HEM calculator
Your household
Before tax, with both earners combined if you're a couple.
What you'd declare on an application: everyday spending, without rent, loan repayments or the costs lenders add on top (listed below the calculator).
An indicative Your Finance Guide estimate from ABS Household Expenditure Survey 2015-16 data, re-priced to the June quarter 2026 (ABS Consumer Price Index). Not the Melbourne Institute's licensed HEM table, which isn't public.
| Period | Low | Mid | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly | $3,800 | $4,240 | $4,680 |
| Fortnightly | $1,750 | $1,960 | $2,160 |
| Weekly | $875 | $980 | $1,080 |
| Annual | $45,600 | $50,900 | $56,200 |
Another dependent child would add about $440 a month at this income.
The higher of your declared expenses and the benchmark. Enter your own monthly spending to see which one would apply.
What this does to your borrowing
Two incomes pay less tax than one on the same total, so two earners can borrow more.
After-tax income at 2026-27 resident rates, less living expenses (the higher of your declared figure and the HEM estimate), leaves a monthly surplus. The estimate is the largest 30-year principal and interest loan whose repayment fits that surplus at 9.2%: the 6.2% average rate on new owner-occupier variable loans in RBA table F6 plus APRA's 3 percentage point buffer. No other loans or card limits are counted.
Treat this as the top of what's possible, not an offer: real lenders add their own margins, floor rates and income shading, and count debts and cards their own way. An indicative estimate, not a lender assessment. Lenders shade some income, count HECS and other debts their own way, use their own expense benchmarks and may limit high debt-to-income loans, so a lender may offer more or less. The borrowing power calculator takes your debts, card limits and other income.
Want to know which lenders will assess you on what?
A licensed broker runs your real income, expenses and debts through each lender's own calculator, with its own expense benchmark and overlays, and shows you where you land before you apply.
HEM table 2026: indicative figures by household
There is no public official HEM table, so these are our estimates: the mid figure for seven household types at four gross household incomes in a capital city, with the low to high range beneath each one, priced at the June quarter 2026 (ABS Consumer Price Index). For four or more children, or any other income, use the calculator above.
| Household (a month) | $60,000 | $100,000 | $150,000 | $200,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single, no dependants | $1,640 $1,460 to $1,830 | $2,010 $1,770 to $2,250 | $2,360 $2,070 to $2,650 | $2,650 $2,310 to $2,990 |
| Couple, no dependants | $2,520 $2,240 to $2,790 | $2,860 $2,540 to $3,180 | $3,350 $2,960 to $3,750 | $3,760 $3,300 to $4,220 |
| Couple, one child | $2,860 $2,570 to $3,150 | $3,250 $2,910 to $3,590 | $3,800 $3,380 to $4,220 | $4,250 $3,760 to $4,730 |
| Couple, two children | $3,210 $2,900 to $3,520 | $3,640 $3,270 to $4,000 | $4,240 $3,800 to $4,680 | $4,740 $4,230 to $5,250 |
| Couple, three children | $3,560 $3,230 to $3,880 | $4,020 $3,640 to $4,410 | $4,680 $4,220 to $5,150 | $5,220 $4,690 to $5,760 |
| Single parent, one child | $2,060 $1,850 to $2,260 | $2,500 $2,230 to $2,760 | $2,920 $2,600 to $3,240 | $3,270 $2,890 to $3,640 |
| Single parent, two children | $2,470 $2,240 to $2,700 | $2,990 $2,700 to $3,280 | $3,480 $3,130 to $3,830 | $3,880 $3,480 to $4,290 |
Incomes are gross household income before tax. Regional households come out about 1% lower: a couple with two children on $150,000 is $4,210 a month regional against $4,240 in a capital city. For couples, the $60,000 column is below the lowest income our model scales to, so it shows the figure at that floor.
How we estimate HEM
What these figures are. A Your Finance Guide estimate from ABS Household Expenditure Survey 2015-16 data, re-priced to the June quarter 2026 (ABS Consumer Price Index). They are not the Melbourne Institute's HEM table, which is sold to lenders by subscription and not published.
