How much is car registration in Australia?

The cost of car registration in Australia differs considerably depending on which state or territory you live in. It can range from a few hundred dollars to more than $1,000, with each of the states having specific criteria for how they calculate these charges.

Things like the weight of your car and its engine type can impact registration costs, as well as if you’re using it for personal or business use. Some states will also lump together rego fees with your Compulsory Third Party (CTP) insurance. This is the insurance cover you need to legally drive on Australian roads, and generally covers liability for costs related to injuries or deaths caused while driving (details differ state-to-state).

Since there’s no federal oversight, you’ll need to know exactly how things work where you live and thus hold car registration. So, here’s a breakdown of car rego costs and details in each Aussie state and territory.

New South Wales car registration costs

In NSW, you’ll first be charged a flat $68 annual rego fee, and then have to pay the remainder depending on the weight of your car. The lowest price is $221 for cars under 975kg (this shoots up to $359 for business use vehicles), and then goes up in tiers to $479 for cars weighing between 1505kg to 2504kg (which comes to $745 for business use).

Keep in mind, prices differ for motorcycles, trailers and caravans, and CTP is a separate fee you’ll also need to pay. In NSW, you’ll be able to choose between six providers who set their own prices for this essential kind of insurance. These are:

• NRMA
• Allianz
• AAMI
• GIO
• QBE
• Youi

If you want more details about other forms of cover, check out our NSW car insurance hub, or head to the NSW rego fee page for more info on other registration costs and concessions.

Australian Capital Territory car registration costs

Things get a little more complicated in the capital. You can register your car for three, six and 12 month periods here (12-month rego is slightly more economical) and prices are again dependent on weight, whether you use the vehicle for personal or business use, plus how you use it (e.g. to carry passengers or goods).

You’ll be paying the CTP equivalent, which is known in the ACT as Motor Accident Injuries insurance, combined with your registration fee and an extra charge titled ‘government fees’. The MAI insurance providers include NRMA, AAMI, APIA and GIO, which all offer slightly different prices.

When you look at the ACT rego website, this three-fold payment system can be rather confusing (and starts halfway down a very long document). 

To give you a ballpark figure as a starting point, the 12-month registration costs for the lightest personal use vehicle class (under 975kg) with the most affordable MAI insurance provider (GIO) is $1,252.20 in the ACT. 

If you want to learn more about MAI insurance and sift through the fine print, head to our ACT car insurance comparison page. 

Victoria car registration costs

Victoria mixes the calculations up in a different way, with rego prices changing depending on the risk level of the area you live. Prices change again (in both directions) if you drive a utility vehicle for carrying goods. 

Rego costs for a standard passenger vehicle are as follows: 

• Metropolitan area (high risk zone): $845.90
• Outer metropolitan (medium risk zone): $790.90
• Rural (low risk zone): $726.00

Find more details at the VicRoads rego page, then investigate insurance options for your wheels at Mozo’s Victoria car insurance hub.

Queensland car registration costs 

Rego and CTP are bundled together in Queensland, alongside an extra cost called a ‘traffic improvement fee’. The QLD registration site also shows costs changing depending on the number of cylinders in your car. 

Electric vehicles are included in the lowest tier (up to three cylinders for combustion engines), which comes to an annual rego and CTP price of $678.65. But if you’re revving much higher between nine and 12 cylinders, this jumps to $1,295.85.

Head to the Queensland car insurance page for details on the other kinds of cover you may want to consider to protect your wheels and minimise repair bills.

South Australia car registration costs

You’ll be paying rego and CTP separately in South Australia – SGIC AAMI, Allianz and QBE cover the insurance side of things –  but registration costs are once again rather convoluted. The SA registration site lists costs for three and 12-month rego options, which are impacted by the type of vehicle you’re registering, its cylinders and, for utility vehicles and vans, the weight.  

Rates listed under ‘country’ are slightly cheaper than those under ‘metropolitan’. As a starting point, a four cylinder sedan or station wagon will cost $660 for metro registration, or $540 in the country.

Steer towards our South Australia car insurance page for more rego details and insurance options.

Western Australia car registration costs

They get rather technical with rego fees in WA (it’s referred to as a vehicle license fee here). It’s based on vehicle weight, but the WA registration page lists the costs as per-100kg, rather than giving rough estimates, so you’ll need to do some maths to figure out your car’s potential rego fee.

They do give an example calculation for a standard motor car weighing 1,650kg, which comes to $408.50 for 12 months registration. There’s a $10.30 administration fee and a flat annual renewal fee of $13.20 included as part of this sum, but CTP is sold separately and exclusively by the Insurance Commission of Western Australia.

Find more insurance details for WA drivers at Mozo’s Western Australia car insurance hub.

Tasmania car registration costs

Tassie drivers are looking at rego fees based on car cylinders in addition to a separate motor tax and Tasmania’s CTP equivalent, the Motor Accident Insurance Board fee. For the first component, the rego fee, you’re looking at somewhere between $566.78 (for a three-cylinder car) and $850.78 for more than eight cylinders.

The motor tax ranges from $121 to $405 for personal-use vehicles, again depending on cylinders, and the MAIB fee will set you back $282 for a standard passenger vehicle. So, altogether $969 is a starting point for annual rego and CTP cover in Tasmania.

Jump over to the Tasmania car insurance page for more insight into insurance off the mainland, and check specific pricing at the Tasmania car rego site.

Northern Territory car registration costs

Registration prices include Motor Accidents Compensation (MAC) in the NT, which is yet another version of CTP. The overall cost is calculated based on the number of cylinders as well as engine size, and can be paid annually or at one, three and six-month intervals.

For 12-month rego, prices sit between $632.75 and $781.75 for cars with four cylinders and an engine size less than 3000cc. Over this level, it gradually increases alongside engine size to a maximum of $1,272.75.

Check out the tables at the NT rego site for detailed price tiers, or head to Mozo’s Northern Territory car insurance page for info on the full spectrum of car insurance options.

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