UK Salary Calculator 2026/27
What you actually take home after PAYE income tax, National Insurance, pension and student loan.
Last updated: May 2026 · 2026/27 tax rates
Your salary
Annual equivalent: £50,000
Tax code starts with "S".
Pension & student loan
Reduces gross before tax and NI — the most efficient pension route.
Annual breakdown
Understanding your take-home pay
From a typical UK gross salary, four things come off before you see your pay:
- Pension contribution — under salary sacrifice, deducted before any tax.
- Income tax — Personal Allowance up to £12,570, then 20% / 40% / 45% bands (rUK) or six Scottish bands.
- National Insurance (Class 1 employee) — 8% between £12,570 and £50,270, then 2% above.
- Student loan — 9% above your plan's threshold (6% for postgraduate).
Salary sacrifice swaps a slice of gross pay for an employer pension contribution. The pound that goes into your pension never hit your payroll, so:
- It avoids both income tax (20% / 40% / 45%) and employee NI (8% / 2%).
- Your employer's 15% NI bill is also lower — many employers pass some or all of that back into your pension.
- Relief-at-source (typical SIPP) only reclaims basic-rate tax automatically — higher-rate top-up needs Self Assessment.
Net of all this, a 5% salary-sacrifice contribution typically only reduces take-home by 3-4% of salary.
Related calculators
Other free UK tools that follow on from this calculation.
Income Tax Calculator
PAYE tax, National Insurance and take-home pay for any UK salary, including Scotland.
Salary Sacrifice Calculator
How much pension you actually buy for every pound of take-home pay you give up.
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