How they're built. Rebuilt from ABS Household Expenditure Survey 2015-16 spending using the Melbourne Institute's published HEM definition (median spend on absolute basics plus 25th-percentile spend on discretionary basics), with items classed as ASIC's Regulatory Guide 209 describes HEM: childcare and home, contents and car insurance count as basics, while rent, mortgage payments, land tax and body corporate fees are left out. Each item is indexed to the June quarter 2026 with its ABS CPI group, and household size, income and location effects come from the same ABS survey. The ABS publishes averages rather than the medians and 25th percentiles HEM uses, so we convert with a low and a high assumption, which gives the two ends of every range.
The borrowing figure uses 2026-27 resident tax rates and the Medicare levy, the 6.2% average new owner-occupier variable rate from the RBA and APRA's serviceability buffer, as listed below.
- Melbourne Institute: Household Expenditure Measure. Defines HEM as median spend on absolute basics plus the 25th percentile of spend on discretionary basics, classifying more than 600 ABS Household Expenditure Survey items, net of rent and mortgage payments, updated quarterly with the CPI and sold by subscription.
- ASIC Regulatory Guide 209, Credit licensing: responsible lending conduct (RG 209.142 to 209.145). Says HEM was re-developed in August 2018 from the ABS Household Expenditure Survey 2015/16, lists childcare and home, contents and vehicle insurance among the absolute basics, and lists what HEM excludes: housing costs (rent, mortgage payments, land tax, body corporate fees), private school fees, health and life insurance, loan interest, leases, child support and HECS.
- ABS Household Expenditure Survey, Australia: Summary of Results, 2015-16. Average weekly spend on about 600 items by household composition (Tables 9.2 and 9.3A), gross household income quintile (Tables 4.2 and 4.3A) and capital city versus rest of state (Tables 13.2 to 13.9A). Released 13 September 2017; still the latest cycle.
- ABS Consumer Price Index, Australia. Quarterly group and sub-group indexes (Table 18), June quarter 2026 against the 2015-16 average. All groups rose 36.0% over that period.
- Burstall (2023), Journal of Australian Political Economy No. 91. Reports that HEM separates households into 13 income bands and by location, citing the Melbourne Institute, and that subscribers must agree not to release HEM data.
- ATO: Tax rates, Australian resident. 2026-27 resident rates (nil to $18,200, then 15%, 30%, 37% and 45%) plus the 2% Medicare levy, and the low income tax offset.
- APRA: macroprudential policy settings (28 May 2026). Mortgage serviceability buffer kept at 3 percentage points; banks may write up to 20% of new owner-occupier and investor lending at a debt-to-income ratio of 6 or more.
- RBA statistical table F6, Housing lending rates. Average rate on new owner-occupier variable loans funded in July 2026: 6.2% a year (published 7 September 2026). The RBA has since raised the cash rate by 0.25 points to 4.60%, effective 30 September 2026, so use the rate you have been quoted if a lender has passed that on.
Checked 8 October 2026. These are indicative estimates built by Your Finance Guide from public ABS data. They are not the Melbourne Institute's HEM table, which is licensed to lenders and not published. Lenders apply their own versions of HEM, their own income bands and their own overlays, and add costs HEM leaves out (such as rent or mortgage payments, private school fees, child support and private health insurance), so the figure a lender uses for you can be higher or lower.
What lenders add on top of HEM
HEM leaves out housing and a set of costs that lenders ask about and count separately, on top of the higher of your declared expenses and the benchmark. ASIC's responsible lending guide (RG 209) lists most of them, and the Melbourne Institute says rent and mortgage payments are not included. Typically added on top:
- Rent or board you will keep paying.
- Repayments on existing home loans and other loans, usually assessed at a buffered rate rather than what you pay now.
