Finance calculators

HMRC Tax Calculator

Updated Sep 26, 2026 By Infinity Calculator
Rate Formulas Sources
Calculating for tax year 2026/27
Tax year, region & personal details
Scotland has its own income tax rates and bands.
Under 16 and over State Pension age pay no employee National Insurance.
Each job gets its own income, pension and tax code panel.
Allowances & adjustments
Blind Person's Allowance
Adds to your Personal Allowance and is never tapered.
Student loan repayments
Tick every plan you are repaying — you can select more than one (for example Plan 2 plus a Postgraduate Loan). Leave all unticked if you have no student loan.

Your estimated take-home pay

Annual take-home
£0.00
Monthly take-home
£0.00
Weekly take-home
£0.00
Daily take-home (5-day week)
£0.00
Effective tax rate Income Tax plus National Insurance plus student loan, divided by your total gross income. It is the average share of your pay taken in tax.
0.00%
Marginal tax rate The share of your next £1 of earnings taken by Income Tax, National Insurance and student loan repayments combined.
0.00%
Total deductions (annual)
£0.00
Full breakdown across pay frequencies
Gross pay, every deduction and take-home pay, shown annually, monthly, weekly and daily at the same time.
Item Annual Monthly Weekly Daily (5-day week)
Income tax band breakdown
How much of your taxable income falls into each band, and the tax due on each slice.
Band Taxable income range Rate Income in band Tax on band
Where your gross income goes
    Income tax by band
    Step-by-Step Solution

    Introduction

    This HMRC tax calculator works out what you actually take home after tax. Enter your pay and it calculates your Income Tax, National Insurance, pension and student loan. You get totals for the year, month, week and day.

    It covers the 2026/27, 2025/26, and 2024/25 tax years. Pick England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, or Scotland, since Scotland has its own tax bands.3 You can add up to five jobs, each with its own pay, tax code, and pension.

    The tool handles tax codes like 1257L, BR, D0, D1, 0T, NT, and K codes. It also covers Marriage Allowance, Blind Person's Allowance, and all student loan plans, including Plan 1, 2, 4, 5, and Postgraduate.

    The results go past a single figure. Charts show where your money goes, a band table shows the tax on each slice of your income, and a step-by-step section shows the full sum. You also get your effective tax rate and your marginal tax rate, so you know what your next pound of pay is worth.

    These are estimates to help you plan your budget or check your payslip. For advice on a tricky tax code or an unusual case, speak to HMRC.

    How to use our HMRC Tax Calculator

    Enter your pay, tax year, region, tax code, pension and student loan details. The calculator shows your take-home pay each year, month, week and day, plus your Income Tax, National Insurance, student loan repayments, tax bands and a full step-by-step working.

    Tax year: Pick the tax year you want to check. 2026/27 is the current year.

    Region: Choose England, Wales or Northern Ireland, or choose Scotland. Scotland has its own tax rates and bands.

    Age group: Select your age. People under 16 or over State Pension age pay no employee National Insurance.4

    Number of jobs: Choose how many jobs you have, up to five. Each job gets its own input panel.

    Marriage Allowance: Say if you give 10% of your Personal Allowance to your partner, get it from them, or neither.

    Blind Person's Allowance: Tick this box if you claim it. It is added to your Personal Allowance.1

    Gross income: Type your pay before any deductions for that job.

    Income frequency: Say if that pay is yearly, monthly, weekly or hourly. If you pick hourly, also enter your hours per week.

    Tax code: Enter the tax code for that job, such as 1257L, BR, D0, 0T, NT or a K code. Leave it as 1257L if you are not sure.

    Pension contribution: Enter how much you pay in, then choose a percent of gross pay or pounds per year, month or week.

    Pension scheme type: Pick salary sacrifice, which cuts tax and National Insurance, or relief at source, which cuts tax only.

    Student loan repayments: Tick each plan you repay. You can tick more than one, such as Plan 2 and a Postgraduate Loan.

    Calculate: Press Calculate to see your results. Press Reset to clear the form and start again.

