having to purchase tickets for theatre shows, events, or workshops, I might get given those tickets in exchange for posting about those events. And in terms of performance work and even academic and speaking work, a lot of people have found me through Instagram.”
Hayden adds that he is selective about which opportunities he takes up, whether it’s to weed out those that might be in opposition to his advocacy work or his personal values, or brands that simply aren’t a good fit for his audience. But being a content creator has overwhelmingly benefitted all of his other pursuits.
So, much like any career in a freelance or creative field, how much a content creator can earn varies a lot. Many creators start out doing it as a hobby. You may need to spend some time making content, learning skills, and building an audience without getting paid before you’ll be in a position to earn money or leverage your online presence for other career opportunities.
