Take-home pay calculator
Everything that reaches your payslip, not just the salary. Bonus, overtime, salary sacrifice, benefits and your tax code all change the answer.
How this is calculated
Salary, bonus and overtime are added together first. Anything sacrificed comes off that total before anything else, which is why sacrifice saves National Insurance as well as income tax.
A net pay pension is deducted before income tax but after National Insurance. Relief at source comes out of pay you have already been taxed on, with the provider reclaiming 20% into the pot. Salary sacrifice is not a deduction at all: your contractual salary is simply lower.
Taxable benefits are added to your pay for income tax but not for your National Insurance. Your employer pays Class 1A on them separately.
National Insurance and student loan repayments are worked out on pay after sacrifice but before any pension deduction.
Above £100,000 the personal allowance is withdrawn at £1 for every £2, producing an effective 60% rate. Salary sacrifice is unusually valuable in that band because it claws the allowance back.
Rates used · 2026/27
| Personal allowance | £12,570 |
| Basic rate 20% | £12,571 to £50,270 |
| Higher rate 40% | £50,271 to £125,140 |
| Additional rate 45% | Above £125,140 |
| Employee NI 8% | £12,570 to £50,270 |
| Employee NI 2% | Above £50,270 |
| Student loan Plan 1 | £26,900 at 9% |
| Student loan Plan 2 | £29,385 at 9% |
| Student loan Plan 4 | £33,795 at 9% |
| Student loan Plan 5 | £25,000 at 9% |
| Postgraduate loan | £21,000 at 6% |
| Scotland, starter rate 19% | £12,571 to £16,537 |
| Scotland, basic rate 20% | £16,538 to £29,526 |
| Scotland, intermediate 21% | £29,527 to £43,662 |
| Scotland, higher rate 42% | £43,663 to £75,000 |
| Scotland, advanced rate 45% | £75,001 to £125,140 |
| Scotland, top rate 48% | Above £125,140 |
Last checked July 2026. Source: HMRC and gov.uk.
Worked example
On £45,000 with a 5% net pay pension, take-home is £34,120 a year or £2,843 a month. Add a £5,000 bonus and £2,000 of overtime, and switch the pension to salary sacrifice, and it rises to £39,088. On the £45,000 salary alone, switching that same 5% pension from net pay to salary sacrifice is worth £180 a year, being the 8% National Insurance you no longer pay on the contribution.
Common questions
Which pension arrangement should I pick?
Check a payslip. If the pension is deducted before tax but your National Insurance is calculated on the full salary, it is net pay. If your gross salary itself is reduced, it is salary sacrifice. If it comes out after tax, it is relief at source.
Why is salary sacrifice better?
Because it reduces the salary National Insurance is charged on, not just the income tax. For the same contribution you keep more, and above £100,000 it also restores personal allowance.
Is my bonus taxed more heavily?
No. It is ordinary income. PAYE spreads your allowances evenly across the year, so a bonus month looks punishing, but the annual figure comes out right.
What does a BR tax code mean?
Basic rate on everything with no personal allowance, normally used on a second job. If your main job does not use the whole allowance you are overpaying and can ask HMRC to split it.
Does this use Scottish tax rates?
Yes. Choose Scotland above and the six Scottish bands are applied: starter 19%, basic 20%, intermediate 21%, higher 42%, advanced 45% and top 48%. The personal allowance and National Insurance are the same across the UK, so only the income tax changes.
Why do Scottish taxpayers hit 42% so early?
The Scottish higher rate starts at £43,663 while National Insurance stays at 8% until £50,270. Between those two points the combined marginal rate is 50%, and 59% with a student loan.