Higher wages and a younger population may have the ACT's households paying more in tax than they receive in benefits compared to other states and territories.
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New figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics show ACT homes paid more in taxes each week on average than interstate, and received on average less in government benefits including allowances, pensions and other payments.
The finding went against the national trend, which showed Australian households received on average $76 more a week in government benefits than they paid in taxes in 2015-16.
Households in the ACT did not receive a benefit after tax, instead paying an average of $79 more in taxes than benefits received.
ANU Centre for Social Research and Methods associate professor Ben Phillips said the bureau's report reflected higher average incomes in the ACT compared to other states and territories.
"You would much rather, in a financial sense, be in Canberra," Associate Professor Phillips said.
Its population was also younger, more likely to be in the labour force and less likely to receive a pension.
The figures could also reflect the ACT's population was largely city-based, and statistics for Sydney might be more similar to Canberra's than were NSW statistics, he said.
The bureau's report calculated the "final income" of households after adding government benefits to private incomes, and deducting all taxes.
Across states and territories, Tasmanian households received the most in benefits after taxes, at $360 on average per week, compared to $219 for South Australia and $146 for Queensland.
