What next?
Tax owed is rarely the end of the question. These are the follow-ons people reach for.
How to use this calculator
- Enter your taxable income for the year.
- The calculator applies the current bands automatically.
- Read your total income tax and income after tax.
What your result means
The result breaks your income tax down by band — personal allowance, basic, higher and additional — and shows what is left after tax. The personal allowance tapers away above £100,000, which is why the effective rate climbs there. This estimates UK income tax only; it excludes national insurance and student loan, and is not tax advice.
Why this one is different
The band-by-band breakdown is the output, not a single total: you see what falls in the personal allowance and the basic, higher and additional rates, including the allowance taper above £100,000 that creates a 60% marginal band most calculators never mention. Six salaries are worked through in full on a linked comparison page.
The myth that a pay rise can leave you worse off
Plenty of people believe crossing into a higher tax band means losing money overall. It’s one of the most stubborn money myths going — and it’s wrong. Only the pounds inside each band are taxed at that band’s rate, so a raise always leaves you with more.
Understanding the band system turns tax from something scary into something you can plan around — timing pension contributions, charitable giving and bonuses to keep more of what you earn.
How it works
Income Tax is charged in slices, not all at one rate. The first £12,570 (your personal allowance) is tax-free; each band above it is taxed at its own rate only on the income that falls within it. Above £100,000 the allowance tapers by £1 for every £2 earned, disappearing at £125,140.
Frequently asked questions
Does this include National Insurance?＋
No — this is Income Tax only. For a full take-home figure including NI, use the Salary Calculator.
What is the effective rate?＋
It's your total tax divided by total income — always lower than your top marginal band because early income is taxed less.
Do Scottish taxpayers pay different rates?＋
Yes. Scotland sets its own bands and rates for non-savings income, with more bands and different thresholds than the rest of the UK. Savings and dividend income stay on UK-wide rates, and National Insurance is unchanged. A UK-wide figure will be wrong for a Scottish taxpayer.
Why is my tax code affecting the result?＋
Your tax code tells your employer how much tax-free allowance to apply across the year. A non-standard code — from a previous underpayment, a benefit in kind, or a second job — changes your take-home without changing the underlying rates. This calculator assumes a standard allowance.
Can a pay rise really leave me worse off?＋
Not through the bands themselves, which are marginal — only income above a threshold is taxed at the higher rate. There are genuine cliff edges elsewhere, such as the withdrawal of the personal allowance above a certain income, which create very high effective rates on a band of income. Even then, your take-home still rises.
Example calculation
£60,000 income (illustrative England 2026/27 bands):
Basic rate 20% × £37,700 = £7,540
Higher rate 40% × £9,730 = £3,892
Total tax ≈ £11,432 · effective rate ≈ 19%
Bands and allowances differ in Scotland, and can change at any Budget.
Related calculators
Assumptions & limitations
Every figure here comes from a simplified model. Keep these limits in mind when reading your result:
- Uses the England, Wales and Northern Ireland bands for 2026/27: personal allowance £12,570, basic rate 20% to £50,270, higher rate 40% to £125,140, additional rate 45% above that. Scotland sets its own non-savings rates and is not covered.
- These thresholds have been frozen since 2021/22 and are set to stay frozen until April 2031, so the same figures apply across several tax years.
- Applies the personal allowance taper above £100,000 (£1 lost for every £2 of income), but ignores National Insurance, student loan repayments, pension relief, dividend and savings rates, and one-off adjustments.
- Always check official figures for your exact circumstances.
Further reading
Formula & reference
Worked answers for common amounts
Each shows the answer band by band, the effective rate, and comparison tables across nearby salaries — and opens this calculator with the salary already filled in.