    UK Take-Home Pay: Income Tax and National Insurance Explained

    In the UK, your boss does not hand you your full pay. HMRC takes tax out first through a system called PAYE (Pay As You Earn). What is left after Income Tax, National Insurance, pension payments and student loan repayments is your take-home pay, also called net pay.

    Income Tax

    Income Tax is charged in slices called bands. The first slice is your Personal Allowance, which is £12,570 a year for most people.1 You pay no tax on that part. After that, each slice of pay is taxed at a higher rate than the one before it.

    In England, Wales and Northern Ireland there are three rates: 20% basic, 40% higher and 45% additional.1 Scotland sets its own rates and has six bands, from a 19% starter rate up to a 48% top rate.3 Scottish rates apply to wages, pensions and most other taxable income, but not to savings interest or dividends.3

    If you earn over £100,000, your Personal Allowance drops by £1 for every £2 above that line.1 Once you reach £125,140, the allowance is gone.1

    National Insurance

    National Insurance (NI) helps pay for the State Pension and other benefits.4 Employees pay Class 1 NI at 8% on pay between £12,570 and £50,270 a year, then 2% on anything above that.14 You stop paying NI once you reach State Pension age, and you pay none if you are under 16.4

    NI is worked out for each job on its own.4 If you have two jobs, each one gets its own threshold, so you may pay less NI than someone earning the same total from one job. Income Tax does not work this way. It looks at your total income.

    Tax Codes

    Your tax code tells your employer how much tax-free pay you get.15 The most common code is 1257L, which means £12,570 of tax-free pay.5 Other codes you may see:

    • BR taxes all pay at the basic rate, often used for a second job.5
    • D0 / D1 taxes all pay at the higher or additional rate.5
    • SD0 to SD3 tax all pay at one Scottish rate: intermediate, higher, advanced or top.5
    • 0T gives no tax-free pay at all.5
    • NT means no tax is taken.5
    • K codes add extra income or work benefits to your taxable pay.5
    • S or C prefix means Scottish or Welsh rates apply.5
    • W1 / M1 is an emergency code that looks at one pay period at a time.6

    Pension Contributions

    Paying into a pension lowers your tax bill. With salary sacrifice, you give up part of your pay before tax, so you save both Income Tax and National Insurance. With relief at source, you pay from your net wage and the pension provider claims 20% back for you.7 Relief at source also stretches your basic rate band, so higher earners get more relief.

    Student Loans

    Student loan repayments come straight out of your pay once you earn over a set amount.8 You pay 9% of the pay above the threshold on Plans 1, 2, 4 and 5, and 6% on a Postgraduate Loan.8 You can be on more than one plan at once, but you still make one 9% repayment, worked out over the lowest of your plan thresholds.8 A Postgraduate Loan adds a separate 6% on top.8 You only repay on the part above the line, not on your whole wage.8

    Other Allowances

    Marriage Allowance lets you move £1,260 of your Personal Allowance to a husband, wife or civil partner.10 The partner who gets it saves up to £252 in tax.10 You can only do this if you pay no Income Tax yourself, and your partner pays tax at the basic rate (in Scotland, the starter, basic or intermediate rate).10 Blind Person's Allowance adds £3,250 to your tax-free pay in the 2026 to 2027 tax year.2 It is never cut back, no matter how much you earn.

    Effective Rate vs Marginal Rate

    Your effective rate is the share of your whole income taken in tax. Your marginal rate is what the next pound you earn gets taxed at. The marginal rate is almost always higher, and it can spike to 60% or more between £100,000 and £125,140 because of the lost Personal Allowance.

    The UK tax year runs from 6 April to 5 April.1 Rates and thresholds can change each April, so always check the year you are working with.

