Enter gross pay
Choose annual, monthly, weekly, daily or hourly pay. Enter earnings before tax, National Insurance and pension deductions.
Calculate your UK take-home pay after Income Tax, employee National Insurance, workplace pension and student-loan deductions. The calculator supports England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland and presents annual, monthly and weekly results in a clear payslip-style breakdown.
Enter annual, monthly, weekly, daily or hourly gross pay. Adjust your region, pension method, student-loan plan, bonus, taxable benefits and other deductions to produce a practical 2026/27 estimate.
For a standard employee, take-home pay starts with gross cash salary and then subtracts Income Tax, employee National Insurance, employee pension contributions, student-loan repayments and any other payroll deductions. Employer National Insurance is normally an employer cost and is not subtracted from an employee’s agreed gross salary.
The standard Personal Allowance for 2026/27 is £12,570. For England, Wales and Northern Ireland, taxable employment income is generally charged at 20%, 40% and 45%. Scottish taxpayers use six employment-income rates ranging from 19% to 48%. Standard Category A employee National Insurance is generally 8% between £12,570 and £50,270 and 2% above £50,270.
Choose annual, monthly, weekly, daily or hourly pay. Enter earnings before tax, National Insurance and pension deductions.
Select Scotland only where Scottish taxpayer rules apply. Wales currently uses the same headline employment rates as England and Northern Ireland.
Select the pension method and add student loans, bonus, overtime, taxable benefits or other annual deductions where relevant.
Review annual, monthly and weekly net pay and keep Income Tax, employee NI, pension and loans separate.
A monthly salary of £4,000 means £48,000 annual gross pay. It does not mean £4,000 monthly take-home pay. Selecting the wrong input period is one of the most common reasons an online tax result looks unrealistic.
The 2026/27 tax year runs from 6 April 2026 to 5 April 2027. These figures are used by the homepage calculator for a standard annual estimate.
| Band or threshold | 2026/27 amount | Rate | How the calculator uses it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard Personal Allowance | £12,570 | 0% | The usual starting tax-free allowance. It is reduced when adjusted net income exceeds £100,000. |
| Basic-rate band | First £37,700 of taxable income | 20% | Applies to the first taxable slice after the available Personal Allowance for England, Wales and Northern Ireland. |
| Higher-rate band | £37,701 to £125,140 of taxable income | 40% | Applies after the basic-rate band is used. The allowance taper can create a high effective marginal rate above £100,000. |
| Additional-rate band | Above £125,140 | 45% | Applies to taxable employment income above the additional-rate threshold. |
| Employee NI Primary Threshold | £12,570 | 0% below | Standard Category A employee NI normally begins above this annualised threshold. |
| Employee NI main band | £12,570 to £50,270 | 8% | Calculated separately from Income Tax. |
| Employee NI upper band | Above £50,270 | 2% | The employee NI rate falls above the Upper Earnings Limit. |
| Employer NI Secondary Threshold | £5,000 | 15% above | Displayed separately as an employer cost, not an employee deduction from agreed gross salary. |
Moving into a higher band does not mean the whole salary is taxed at the higher percentage. Each rate normally applies only to the part of taxable income within that band. National Insurance, pension and student-loan deductions remain separate.
Take-home pay is the cash left after payroll deductions. The calculation begins by annualising the entered pay. Monthly income is multiplied by 12, weekly income by 52, and daily or hourly pay by the working pattern entered.
A cash bonus or overtime payment increases both cash income and taxable income. A benefit in kind can increase taxable income without increasing bank pay. That is why the calculator keeps bonus and taxable benefits in separate fields.
The standard allowance is reduced by £1 for each £2 of adjusted net income above £100,000. It can reach zero at £125,140. Pension contributions and Gift Aid can affect adjusted net income, but the exact treatment depends on the arrangement.
Income Tax is calculated after the available Personal Allowance and uses regional tax bands. Employee National Insurance uses NI thresholds and category rules. A salary can therefore be inside a 40% Income Tax band while only attracting 2% employee NI on the slice above the Upper Earnings Limit.
Employer National Insurance is normally paid by the employer in addition to the employee’s contractual gross salary. The homepage displays an estimate so users can understand employment cost, but it does not subtract employer NI from an employee’s salary.
PAYE uses tax codes, prior pay and prior tax, cumulative or non-cumulative operation, pay-period thresholds and statutory rounding. An emergency code, bonus month or irregular pension deduction can therefore produce a payslip that differs from an annual estimate.
