If you’re looking to put on a corporate team building event the first question will nearly always be: How Much Do Corporate Team Building Events Cost in Australia?
The fact is that there isn’t just one answer. Prices for corporate team building around Australia will generally fall within the $50 to $300+ per person bracket, which reflects low-to-high-end experiences respectively.
The secret is knowing what drives the price and how to make sure you’re getting true value for your money.
In this guide, we’ll review what Team Building costs in Australia on average, what you’re generally getting for the money and provide a city-by-city price comparison before moving onto whether your event could be tax deductible.
How Much Do Corporate Team Building Events Cost in Australia?
There’s no one-size-fits-all, but here’s roughly what most companies spend per head:
- Short/Simple Activities (1–2 hours): $40–$80pp
Think: Conference icebreakers, team trivia, escape rooms, and small amazing race style activities.
- Premium Team Building Activities: $80-$170pp
Think: Purpose-driven team building activities with equipment setup and multiple event staff. Favourite formats may include Survivor, Company Sports Day, Street Art Workshop and Cooking Activities.
- Packaged Team Activities or Full Day: $170–$350pp
Think: Team activity package that includes venue hire, food and drinks package and AV. These may comprise off-site locations, several exercises, and/or specialised facilitation. They are engineered to inspire a “wow” and frequently serve as the centrepiece of a corporation’s calendar such as end-of-year event or conference activity.
What’s Usually Included
If you book a professional team building experience, this is what you should expect to be involved (inclusions):
- Facilitation & hosts – trained staff run the activities and ensure everybody is involved.
- Venue hire – unless you’re doing it at your own premises. Costs vary based on group size and location.
- Equipment or props — be it LEGO bricks, VR headsets or Survivor equipment, you don’t have to bring anything along.
- Travel/setup fees — sometimes applied if the event is outside a metro area. Be sure your provider is up front about all fees in advance to save an awkward and angry chat later.
Some providers (us included at Hidden Door Experience) also include event design and in the package inclusions too.
Why? We’re not a one-size-fits-all type of business so we want to make sure what we deliver aligns with your business objectives.
City-by-City Comparison
There’s also varied pricing based on your location:
- Sydney: Venue hire can be a budget buster if you need one, especially in November and December. Budget $100–$200pp on average. As an alternative, outdoor group activities like Pub Quest start at around $75pp and don’t need a venue.
- Melbourne: A little more competitive, prices for most packages are between $80–$180pp.
- Brisbane: Cheaper overall for venues, $80–$150pp for activities like Minute to Win It or Game Show Trivia Night.
- Regional areas: Costs can vary. Travel charges possible if facilitators are traveling from the city.
Pro Tip: If your location is flexible, look out for options outside the CBD because you could save some serious dollars off your event cost!
Can You Write Off Team Building Activities?
One of the most frequently asked question is from HR and finance teams wanting to know. The brief answer is: sometimes, but not always.
- Tax: A significant amount of team building activity can be written off as staff training or development. Those are usually deductible by the business.
- FBT may be in play: If the activity is more social or entertainment-centric (like a winery tour including lunch) it could potentially fall into the realm of Fringe Benefits Tax (FBT).
- ATO guidance: The Australian Tax Office has precise rules, and it’s always advisable to confirm with your accountant.
Pro tip: When you’re briefing your provider, try to position the event as “skills-based,” or “developmental” if it really is about leadership, communication, or collaboration outcomes. This greatly bolsters the argument in favour of tax deductibility.
Factors That Influence the Price
Here are a few other things that influence cost beyond the obvious (location and length):
- Number of people – Certain activities may assess per individual rate, while others operate on a flat fee. The “per head” cost can actually go down for bigger groups depending on the type of activity. Prices per head / per person should be considered. But “flat fee” pricing is generally more cost-effective so don’t be afraid to ask your provider how their pricing is structured.
- Customisation – Ready-made solutions are generally more affordable. Branded experience is more expensive but has a greater impact.
- Season –High season (Oct–Dec) and prices are high and availability limited.
- Add-ons – Maybe photography, videography, team merch or post-race drinks.
How to Get the Best ROI for Your Event
It’s not just a matter of the cost — it’s also about what you get in return for it. Here’s how to ensure that you get a return on your team building investment:
- Be clear about what you want to achieve – Whether that’s better communication, a well-organised onboarding process or a team celebrating successes, know your aim.
