Updated for 2026/27

Methodology

How our calculators turn a gross salary into take-home pay for 2026/27 — in full, so you can check every step.

The single-source tax engine

Every calculator on this site shares one set of pure, tested functions and reads all rates from a single versioned config file for the tax year. That means each figure below drives the numbers you see — there are no hidden assumptions baked into individual pages.

1. Income Tax

After your tax-free Personal Allowance of £12,570, income is taxed in bands. For England, Wales and Northern Ireland:

Basic rate 20% — £12,571 to £50,270
Higher rate 40% — £50,271 to £125,140
Additional rate 45% — above £125,140

Scotland sets its own rates, so we apply the six Scottish bands (Starter 19%, Basic 20%, Intermediate 21%, Higher 42%, Advanced 45%, Top 48%) when you select Scotland.

Personal Allowance taper

Above £100,000, the Personal Allowance is reduced by £1 for every £2 of income, disappearing entirely at £125,140. This creates an effective 60% marginal rate in that band, which the calculator reflects in the "marginal rate" figure.

2. National Insurance

Employee (Class 1) National Insurance for 2026/27:

0% up to £12,570 (Primary Threshold)
8% from £12,570 to £50,270
2% above £50,270

Simplification: National Insurance is legally calculated per pay period (weekly or monthly), not annually like Income Tax. We compute it on an annual basis, which is accurate for a steady salary but can differ by a few pounds if your pay varies month to month.

3. Student loans

Repayments are a percentage of income above each plan's threshold:

Plan 1 — 9% above £26,065
Plan 2 — 9% above £28,470
Plan 4 (Scotland) — 9% above £32,745
Plan 5 — 9% above £25,000
Postgraduate Loan — 6% above £21,000

4. Pensions

We model two common arrangements. Salary sacrifice reduces your gross pay before both Income Tax and National Insurance are calculated, which is why it saves on both. Auto-enrolment / net pay contributions come out before Income Tax but after National Insurance. Choose the one that matches your scheme under Advanced options.

Other options

Blind Person's Allowance is added to your Personal Allowance.
Over State Pension age removes employee National Insurance.
Tax code — a standard suffix code (e.g. 1257L) sets your allowance; BR/0T remove it; K codes add to taxable pay.

Sources

All rates are taken from official publications and re-checked each tax year:

Accuracy & limitations

These calculators give a close annual estimate for a standard employee. They do not model benefits in kind, bonuses taxed in a single period, marriage allowance transfers, or non-standard tax codes beyond the common cases above. Always treat the result as a guide and check your payslip. Estimate only — not financial or tax advice.