Australia’s Slow Payer Index 2026

Three quarters of invoices are paid within 30 days, but industry differences are substantial

Payment terms look harmless on a contract until wages, GST and suppliers fall due before the customer pays. The national median in our sample was 25 days, yet a supplier serving manufacturers or construction groups faced a typical average payment time above 30 days.

This index examines the latest standard report from 3,141 entities in the Payment Times Reports Register. It is a study of large customers and corporate groups that must report, not a survey of every Australian invoice.

Where suppliers waited longest

Manufacturing produced the longest median average payment time at 31.8 days, followed by construction at 30.3 days. Mining, wholesale trade and transport each sat near 27 days. Financial and insurance services were at the other end of the table, with a 14.5-day median.

The within-30-day measure tells a similar story. The median manufacturer paid 56.8 per cent of invoices inside 30 days, while construction reported 56.2 per cent. Financial services reported 93.5 per cent, and electricity, gas, water and waste services reported 88.5 per cent.

Speed and compliance are not identical. Construction’s median share paid within agreed terms was 76 per cent, stronger than several faster industries. A 45-day contract may be honoured exactly, while still leaving a small supplier carrying more working capital than a 14-day arrangement would require.

The financing cost hidden inside a slow invoice

At the May 2026 average rate for new small business loans, 7.26 per cent a year, financing a $50,000 invoice for 30 days costs about $298 before fees. The same exposure costs roughly $597 over 60 days and $895 over 90 days.

That calculation is deliberately simple. A line of credit may charge a different rate, an invoice finance facility may price each drawdown separately, and a business using its own cash still gives up the return or stock purchase that cash could have supported. The useful comparison is between the cost of waiting and the gross profit on the work.

Payment concentration matters too. Ten customers paying predictably on day 30 can be easier to finance than one large customer paying anywhere between day 20 and day 65. Businesses assessing a contract should therefore ask about both the stated term and the customer’s actual payment distribution.

How to read the index before accepting work

The register is most useful when the prospective customer is a reporting entity. Search its legal name, confirm the reporting period and compare its average payment time with the share paid after 60 days. A deteriorating tail can matter even when the average looks stable.

Suppliers can then price the working capital requirement into the quote, negotiate deposits or progress claims, or arrange an appropriate facility before delivery begins. None of those steps fixes poor payment behaviour, but they prevent a profitable sale from creating an avoidable cash shortage.

The national figures should not become a promise about an individual customer. They are medians across company reports, and the register states that some reports may be temporarily omitted while they are screened. Industry classification also reflects the reporting entity, which may differ from the work performed by its supplier.