UK Tax Calculator 2025/26

Income tax depends on your earnings and where you live. In England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, you pay 0% on the first £12,570 (personal allowance), 20% on earnings from £12,571 to £50,270, 40% on earnings from £50,271 to £125,140, and 45% on earnings above £125,140. Scotland has its own rates ranging from 19% to 48%. Enter your salary above for an exact calculation.

The personal allowance for 2025/26 is £12,570. This is the amount you can earn before paying any income tax. It has been frozen at this level since 2021/22. If you earn over £100,000, your personal allowance is reduced by £1 for every £2 above £100,000, meaning it is completely lost at £125,140.

For 2025/26, employees pay National Insurance at 8% on earnings between £12,570 and £50,270 per year, and 2% on earnings above £50,270. If you earn £35,000, your annual NIC would be £1,794.40 (8% of £22,430). NIC is calculated on your employment income only, not on savings, dividends, or rental income.

Scotland has six income tax bands compared to three in the rest of the UK. The 2025/26 Scottish rates are: 19% Starter rate (£12,571 to £14,876), 20% Basic rate (£14,877 to £26,561), 21% Intermediate rate (£26,562 to £43,662), 42% Higher rate (£43,663 to £75,000), 45% Advanced rate (£75,001 to £125,140), and 48% Top rate (above £125,140). Scottish taxpayers generally pay more tax on incomes above about £28,000.

When your income exceeds £100,000, your personal allowance of £12,570 starts to be withdrawn at a rate of £1 for every £2 of income above £100,000. This creates an effective marginal tax rate of 60% on income between £100,000 and £125,140 (40% income tax plus 20% from the lost personal allowance). Many people use salary sacrifice pension contributions to bring their income below £100,000 and avoid this trap.

Student loan repayments are based on your gross salary, not your taxable income. For 2025/26, Plan 1 repayments are 9% of earnings above £24,990. Plan 2 is 9% above £27,295. Plan 4 (Scotland) is 9% above £31,395. Plan 5 is 9% above £25,000. Postgraduate loans are 6% above £21,000. You can have both an undergraduate and postgraduate loan repayment at the same time.

With relief at source, your pension contribution is taken from your net pay (after tax), and your pension provider reclaims basic rate tax relief (20%) from HMRC. Higher and additional rate taxpayers need to claim extra relief through self-assessment. With salary sacrifice, your employer reduces your contractual salary by the pension amount before calculating tax and NIC, meaning you save both income tax and National Insurance on the sacrificed amount.

Your effective tax rate is the total percentage of your gross salary that goes to all deductions: income tax, National Insurance, student loans, and pension. It gives you a single number showing what proportion of your earnings you actually keep. For example, someone earning £35,000 with a 5% pension might have an effective deduction rate of around 28%, meaning they keep about 72% of their gross salary as take-home pay.

Bonuses are taxed the same way as regular salary. They are added to your total annual income and taxed at your marginal rate. The reason bonuses often seem more heavily taxed is that they can push you into a higher tax band. For example, if your salary is £45,000, a £10,000 bonus means £5,270 of that bonus is taxed at 40% instead of 20%. Your payroll may also apply emergency tax rates to bonuses, but this is corrected by year end.

UK tax rates and thresholds are usually announced in the Autumn Budget (typically November) and take effect from 6 April the following year, which is the start of the UK tax year. The personal allowance and basic rate threshold have been frozen since 2021/22 and are expected to remain at current levels until 2028/29. This calculator is updated for the 2025/26 tax year (6 April 2025 to 5 April 2026).