Scottish taxpayers use six rates for wages, pensions and most non-savings, non-dividend income. Savings and dividends remain subject to UK-wide rules.
| Scottish band | Taxable-income slice | Rate | Total-income range with the standard allowance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starter rate | First £3,967 | 19% | £12,571 to £16,537 |
| Basic rate | £3,968 to £16,956 | 20% | £16,538 to £29,526 |
| Intermediate rate | £16,957 to £31,092 | 21% | £29,527 to £43,662 |
| Higher rate | £31,093 to £62,430 | 42% | £43,663 to £75,000 |
| Advanced rate | £62,431 to £125,140 | 45% | £75,001 to £125,140 |
| Top rate | Above £125,140 | 48% | Above £125,140 |
A person may work remotely for a London employer and still be a Scottish taxpayer. Working temporarily in Scotland does not automatically establish Scottish taxpayer status. The employee’s main place of residence and statutory rules determine the correct treatment.
Estimate take-home pay under England’s 2026/27 Income Tax and NI rules.
Open calculator →Use a dedicated calculation with Scottish starter, basic, intermediate, higher, advanced and top rates.
Open calculator →Calculate Welsh PAYE income using current Welsh rates and UK National Insurance thresholds.
Open calculator →The pension method and correct loan plan can make a substantial difference to monthly take-home pay.
The selected pension amount reduces modelled cash salary before Income Tax and employee NI. The sacrificed amount is treated as pension value rather than bank pay.
Read the guide →The gross pension contribution reduces taxable pay, but employee NI is generally calculated on the unreduced salary. The full contribution reduces take-home cash.
Calculate pension relief →The calculator deducts 80% of the selected gross contribution from net pay to represent basic-rate relief added by the pension provider.
Compare methods →| Loan type | 2026/27 annual threshold | Rate above threshold | Calculator treatment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plan 1 | £26,900 | 9% | 9% of annualised repayment earnings above the threshold. |
| Plan 2 | £29,385 | 9% | 9% above the Plan 2 threshold. |
| Plan 4 | £33,795 | 9% | 9% above the Scottish Plan 4 threshold. |
| Plan 5 | £25,000 | 9% | 9% above the Plan 5 threshold. |
| Postgraduate Loan | £21,000 | 6% | Can operate at the same time as an undergraduate-plan repayment. |
Actual payroll loan deductions use pay-period thresholds and round down under HMRC rules. The homepage annualises the estimate, so small differences are possible.
Use the live calculator for figures. These cards explain the tax changes that commonly appear at different salary levels.
Part of the salary is covered by the Personal Allowance. Remaining taxable income is normally inside the basic-rate band. Plan 5 starts only above its £25,000 threshold.
For England, Wales and Northern Ireland, taxable pay normally remains inside the 20% band. Scotland can use the starter, basic and intermediate rates.
The salary is close to the £50,270 higher-rate and NI upper thresholds. A bonus may push part of pay into 40% Income Tax while employee NI falls to 2% above the limit.
Part of taxable income is generally charged at 40% outside Scotland. Scottish higher-rate tax begins at a lower total-income level.
Higher-rate tax becomes substantial, and Scotland’s advanced rate applies to part of employment income. Loan and pension settings can materially change take-home pay.
Adjusted net income above £100,000 begins withdrawing the standard Personal Allowance. Pension and Gift Aid treatment may become especially important.
A cash bonus is added to earnings. It can occupy a higher Income Tax band, increase NI and student-loan deductions, and reduce Personal Allowance. A single bonus-month payslip can also look different from an annual estimate because of cumulative payroll rules.
Every internal link below uses an existing page slug from the British Tax Calculator website export.
An employee generally starts with contractual salary and cash bonus. The employer operates PAYE and employee National Insurance, while employer NI is a separate employment cost. Paid leave, employer pension, sick pay and benefits can make a job package more valuable than the headline net salary alone.
A sole trader is normally taxed on taxable business profit rather than turnover. Allowable expenses, capital allowances, Class 4 NI, accounting dates and payments on account can matter. Construction workers should use the dedicated CIS Tax Calculator where deductions under the Construction Industry Scheme are relevant.
A contractor operating through a limited company can have business revenue, company expenses, director salary, employer NI, employer pension, Corporation Tax and dividends. An inside-IR35 or umbrella assignment may begin with an assignment rate that funds employment costs before taxable gross pay is reached.
