What It’s Like To Make More Money Than Your Partner, According To 9 Women

The gender pay gap persists as a major issue, with Australian women earning 87 cents for every dollar men make. But across the country, there are women who earn more than their male partners, which throws the traditional financial scripts out the window.

Earning more a year than your partner raises a number of crucial questions, including: How do you split costs? Are you obligated to pay more as the main breadwinner? Does it change the power dynamics in a relationship when one person earns significantly more?

Along with the emotional turmoil of dealing with financial jealousy, awkwardness around money and the weight of expectation to provide, there's also the practical confusion of how to handle your hard-earned money when you share some or all of your finances with someone else.

So we spoke to 9 women who earn more than their partner to find out what exactly it feels like. We asked about how this affects their spending habits, their emotions and the dynamics of their partnership — here's what they said.