UK salary & take-home pay calculator
See what you'll actually take home — instantly. 2026/27 rates for England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland.
£2,573.30 / month
£30,880 a year take-home · £593.84 a week
Of your next £1,000 pay rise, you'd keep £720.
- Income tax£5,086.00
- National Insurance£2,034.40
- Student loan£0.00
- Pension (your outlay)£0.00
Your take-home in every pay period
| Period | Take-home |
|---|---|
| Yearly | £30,880 |
| Monthly | £2,573.30 |
| Every 4 weeks | £2,375.35 |
| Weekly | £593.84 |
| Daily | £118.77 |
| Hourly | £15.84 |
Where the tax comes from
On £38,000 your personal allowance is £12,570, leaving £25,430 taxed band by band:
| Band (taxable income) | Amount in band | Rate | Tax |
|---|---|---|---|
| £0 – £37,700 | £25,430 | 20% | £5,086.00 |
| Total income tax | £5,086.00 |
Built to match your payslip
Every figure uses the 2026/27 rates and thresholds published by HMRC and the Scottish Government, verified on 2 July 2026. Every release is regression-tested against 33 government-anchored golden test cases before it can deploy. Read exactly how each step works on the methodology page.
Questions people ask
How is take-home pay calculated in 2026/27?
Salary-sacrifice pension comes off first, then the personal allowance (£12,570, tapered above £100,000) is applied, income tax is charged band by band on what remains, employee National Insurance is 8% between £12,570 and £50,270 and 2% above, and student loan deductions are taken on income above your plan's threshold. What's left is your take-home.
What's different if I live in Scotland?
Scotland sets its own income tax: six bands from a 19% starter rate to a 48% top rate. National Insurance and student loans are UK-wide and unchanged. Select Scotland in the calculator to compare.
How do student loan repayments work?
You repay 9% of income above your plan's threshold — Plan 1 £26,900, Plan 2 £29,385, Plan 4 £33,795, Plan 5 £25,000. A postgraduate loan takes a further 6% above £21,000, at the same time as an undergraduate plan. Plan 5 made its first-ever repayments in April 2026.
What's the difference between salary sacrifice and relief at source?
Salary sacrifice reduces your pay before tax, NI and student loans are worked out, so every deduction falls. Relief at source comes out after tax: you pay 80% of the gross contribution in cash, the provider claims basic-rate relief, and higher-rate taxpayers reclaim the rest through HMRC.
What is the 60% tax trap?
Between £100,000 and £125,140 the personal allowance shrinks by £1 for every £2 you earn, so each extra £1,000 loses roughly 60% (more with student loans) before it reaches you. Pension contributions restore the allowance pound for pound — the calculator's marginal line shows your exact position.
How accurate are these figures?
Rates and thresholds were verified against gov.uk and gov.scot on 2 July 2026, and every release must reproduce 33 golden test cases anchored to published government figures before it deploys. The annualised method is documented on the methodology page; payroll calculates per pay period, so individual payslips can differ by pennies.