Use the site’s Contractor Tax Calculator rather than entering company turnover into an employee salary calculator.
£80,000 of company or self-employed turnover is not automatically equivalent to an £80,000 employment salary. Business costs, unpaid time, employer benefits and the tax route must be considered.
The homepage uses an annual model for comparison and budgeting. It does not claim to reproduce every individual HMRC payroll record.
Annual pay is used directly. Monthly pay is multiplied by 12, weekly pay by 52, and hourly or daily pay by the entered working pattern.
The model adjusts cash pay for the selected pension method, adds taxable benefits and subtracts the available Personal Allowance.
Income Tax, employee NI, pension cash cost, student loans and other deductions are subtracted from cash earnings to estimate net pay.
PAYE can operate cumulatively and use an employee’s tax code, prior earnings and prior tax. Student loans and National Insurance use pay-period thresholds. Bonuses, emergency codes, month-one codes, irregular pension deductions and rounding can all produce a different individual payslip.
Large differences usually come from the wrong input, period, region or calculator rather than a minor arithmetic difference.
Entering monthly pay while annual is selected can multiply the apparent salary. Confirm the period before reading the result.
The input should be salary before tax. Entering the bank payment creates a second set of deductions.
Scottish employment-income bands differ. Choose region from taxpayer status rather than employer address.
Salary sacrifice, net pay and relief at source can produce different tax, NI and cash results from the same percentage.
Use the plan shown by the Student Loans Company or employer notice. Age and graduation year alone can be misleading.
A taxable benefit can increase Income Tax without increasing bank pay. Enter it separately from cash bonus and overtime.
These existing British Tax Calculator guides support the homepage calculation and strengthen the site’s internal topic structure.
These answers explain the main assumptions behind the homepage salary and take-home-pay calculation.
The standard Personal Allowance is £12,570. It is reduced by £1 for every £2 of adjusted net income above £100,000 and can reach zero at £125,140.
The calculator uses 20% on the basic-rate taxable slice, 40% on the higher-rate slice and 45% above the additional-rate threshold.
For a standard Category A employee, the calculator uses 8% between £12,570 and £50,270 and 2% above £50,270.
Yes. Select Scotland to apply the 2026/27 starter, basic, intermediate, higher, advanced and top rates to employment income.
The Welsh rates for 2026/27 produce the same main 20%, 40% and 45% employment-income structure as England and Northern Ireland. Wales remains a separate region for clarity.
Employer National Insurance is normally an employer cost. The calculator displays an estimate but does not subtract it from the employee’s agreed gross salary.
The calculator reduces modelled cash salary before Income Tax and employee National Insurance and treats the sacrificed amount as pension value. Real scheme rules can differ.
Yes. Payroll can deduct 9% above the relevant undergraduate-plan threshold and 6% above the Postgraduate Loan threshold at the same time.
A bonus can occupy higher tax bands, increase NI and loan repayments and reduce Personal Allowance. Payroll timing and the tax code can also affect one month’s payslip.
Yes. Choose hourly or daily pay and enter the expected hours or days and paid weeks so the calculator can estimate annual income.
No. The allowance field offers a basic planning adjustment, but the tool cannot reproduce every HMRC restriction, benefit, prior-year adjustment or previous-pay record.
Real payroll uses pay-period thresholds, tax codes, cumulative records, exact pension rules and statutory rounding. The homepage uses an annualised model.
No. Use the dedicated Contractor Tax Calculator for limited-company, inside-IR35 and umbrella scenarios.
Yes. Taxable benefits increase modelled taxable income without increasing cash earnings. The tool does not calculate the benefit value itself.
No. It is a general educational estimate. Check official guidance and obtain qualified advice where an important decision depends on the result.
Rates should be reviewed after a UK Budget, fiscal statement, Scottish Budget or HMRC payroll update.
British Tax Calculator provides general educational estimates. It does not access HMRC records, operate payroll, submit tax returns, confirm tax residence or provide personalised tax, legal, pension or financial advice.
Check important figures against payslips, P60s, P45s, pension statements, student-loan notices, HMRC records and current official guidance. Seek qualified help for high income, multiple jobs, overseas issues, complex benefits, company ownership or significant pension contributions.
Read the site’s Disclaimer, Terms of Use, Privacy Policy and How to Use pages.
Return to the calculator and check Income Tax, National Insurance, pension and student-loan deductions using the same design as the rest of British Tax Calculator.