    Formulas used

    Annualised gross income
    G = \sum_{j} g_j \times m_j, \quad m_j = \begin{cases} 1 & \text{annual} \\ 12 & \text{monthly} \\ 52 & \text{weekly} \\ h_j \times 52 & \text{hourly} \end{cases}
    Personal Allowance after taper, blind allowance and marriage transfer 1
    PA = \left(A_{code} - \min\left(A_{code},\ \frac{(N - 100000)^{+}}{2}\right) + B - M_t\right)^{+}
    Taxable income
    T = \begin{cases} P & \text{flat-rate code (BR, D0, D1, NT)} \\ P + K & \text{K code} \\ \max(0,\; P - PA) & \text{otherwise} \end{cases}, \quad P = G - S
    Income Tax across bands (basic band extended by gross relief-at-source pension)
    IT = \sum_{i} r_i \cdot \max\bigl(0,\; \min(T,\, L_i + E) - \min(T,\, L_{i-1} + E)\bigr) - C_{marriage}
    Class 1 employee National Insurance (per employment) 14
    NI_j = 8\% \times \left(\min(E_j,\ 50270) - 12570\right)^{+} + 2\% \times \left(E_j - 50270\right)^{+}
    Student loan repayment (all plans, worked out per job) 8
    SL = \sum_{j} \left[ 9\% \times \left(P_j - Th_{low}\right)^{+} + 6\% \times \left(P_j - Th_{PG}\right)^{+} \right]
    Take-home pay and pay-frequency split
    H = G - (Pen + IT + NI + SL), \quad H_{month} = \frac{H}{12},\; H_{week} = \frac{H}{52},\; H_{day} = \frac{H}{260}
    Effective and marginal tax rates
    R_{eff} = \frac{IT + NI + SL}{G}, \qquad R_{marg} = \frac{\Delta(IT + NI + SL)}{100}

    Frequently asked questions

    Do you pay more tax if you have two jobs?

    No. Income Tax looks at your total pay from all jobs, so two jobs paying £40,000 in total cost the same tax as one job paying £40,000.

    National Insurance is different. It is worked out for each job on its own.4 Each job gets its own £12,570 threshold.14 So two jobs can leave you paying less NI than one job with the same total pay.

    How much is £30,000 a year after tax in the UK?

    On a 1257L code in England, Wales or Northern Ireland, with no pension or student loan:

    • Income Tax: (£30,000 − £12,570) × 20% = £3,486
    • National Insurance: £17,430 × 8% = £1,394.40
    • Take-home: £25,119.60 a year, or about £2,093 a month

    A pension or student loan would lower this further.

    How much do you have to earn to pay 40% tax?

    In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, the 40% higher rate starts once your taxable income passes £37,700.2 With the full £12,570 Personal Allowance, that means earnings above £50,270 a year.1

    In Scotland the higher rate is 42% and it starts a bit lower, once total pay passes £43,662.3 Only the slice above the line is taxed at the higher rate, not your whole wage.

    What is the 60% tax trap?

    Between £100,000 and £125,140, you lose £1 of Personal Allowance for every £2 you earn.1 So every extra £1 of pay is taxed at 40%, and it also drags another 50p of your old tax-free pay into tax.

    The result is an effective rate of 60% on that slice (62% with the 2% National Insurance). Paying more into a pension is the usual way people get back under £100,000.

    Why am I on an emergency tax code?

    Emergency codes end in W1, M1 or X, for example 1257L W1 or 1257L M1.6 They are used when your employer does not have your previous pay and tax details, most often when you start a new job without a P45.6 You can also be put on one when you start getting company benefits or the State Pension.6

    These codes tax each pay period on its own, as if you were paid that amount every week or month of the year, so you can pay the wrong amount.6 HMRC usually updates your code once it has your details, which can take up to 35 days.6 If you paid too much, you can get a refund.6

    How do I get a tax refund if I paid too much tax?

    If you are still working, the refund normally comes back through payroll once HMRC updates your tax code. You will see it as lower tax on your next payslip.

    If the year has ended, HMRC checks your records and sends a P800 letter.11 The letter tells you how to get the money: claim it online, or wait for a cheque if the letter says one is coming.12 You can also claim through your personal tax account, the HMRC app or by contacting HMRC.12

    Is a bonus taxed at a higher rate?

    No. A bonus is taxed at the same rates as normal pay. It just gets added to your earnings, so part of it may land in a higher band.

    Payroll sometimes treats a bonus month as if you earned that much every month, so too much tax comes out. This usually balances out over the rest of the tax year.

    Do pension contributions reduce student loan repayments?

    Only salary sacrifice does. It lowers the pay your employer reports, so your student loan, Income Tax and National Insurance all drop.

