UK Take-Home Pay Calculator 2026/27
Calculate what you are likely to receive after Income Tax and National Insurance, with separate Scottish tax rates and optional pension and student-loan deductions.
Calculate your take-home pay
Enter your gross pay before tax and deductions. The result updates as you type.
This estimate assumes the standard Personal Allowance and employee National Insurance category A. Payroll rounding and individual tax codes can produce small differences.
Estimated take-home pay
You keep 80.8% of your gross pay. That is about 80.8p from each £1 across your salary.
What would a £1,000 pay rise mean?
£720 would reach your take-home pay at this point — about 72p from each extra £1.
How your take-home pay is calculated
Your gross pay is the amount you earn before deductions. For most employees, the main deductions are Income Tax and National Insurance. Pension contributions and student-loan repayments can also reduce the amount that reaches your bank account.
Income Tax
The calculator applies the standard Personal Allowance first and then the relevant Income Tax bands. Scotland has its own rates and bands, so Scottish taxpayers can get a different result from someone on the same salary elsewhere in the UK.
National Insurance
For a standard category A employee in 2026/27, National Insurance is charged at 8% on earnings within the main band and 2% above the Upper Earnings Limit.
Pension contributions
The advanced options distinguish between salary sacrifice, net pay and relief at source because they affect payroll differently. Salary sacrifice reduces pay for Income Tax and National Insurance, net pay contributions reduce pay before Income Tax, and relief-at-source contributions are taken after PAYE and National Insurance with basic-rate tax relief added by the pension provider.
Student loans
If you select a student-loan plan, the calculator estimates repayments using the published 2026/27 threshold and repayment rate. A Postgraduate Loan can be included separately.
This calculator gives an annualised estimate. PAYE, National Insurance and student-loan deductions are operated by payroll for each pay period, so rounding, bonuses, irregular earnings, tax codes and other deductions can change the exact amount.
This calculator is designed for employment income paid through PAYE. If you are a construction subcontractor paid under the Construction Industry Scheme instead, use our UK CIS Deduction Calculator to estimate the CIS deduction and amount payable.
Tax rates used for 2026/27
These are the main rates used by the calculator for a standard employee. The Personal Allowance is reduced for incomes above £100,000.
England, Wales & Northern Ireland
| Band | Rate |
|---|---|
| Personal Allowance | 0% |
| Basic rate | 20% |
| Higher rate | 40% |
| Additional rate | 45% |
Scotland
| Band | Rate |
|---|---|
| Starter rate | 19% |
| Basic rate | 20% |
| Intermediate rate | 21% |
| Higher rate | 42% |
| Advanced rate | 45% |
| Top rate | 48% |
Employee National Insurance
| Annual earnings | Rate |
|---|---|
| Up to £12,570 | 0% |
| £12,570 to £50,270 | 8% |
| Above £50,270 | 2% |
Rates last checked 8 September 2026 against GOV.UK Income Tax rates, HMRC employer thresholds and the Scottish Government. Read the full methodology and sources.
Common UK salaries after tax
Approximate take-home pay for England, Wales and Northern Ireland using the standard 2026/27 assumptions and no pension or student loan. Select a salary for a fuller breakdown and Scottish comparison.
Take-home pay questions
What is take-home pay?
Take-home pay, sometimes called net pay, is the amount left from your gross earnings after payroll deductions such as Income Tax, National Insurance, pension contributions and any applicable student-loan repayments.
Why is Scottish take-home pay different?
The Scottish Parliament sets separate Income Tax rates and bands for Scottish taxpayers. National Insurance remains a UK-wide system, so the Income Tax part of the calculation is what changes here.
What happens to the Personal Allowance above £100,000?
The standard Personal Allowance is reduced by £1 for every £2 of income above £100,000. It can be reduced to zero, which creates a particularly high effective marginal tax rate in this income range.
How does the calculator handle pension contributions?
You can choose salary sacrifice, net pay or relief at source in the extra options. The calculation changes according to the method selected. For relief at source, the estimate includes the provider's basic-rate top-up but does not assume any extra higher- or additional-rate relief you may later claim from HMRC.
Is this an official HMRC calculator?
No. UK Pay Calculator is an independent tool. We use published government rates and clearly show our assumptions, but the result is an estimate and is not tax or financial advice.
Looking for another quick business calculation? Browse the free UK business tools from Klamic.