- Credit card limits, counted on the limit whether or not you carry a balance, at 3% to 3.8% of the limit a month depending on the lender: APRA's example in its mortgage lending guide is 3%, and Macquarie's published credit guidelines (checked 8 October 2026) use 3.8%.
- Buy now pay later accounts.
- Private school fees.
- Child support or maintenance you pay.
- Private health insurance, and life, income protection and accident insurance.
- Land tax.
- HECS-HELP repayments, usually; ASIC's guide lets a lender leave a HELP debt out in some cases, depending on what's left owing and the loan term.
- Costs on investment properties.
- Spending HEM classes as non-basic, such as overseas travel, gardening and home help, second homes, boats and caravans.
Some things people expect to be added are already inside HEM: ASIC's RG 209 lists childcare and home, contents and vehicle insurance among the absolute basics, so they are compared with the benchmark rather than added to it.
Related guides and calculators
HEM calculator FAQs
How do I calculate my HEM?
Choose the number of adults and dependent children, enter your gross annual household income (both earners combined, before tax) and pick capital city or regional, and the calculator above gives an indicative range per month, fortnight, week and year. That mirrors how the Melbourne Institute says HEM is set: by household type, location and income category. Its table is sold to lenders by subscription and not published, so these figures are a Your Finance Guide estimate rebuilt from ABS Household Expenditure Survey 2015-16 data re-priced to the June quarter 2026 (ABS Consumer Price Index), not the official table.
What is the HEM for a family of 4?
For a couple with two children in a capital city, our estimate is about $3,640 a month on $100,000 of gross household income ($3,270 to $4,000), $4,240 on $150,000 ($3,800 to $4,680) and $4,740 on $200,000 ($4,230 to $5,250). A single parent with three children on $100,000 comes out at about $3,480 a month. A regional household is a little lower: $4,210 against $4,240 for the couple with two children on $150,000. These are Your Finance Guide estimates from ABS data, not the licensed Melbourne Institute table.
What is the HEM for a single person?
For a single adult with no dependants in a capital city, our estimate is about $1,640 a month on $60,000 ($1,460 to $1,830), $2,010 on $100,000 ($1,770 to $2,250) and $2,360 on $150,000 ($2,070 to $2,650). It rises with income because spending on basics rises with income in the ABS data, which is also why HEM itself is set by income category.
Is there an official HEM table or PDF?
No. The Melbourne Institute publishes HEM quarterly by subscription, and ASIC’s responsible lending guide (RG 209) describes it the same way; Burstall (2023) reports that subscribers must agree not to release the data. So there is no free official table or PDF. The figures on this page are a Your Finance Guide estimate: we class the items in the ABS Household Expenditure Survey 2015-16 as absolute or discretionary basics the way the Melbourne Institute describes, leave out housing, and re-price each item with the ABS Consumer Price Index. Treat them as a planning range, not the figure a lender will use.
Does HEM include rent?
No. The Melbourne Institute says rents and mortgage payments are not included, because HEM is a net-of-housing measure, so a lender assesses housing separately: any rent or board you will keep paying, repayments on loans you keep, and the new loan’s repayment at the assessment rate (the product rate plus APRA’s 3 percentage point buffer).
Why is my bank using a higher figure than this?
Most often because your declared spending is higher. Lenders use the higher of your declared living expenses and their benchmark, and ASIC’s RG 209 says the majority of households could be expected to spend more than HEM. Lenders also run their own versions of HEM and their own overlays, and add costs HEM leaves out, such as private school fees, private health insurance, child support and card limits. Our figures are an estimate built from ABS data rather than the licensed table, so a lender’s figure for your household can sit above or below our range; plan with the high end.
Is HEM per month or per year?
HEM is a level of spending, so it can be quoted for any period, but a serviceability test sets it against monthly income and repayments, so monthly is the figure to compare with your own spending. The calculator shows all four: for a couple with two children on $150,000 in a capital city, our mid estimate is $4,240 a month, $1,960 a fortnight, $980 a week or $50,900 a year.