Pay Rates for Registrar Locum Doctors in Australia 2025
Every Registrar rate on the record. Pulling straight from hospital job boards, we’ve analysed 23,210 shifts since October 2024. Consider this your panoramic view - states, specialty spreads and seasonal swings follow below.
What is the average rate for a Registrar Locum Doctor in 2025?
The average rate for a Registrar Locum Doctor in 2025 is $169.07 per hour or $1,352.60 per day. Based on 23,210 shifts across 5 states.
What is the average Salary of a Registrar Locum Doctor?The average salary for a Registrar Locum Doctor in 2025 is $321,242.48 per year.
How we convert the hourly rate to a yearly figure
- Hourly rate
- $169.07
- Full-time hours
- 38hrs/week
- Weeks worked
- 50
$169.07 × 38hrs × 50 ≈ $321,242.48
Specialty Pay Breakdown
The highest paying specialty for a Registrar Locum Doctors is Emergency Medicine with an average rate of $193.00per hour. The lowest paying role is Palliative Care with an average rate of $126.00 per hour.
| Role | Average Rate | Salary | Shifts Sampled |
|---|---|---|---|
| Emergency Medicine | $193/hr | $366,700 | 8398 |
| General Practice | $183/hr | $347,700 | 32 |
| Otorhinolaryngology | $180/hr | $342,000 | 129 |
| Plastics | $174/hr | $330,600 | 73 |
| Obstetrics & Gynaecology | $174/hr | $330,600 | 1590 |
| Nephrology | $165/hr | $313,500 | 49 |
| Intensive Care | $164/hr | $311,600 | 1196 |
| Gastroenterology | $163/hr | $309,700 | 40 |
| Orthopaedics | $160/hr | $304,000 | 1512 |
| Surgery | $160/hr | $304,000 | 2164 |
| Geriatrics | $156/hr | $296,400 | 287 |
| Anaesthetics | $154/hr | $292,600 | 45 |
| Psychiatry | $151/hr | $286,900 | 1279 |
| Paediatrics | $150/hr | $285,000 | 1268 |
| General Medicine | $150/hr | $285,000 | 3825 |
| Rehab | $149/hr | $283,100 | 308 |
| Other | $144/hr | $273,600 | 163 |
| Urology | $139/hr | $264,100 | 108 |
| Cardiology | $132/hr | $250,800 | 287 |
| Oncology | $130/hr | $247,000 | 244 |
| Palliative Care | $126/hr | $239,400 | 135 |
State Breakdown Of Registrar Rates
The highest paying state for Registrar Locum Doctors is VIC with an average rate of $182.16 per hour. The lowest paying state is WA with an average rate of $148.77 per hour. Total variance of $33.39.
What is the average rate for a Registrar Locum Doctor in NSW?
$168.37 per hour. Based on 21,228 shifts.
| Rate | Hospital | |
|---|---|---|
| Highest | $500.00 | Shellharbour |
| Lowest | $87.50 | Glen Innes |
| Average | $168.37 | n/a |
What is the average rate for a Registrar Locum Doctor in VIC?
$182.16 per hour. Based on 1,246 shifts.
| Rate | Hospital | |
|---|---|---|
| Highest | $300.00 | Bairnsdale Regional Health Service |
| Lowest | $150.00 | Epworth Richmond |
| Average | $182.16 | n/a |
What is the average rate for a Registrar Locum Doctor in SA?
$177.39 per hour. Based on 297 shifts.
| Rate | Hospital | |
|---|---|---|
| Highest | $185.00 | Riverland Regional Health Service - Berri Hospital |
| Lowest | $160.00 | Riverland Regional Health Service - Barmera Hospital |
| Average | $177.39 | n/a |
What is the average rate for a Registrar Locum Doctor in WA?
$148.77 per hour. Based on 146 shifts.
| Rate | Hospital | |
|---|---|---|
| Highest | $170.00 | Bunbury Hospital |
| Lowest | $140.00 | Rockingham General Hospital |
| Average | $148.77 | n/a |
What is the average rate for a Registrar Locum Doctor in QLD?
$174.60 per hour. Based on 189 shifts.
| Rate | Hospital | |
|---|---|---|
| Highest | $336.60 | Mount Isa Hospital |
| Lowest | $106.00 | Normanton Hospital |
| Average | $174.60 | n/a |
Do Night Shifts Pay Better Rates For Registrar Locum Doctors?
Yes, the average rate for a Registrar Locum Doctor on a night shift is $188.08 per hour (5663 shifts). The average rate for a Registrar Locum Doctor on a day shift is $162.59 per hour (14869 shifts).
Does Seasonality Affect Rates?
The highest paying month for Registrar Locum Doctors is Feb with an average rate of $187.00 per hour. The lowest paying month is Jun with an average rate of $165.00 per hour.
Case Studies
1. ED Registrar Physician, 2025 Earnings
This is a real doctor on Medlo. Personal details anonymised for privacy.
Key Details
- Work Locations: Regional VIC
- Specialty: ED Physician (PGY5)
- Shifts: 135 shifts between January to August 2025
- Average Earning Per Shift: $2,125
- Earnings: $286,875 (Jan-Aug)
- Equivalent Yearly Salary: >$382k
- FTE: 0.84
Data Collection Methodology
Medlo is a medical recruitment platform using state of the art technology to collect and process live market data.
In total Medlo has processed upwards of 20,000 medical shifts since inception in 2023.
Hospital Network
As of October 2025, Medlo's hospital network spans 81 of the 700 total Australian hospital network (11%), with data for NSW, VIC, QLD, SA, and WA (states ordered by shift volume)
Medlo's hospitals are predominantly public.
Although, our data primarily represents public/regional hospitals, it may act as a proxy for relative private or metropolitan hospital rates.
Sampling
The data used in this report spans from October 2024 to October 2025. For October onwards all data is forecasted rates by hospital suppliers - though it does not represent the final bookings for the year.
Caveats
- Sample sizes may vary from state to state, and may not be representative of the entire market.
- Rates may vary from hospital to hospital, and may not be representative of the entire market.
- Low sample sizes are marked with
Low Sample Size - Precautionary measures are taken to clean data and remove outliers. For example all rates used in average calculatrions have been filtered to be between 80 and 450.
Medlo processes on average 1,000-2,000 shifts per month. Come back soon for more data!
Wrapping Up
We hope this comprehensive breakdown of Registrar rates across Australia has been helpful. If you're interested in comparing rates across different roles, check out our other rate guides:
Remember to check back regularly as we update our data multiple times per week with the latest market rates. For the most accurate and up-to-date information, consider signing in to access our full database of rates.