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How this works
Take-home pay is your salary minus income tax, National Insurance, any student loan and your pension contribution. The calculator works on yearly figures for 2026/27, then divides by 12 for the monthly amount.
Income tax starts once you’ve used your Personal Allowance of £12,570, then each band is taxed at its own rate. National Insurance is 8% on earnings between £12,570 and £50,270 and 2% above. Scotland has its own income tax bands; National Insurance is the same everywhere.
What it assumes
- A standard tax code, 1257L, or S1257L in Scotland.
- The Personal Allowance falls by £1 for every £2 of income over £100,000.
- Bonuses, benefits in kind, the Marriage Allowance and other income are left out. Payroll works per pay period, so payslips can differ by a few pence.
Worked example
A £35,000 salary in England
- Income tax is 20% of the £22,430 above the Personal Allowance: £4,486.00.
- National Insurance is 8% of the same £22,430: £1,794.40.
- Take-home pay is £28,719.60 a year, or £2,393.30 a month. Of every extra £1 you earn, 28p goes in tax and NI.
- In Scotland the same salary takes home £28,704.53.
- Paying 5% into a relief-at-source pension puts £1,750 in your pot but costs you £1,400, leaving £27,319.60. A Plan 2 student loan would take £505.35 a year.
Worked out with the same maths as the calculator above.
What to do next
Common questions
Why is my payslip slightly different?
Payroll calculates tax each pay period rather than on the whole year, and your tax code may not be the standard one. Expect a difference of a few pence, or more if you’ve had a bonus or changed jobs.
What is the 60% tax trap?
Between £100,000 and £125,140 you lose £1 of Personal Allowance for every £2 you earn, so the effective income tax rate is 60%, plus 2% NI. Pension contributions bring your adjusted income down and can take you out of it.
What’s the difference between relief at source, net pay and salary sacrifice?
With relief at source you pay from take-home pay and your provider adds basic-rate tax relief. Net pay takes the contribution before tax. Salary sacrifice takes it before tax and National Insurance, so it usually leaves you the most.
Does living in Scotland mean I pay more tax?
It depends on your income. Scotland has starter and intermediate rates, so people on lower salaries can pay slightly less, while those on higher salaries pay more. At £35,000 the difference is about £15 a year.