- Pick the right format – Creative formats build problem-solving, physical formats build grit/challenge and social/creative formats builds strong culture.
- Get leadership involved – Senior leadership who take part in events have more impact.
- Track success – Monitor outcomes with post-event surveys or team input. Your provider can help with this.
Watch Out for Hidden Extra Costs
When you are asking for quotes, it’s easy to zero in on the per person amount, but be careful of any hidden extras.
- Travel Fees – If your event is not in metro Sydney, Melbourne or Brisbane, some providers tack on fees per kilometre as well. Make sure they’re up front.
- Extras related to venue fees – You might want to watch out for-basic room hire could be included, but AV equipment, parking or set-up expenses might not be paid by the provider.
- Catering upgrades – A standard simple lunch might well be part of the cost, but coffee carts, grazing tables and premium drinks packages cost extra so be careful before you get stung.
- Changes/Cancellation – To dates or time, this can often incur a fee by the provider. You’ll also likely be charged a considerable fee if you decide to cancel.
Cost Differences Within The Format of Team Building
Not all team building activities are the same. When you choose an activity type, it can have major effects on the overall cost.
- Creative challenges (middle range $100-$150pp): Think Lego Masters, cooking classes or some kind of art exercise. Often includes all materials and professional facilitation.
- Outdoor adventures (wide range $80–$250 pp): Treasure hunts, Amazing Race style events or sports challenges. Price depends on location and required equipment.
- Charity based events (middle to premium range $150-$300 pp): Building bikes for children or putting together care packages. Costs are higher because materials are donated to charities but the impact is great.
- Experiences driven by technology (premium $100+ pp): V.R. challenges, A.R. treasure hunts or totally new and different digital builds. These require particular equipment and very skilled hosts.
Understanding the format allows you to quickly align your budget with the type of experience that will best suit your team.
Why Sometimes Cheaper Isn’t better
If you’re planning for a large group, it might seem smart to go with the lowest bidder. But at cut-rate events, corners get cut everywhere and it affects the overall experience.
- Inexperienced Hosts – A poorly-run can leave people feeling flat. Ensure your supplier is experienced, use their own staff (not freelancers) and can show you how previous events look and feel.
- Dodgy Equipment – Broken props, outdated tech or insufficient materials bring immersion crashing to the ground. This can affect other elements of an event as well. If it looks dirty or cheap in photos/video, it probably is.
- Planning Support – Cheaper offers don’t typically include a chance for the facilitator and client or any pre-event consultation. The activity provided may not line up with your business goals.
Not everything has to cost more when done professionally, and one provider might charge a little more but in exchange for that they will provide polished results that are outcome driven. The results leave staff buzzing, apparently.
What Do You Get for the Money? Team Building ROI
Bosses and business leaders often wonder, “How do I know if this spend is worth it?”.
Here are some real business outcomes many companies have gained:
- Improved communication: Staff learn they work in different ways together.
- Employee engagement: enjoyable and meaningful events raise morale and retention rates.
- Better leaders: In team trials unexpectedly a number of attendees shine out as leadership candidates.
In other words, while you might spend $150 pp on a team building day, the return is more than likely to show up as increased productivity, lower turnover and a stronger culture — outcomes that are much more valuable than your initial outlay in fact.
Case Study – Sydney finance team corporate workshop
A small finance team recently asked us to hold a half-day team building event for 25 people where they could incorporate some EOFY awards. The finance company, based in Sydney, wanted it to be both fun and outdoors. They wanted to explore Sydney as most people work from home and rarely get together.
In the end they settled on $3,000 as their budget (about twice what they had ever paid before), or around $120 per person.
This was how it worked out:
- Activity: An outdoor City Quest challenge starting from their office in Barangaroo, that lead them towards Darling Square before ending up at Sydney Cidery for an hour of drinks and canapés while they gave out awards.
- What was Included: Team building activity for 1.5hrs that was customised around their company values, 2 x event facilitators, equipment and a private space for drinks and canapés.
- Total cost: $2,225 ex GST ($89 pp)
Result: We delivered their best team day yet. Suitable for everyone, customised to their values, and well under budget.
Our post-event survey showed 97% of attendees agreed they connected with their team on a deeper level and felt greater confidence communicating with colleagues outside of their immediate team.
This case illustrates that you don’t have to spend a lot for a successful team building activity. A clear brief and outcomes can achieve measurable returns if it has the right focus.
