Try another 2% into pension and compare the change in take-home pay versus pension growth.
Free Interactive Tool — 2026/27
UK Tax Drag Calculator
Income Tax, National Insurance, the 60% personal allowance trap, salary sacrifice savings, fiscal drag, HICBC, and student loan repayments — calculated in full.
Educational tool only. This calculator provides estimates based on published UK tax rates and thresholds for 2026/27. The fiscal-drag tab then projects a simple next-year scenario with frozen thresholds. It does not constitute financial or tax advice. Individual circumstances vary. Always verify with HMRC or a qualified adviser.
Your Details
Quick starts
Begin with a realistic salary profile, then tweak the numbers to see which levers move your take-home pay, pension, and tax drag the fastest.
0%5%
0%3%
Student Loans
You normally only have one undergraduate plan. Repayment is 9% of income above the threshold.
Postgraduate Loan repayments are 6% of income above £21,000. They are paid in addition to any undergraduate plan, so a graduate with a master’s loan often pays both at once.
Child Benefit
ISA & Investments
£0£10,000
0%7%
Estimated Annual Take-Home Pay
£0
£0/month
£0
Total deducted (tax + NI + SL)
0%
Effective overall tax rate
£0
Annual pension pot growth
What this means
Your salary is still mostly in the basic-rate zone.
Test salary sacrifice, ISA contributions, and student loan settings to see which one changes your net result the fastest.
Marginal bandBasic rate
Next best leverIncrease salary sacrifice
Keep from next £1,000£0
Why does my effective rate differ from my marginal rate?
Your effective rate is the share of your whole salary that disappears across tax, NI, and student loan. Your marginal rate is what happens to the next pound. The next pound can feel much worse, especially around student loan thresholds, HICBC, and the Personal Allowance taper.
Why does salary sacrifice improve more than one line?
Salary sacrifice cuts gross pay before Income Tax and employee NI are calculated, which means it can reduce both at once. In some cases it also helps with the 60 percent taper zone or Child Benefit drag because adjusted income falls as well.
Which follow-up tool should I use after this?
If the next question is about one raise, use the Bonus and Pay Rise Calculator. If the question is about pension limits, use the Annual Allowance Calculator. If you need a wider route map, run the Tax Health Check before diving deeper.
That is the rough start of higher-rate income tax before salary sacrifice changes the picture.
Use the focused pension/pay tool if contribution level is the next decision.
Full Tax Breakdown — 2026/27
Income
Gross salary£0
Less: salary sacrifice pension£0
Adjusted gross (taxable) income£0
Personal Allowance
Standard personal allowance£12,570
Less: taper reduction (if over £100k)£0
Effective personal allowance£12,570
Income Tax
Basic rate (20%) on first band£0
Higher rate (40%) on second band£0
Additional rate (45%) above £125,140£0
Total Income Tax£0
National Insurance (Employee)
8% on £12,570 – £50,270 band£0
2% on earnings above £50,270£0
Total National Insurance£0
Student Loan
Repayment£0
Pension
Your salary sacrifice contribution£0
Employer contribution£0
Total annual pension contribution£0
Summary
Gross salary£0
Less: Income Tax£0
Less: National Insurance£0
Less: Student Loan£0
Less: Salary Sacrifice£0
Annual Take-Home Pay£0
Tax Drag Projection — current year vs next year
UK income tax thresholds are frozen until April 2028. If your salary rises with inflation (assumed 3%), more of your income falls into higher tax bands each year — even though no rates have changed. This is fiscal drag.
Current year
Gross salary£0
Income Tax£0
National Insurance£0
Student Loan£0
Take-Home Pay£0
Next year (+3% salary est.)
Gross salary£0
Income Tax£0
National Insurance£0
Student Loan£0
Take-Home Pay£0
Fiscal Drag Cost — extra tax paid due to frozen thresholds
£0
Even though rates haven't changed, you pay more.
Salary Sacrifice: Your NI & Tax Saving
Salary sacrifice reduces gross pay before tax and NI are calculated. Below is how much this saves you versus contributing from take-home pay.
Your salary sacrifice contribution£0
Income Tax saved£0
NI saved (employee)£0
Total saving vs contributing from take-home£0
Real net cost of your pension contribution£0
Effective upfront return on contribution0%
ISA: Projected 10-Year Tax Saving
At your assumed 7% return, your annual ISA contribution of £0 would generate these estimated investment returns over 10 years — all permanently tax-free inside the ISA wrapper.
ISA pot after 10 years (est.)£0
Total invested (10 × annual contribution)£0
Estimated growth (interest/dividends/gains)£0
Tax that would have been due outside ISA (est.)£0
Net ISA advantage over 10 years£0
✅ Employer NI Pass-Through Reminder
Your employer also saves 15% NI on your salary sacrifice amount. Many employers pass some or all of this back as additional pension contributions. Ask your HR or payroll team — it could add significant extra to your pension at zero cost to you.
Frequently asked questions
The questions readers most commonly ask about this topic. Each answer is reviewed by the UK Tax Drag editorial team against current HMRC, FCA and MoneyHelper guidance.
▸ How accurate is this UK tax calculator for 2026/27?
The calculator uses the official 2026/27 HMRC thresholds — Personal Allowance £12,570 (tapering above £100,000), basic-rate band £37,700, higher rate to £125,140, and the additional rate above. National Insurance uses the current Class 1 rates. It does not assume any salary sacrifice or pension contributions unless you enter them, and it does not handle Scottish Income Tax bands (which differ slightly above £43,662) — for Scotland use a Scottish-rate-specific calculation.
▸ Why is my take-home pay lower than the calculator shows?
Common reasons: an emergency tax code (1257L M1/W1), workplace pension contributions taken via net-pay arrangement (these reduce taxable pay before tax is calculated), student loan repayments, court orders, or salary sacrifice arrangements not entered into the calculator. Your actual payslip is authoritative — compare line by line with this calculator output and any discrepancy should match one of those deductions.
▸ Does this include the 60% tax trap above £100,000?
Yes. The Personal Allowance tapers by £1 for every £2 of income above £100,000, fully withdrawing by £125,140. This creates an effective 60% marginal rate on that band (40% income tax on the £1 plus 20% on the £0.50 of restored allowance — totalling 60p of every £1). The calculator surfaces this automatically when your earnings cross £100,000.
▸ Can I use this calculator if I have multiple jobs?
The calculator handles your TOTAL UK earnings — if you have two PAYE jobs, add the gross figures together to get the combined annual income. HMRC applies one Personal Allowance across both jobs; the secondary job is usually taxed at BR (basic rate, no allowance). Use the Second Job Tax Code Calculator instead if you want to model the per-job split.
▸ How does the calculator treat dividends and savings interest?
This calculator focuses on employment income (salary). Dividend income is taxed differently (8.75% / 33.75% / 39.35% rates over the £500 allowance) and savings interest uses the Personal Savings Allowance (£1,000 for basic-rate taxpayers, £500 for higher-rate, £0 for additional-rate). For mixed income use the dedicated dividend calculator and savings-interest calculator.
▸ When does the 2026/27 tax year start and end?
The UK tax year runs from 6 April to 5 April. So 2026/27 starts on 6 April 2026 and ends on 5 April 2027. All allowances, thresholds and bands reset on 6 April. Income earned on 5 April 2027 falls in 2026/27; income on 6 April 2027 starts the 2027/28 tax year.
Editorial accountability
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Every page is reviewed against the editorial standards, written from primary sources, sourced openly, and corrected publicly. No affiliate revenue. No sponsored content. No paid placements.