PennyCompass

UK Take-Home Pay Calculator

Free UK take-home pay calculator for 2026/27. Includes PAYE income tax, National Insurance, Personal Allowance taper, and student loan repayment.

Published

Compute UK take-home pay for the 2026/27 tax year including PAYE, NI, and student loan.

Net annual take-home

Income tax (PAYE)

National Insurance

Pension

Student loan

Your breakdown

Updates live as you type
Item Amount

Worked example

Consider a £50,000 salary in 2026/27 with a 5 percent workplace pension and no student loan. The 5 percent pension is £2,500, taken before tax, so PAYE and National Insurance are worked out on £47,500. Income tax uses the full £12,570 Personal Allowance, leaving £34,930 taxed at the 20 percent basic rate, which is £6,986. Class 1 National Insurance charges 8 percent on the same £34,930 above the £12,570 primary threshold, which is £2,794. Subtracting tax, NI, and the pension from gross leaves a net take-home of £37,720 a year, about £3,143 a month.

How it is calculated

Take-home pay is gross salary minus pension, income tax, National Insurance, and any student loan repayment. Pension contributions made through net pay or salary sacrifice come off first, lowering the income that tax and NI are charged on. Income tax then applies the 2026/27 bands after the Personal Allowance, which tapers away between £100,000 and £125,140. Class 1 employee NI charges 8 percent on earnings between the £12,570 primary threshold and the £50,270 upper earnings limit, then 2 percent above that. Student loan repayments, if selected, take 9 percent of income over your plan threshold, or 6 percent for postgraduate loans. The result is shown annually and divided by twelve for a monthly figure.

Frequently asked questions

What is the personal allowance taper?
Above £100,000 of adjusted net income, the £12,570 Personal Allowance reduces by £1 for every £2 over the threshold. Fully removed at £125,140, creating a 60% effective marginal rate band between £100k and £125,140.
Does this include Scotland?
This calculator uses England/Wales/Northern Ireland bands. Scotland has 6 separate bands (Starter, Basic, Intermediate, Higher, Advanced, Top) administered by Scottish Government.
How does pension reduce my tax bill?
Workplace pension contributions made via salary sacrifice or net pay arrangement come off your gross salary before PAYE and National Insurance are calculated. A 5% pension on a £50,000 salary reduces taxable income to £47,500, saving roughly £500 in income tax and £200 in NI at basic rate.
Which student loan plan should I select?
Plan 1 covers loans taken before September 2012 (England/Wales) or before 2007 (Northern Ireland). Plan 2 covers English/Welsh loans from September 2012 onward. Plan 4 applies to Scottish borrowers. Plan 5 is the new plan for courses starting from August 2023. Postgraduate Loan covers Masters and Doctoral loans with a 6% repayment rate above £21,000.

Related calculators

Sources

  1. HMRC — Income Tax Rates and Personal Allowances 2026/27, HM Revenue & Customs
  2. HMRC — National Insurance Rates and Categories 2026/27, HM Revenue & Customs
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