An Indian professional in Sydney shares detailed insights into his earnings, expenses, and savings, highlighting how transitioning from hourly jobs to consulting can significantly boost savings in a high-cost city.
Divyaj Gautam, an Indian professional in Sydney, has drawn attention on social media after laying out, in unusually exact terms, how much he earned in Australia and how much of it he kept each month. In a video shared on Instagram, Gautam said he had only around 18 days left in Sydney and wanted to set out the figures before leaving, describing the post as a financial snapshot of his time in the city.
According to the account reported by TV9 Hindi and picked up by Hindustan Times and Moneycontrol, Gautam’s earnings rose in stages after he arrived in Australia. He said his first job was at an Indian grocery shop, where he worked six days a week and earned about AUD 500 a week. He later moved into retail, where his weekly pay increased to roughly AUD 1,100. He then began using his professional background to build a psychosocial risk consulting practice, charging about AUD 3,000 a month per client.
Gautam said his average monthly income eventually reached about AUD 10,000 before tax, which left him with roughly AUD 7,500 after tax. He also broke down his spending in Sydney, saying rent took about AUD 2,400 a month, utilities about AUD 350, groceries around AUD 500 and gym membership about AUD 100. Eating out and leisure pushed total monthly spending to around AUD 3,900, leaving him with savings of roughly AUD 3,600 a month, which he said he mostly set aside.
The story has resonated because it touches on a broader question for many migrants: whether a high salary in a global city actually translates into meaningful savings. In Gautam’s telling, the answer depended less on geography than on how income changed from hourly work to consulting. He said the key difference was that his early jobs paid him for time, while consulting paid him for a service and a skill. That distinction, he suggested, mattered as much as the city itself. Gautam said he would rather return to India with a financial cushion than come back with an open-ended plan.
Disclaimer: This article is intended to inform and educate, not to recommend or endorse any financial product, investment or strategy. Please consider your own financial circumstances and seek professional advice where appropriate before making financial decisions.