Success highs vs. Failure lows
Like hotels or airline tickets, the cost of team building events continues to rise during peak travel periods and fall off towards the off-season.
- Peak period (Oct-Dec): Everything is sold out early peak period starts, leaving only premium prices and less preferred venues available for reservation. The discount deadline has already passed.
- Off-peak (Jan-Mar): Greater availability, lower venue rental, and sometimes a concession during such periods.
- Save on mid-week deals: Tuesdays and Wednesdays are often cheaper than Thursdays and Fridays. Ask your provider for a better price on those days.
If you can be flexible about timing, then taking your event outside of the peak season could save 15–25% overall.
FAQs: Team Bonding Activities and Costs
How Much Do Corporate Team Building Cost?
Q: How much does it cost to do team building in Australia?
A: Most corporate team building activities cost $50 – $150 per person, from there we can find a local venue and work our inclusions around it.
Q: Is there such a thing as tax deductible team building activities for businesses?
A: Quite often yes, particularly if it can be presented as part of staff training or development. But “Genuine” social functions could result in Fringe Benefits Tax (FBT). Always confirm with your accountant.
Q: How much should I allocate to a high-end team building event?
A: Premium events (full-day, custom builds, luxury venues) start at $250 per person and go up to $350+.
Q: What is the cheapest team building activity in Australia?
A: The least expensive at just $25 per head are activities like City Quest and Selfie Mania.
Q: What is the rationale of a team building budget?
A: Multiply the per-head fee by the numbers of people invited. And subtract the total sum necessary for hosting, attendance at venues, etc. Also, always schedule an extra 10% contingency fund in case expenses go over budget.
Q: Do larger groups become less expensive per person?
A: Many suppliers have different rates for groups of differing scale, obviously. The ” per person” falls as the group expands. “Flat rate” fee is also very cost-effective.
Accessibility and Inclusivity
Q: What team building activities are inclusive?
A: Almost all activities are inclusive but activities like VR Bomb Defusal, Game Show and Video Hits are very popular and relatively low-cost starting at around $45pp and allow everyone the chance to participate, engage and be competitive. For mobility-impaired guests, indoor activities are the most suitable as venues are likely to adhere to accessibility requirements.
We can provide foreign language speakers for international groups to ensure your event communication is clear and seamless.
Q: What can I expect on the day?
A: You’ll meet your host at the start location or venue for a full activity or rules briefing that includes all safety points. The host will hand out any clues or equipment and get started, while monitoring and facilitating throughout the duration. The event wrap-up is always a fun way to highlight key moments and hand out trophies or medals.
Q: What is the cancellation policy?
A: Every supplier is different so be sure to check before you book. At Hidden Door Experiences, we charge a non-refundable deposit of 50% however if you cancel more than 30 days in advance, this can be held as a credit for a future event. Check out our full terms and conditions here.
Team Building Bookings
Q: How long in advance do I need to book a team building activity?
A: It depends on the activity and time of year, but at Hidden Door, we’re able to help with short lead-time requests including wet weather alternatives or a last minute change. Generally 14+ days lead time is suitable however we can discuss last minute requests within 24 hours of your preferred date.
Q: Do you provide photographs after the event?
A: We sure do! For most experiences we will have our own in-house professional photographer to snap pics that we’ll send to you after the event. Be careful of companies wanting to charge you extra!
Q: Are virtual team building activities any good?
A: Like anything, there are some good ones and some virtual activities you want to avoid. We all spend enough time looking at screens so we’ve created a bunch of virtual and online team building activities that get people up and active. Check out Virtual Lip Sync Battle and Virtual Amazing Race which are both priced under $800.
Q: Is insurance included?
A: Yes, we have $20M public liability insurance so ensure your supplier is appropriately insured. Our staff are all first-aid trained and go through extensive in-house training.
Review
Corporate team building events are not just a “nice to have” — they’re an investment in tighter, more effective teams and better performance.
Whether you want a short two-hour experience to break up the ice or an all-day premium offering, costs generally range between $50 and $150 per person at many companies. If you’re ready to go bigger, however, the $250–$350 space is your ticket to high-impact events that will stay on your staff’s lips for days after it’s all over.
It’s that simple – at the end of the day, there is one question which still matters most: How Much Do Corporate Team Building Events Cost in Australia? But instead of, “Will it or won’t it work?” When executed properly, team building delivers results that are well worth the price tag.
Contact our team today to discuss your next event.