    Relief at source pensions come out of your pay after these are worked out, so your student loan repayment stays the same.

    When do student loan repayments stop?

    Repayments stop when the loan is paid off, or when it is written off after a set time:

    • Plan 1: usually 25 years after repayments were due9
    • Plan 2: 30 years9
    • Plan 4: 30 years9
    • Plan 5: 40 years9
    • Postgraduate Loan: 30 years9

    They also pause any time your pay drops below the threshold for your plan.8

    Do I still repay my student loan if I earn under the threshold?

    No. You only repay on the pay above your plan's threshold.8 Earn below it and nothing is taken.

    Interest is still added to the balance, so the debt can grow while you pay nothing.8 Repayments start again as soon as your pay goes back over the line.8

    Do you pay National Insurance after State Pension age?

    No. Once you reach State Pension age, you stop paying employee Class 1 National Insurance, even if you keep working.4 Your employer still pays their share.

    You also pay no NI if you are under 16.4 Income Tax still applies at every age.

    How do I know if I am a Scottish taxpayer?

    It depends on where you live, not where you work.16 If you live in Scotland but work in England, you still pay Scottish rates.

    Your tax code will start with an S, for example S1257L.16 A C prefix means Welsh rates, which currently match the English ones.13

    How do I check if my tax code is correct?

    Look at your payslip, P45 or P60 and compare it with your personal tax account on the HMRC website. That account shows what HMRC thinks you earn and why your code was set.

    Common reasons a code is wrong include an old job still showing as active, a company car or benefit you no longer get, or missing pay details. Tell HMRC and they will send your employer a new code.

    Why did my take-home pay drop this month?

    Common reasons:

    • A pay rise pushed part of your income into a higher band
    • A bonus or overtime added extra tax that month
    • Your student loan repayments started
    • Your tax code changed, or an emergency code was applied
    • Your pension contribution went up, often through auto-enrolment

    Compare two payslips line by line to spot which deduction changed.

    Does salary sacrifice affect my State Pension?

    It can, but only if it cuts your pay a long way.17 National Insurance credits count towards your State Pension, and you build them once your earnings pass the Lower Earnings Limit.4

    If salary sacrifice drops your pay below that level, that year may not count as a qualifying year.17 For most people on normal wages, it makes no difference.

    Sources

    1. Income Tax rates and Personal Allowances. GOV.UK. Accessed September 26, 2026.
    2. Income Tax rates and allowances for current and past years. HM Revenue & Customs. Other allowances; Tax rates and bands. Accessed September 26, 2026.
    3. Income Tax in Scotland: current rates. GOV.UK. Accessed September 26, 2026.
    4. National Insurance: introduction. GOV.UK. Accessed September 26, 2026.
    5. Tax codes: what your tax code means. GOV.UK. Accessed September 26, 2026.
    6. Tax codes: emergency tax codes. GOV.UK. Accessed September 26, 2026.
    7. Tax on your private pension contributions: tax relief. GOV.UK. Accessed September 26, 2026.
    8. Repaying your student loan: how much you repay. GOV.UK. Accessed September 26, 2026.
    9. Repaying your student loan: when your student loan gets written off or cancelled. GOV.UK. Accessed September 26, 2026.
    10. Marriage Allowance. GOV.UK. Accessed September 26, 2026.
    11. Tax overpayments and underpayments. GOV.UK. Accessed September 26, 2026.
    12. Tax overpayments and underpayments: if your tax calculation letter (P800) says you're due a refund. GOV.UK. Accessed September 26, 2026.
    13. Income Tax in Wales. GOV.UK. Accessed September 26, 2026.
    14. Rates and thresholds for employers 2026 to 2027. HM Revenue & Customs. 2026;Class 1 National Insurance thresholds and rates. Accessed September 26, 2026.
    15. Tax codes. GOV.UK. Accessed September 26, 2026.
    16. Income Tax in Scotland: who pays. GOV.UK. Accessed September 26, 2026.
    17. Salary sacrifice and the effects on PAYE. HM Revenue & Customs. Contribution based benefits. Accessed September 26, 2026.

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