Tax calculators
Work out your income tax, National Insurance and take-home pay for 2026/27. Scottish and rest-of-UK rates are both covered. Enter your salary to see which bands you fall into and what lands in your account each month.
Live tools (6 available)
Scottish Income Tax
All six Scottish bands from starter to top rate, with National Insurance and dividend tax.
CalculateUK Income Tax
Basic, higher and additional rate for England, Wales & NI, with National Insurance and dividend tax.
CalculateTake-home Pay
What you actually keep after tax, National Insurance, pension and student loan.
CalculateBonus Tax
How much of your bonus you keep, and why the payslip in that month looks worse than the real cost.
Calculate100k salary trap
See the 60% effective marginal rate (67.5% in Scotland) between £100k and £125,140, and how much pension reduces it.
CalculateMileage allowance
Claim back business miles at the 55p HMRC rate for a single trip, a week of journeys, or your whole year.
CalculateEveryone starts with the same £12,570
The personal allowance is £12,570 for 2026/27 and applies across the UK. Income above it is taxed in slices, with each slice above a threshold charged at a higher rate. Only the money inside a band is taxed at that band's rate, so moving into the higher rate doesn't reprice your whole salary.
National Insurance is a separate deduction and it's identical everywhere in the UK: 8% on earnings between £12,570 and £50,270, then 2% above that. It's the income tax on top that splits along the border.
Where Scotland differs
The Scottish Parliament sets its own income tax rates and uses six bands against the three used in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Scottish rates run 19% starter, 20% basic, 21% intermediate, 42% higher, 45% advanced and 48% top. The rest of the UK charges 20%, 40% and 45%.
Up to about £29,000 a Scottish taxpayer pays marginally less. Past that the position flips, and the real divergence starts at £43,662, where Scotland moves to 42% while the rest of the UK is still charging 20% up to £50,270. That band alone accounts for most of the difference people notice on a middle income.
Which set applies is decided by where your main home is for most of the tax year, not by where you work. HMRC flags it with an S at the start of your tax code.
The £100,000 cliff edge
Above £100,000 the personal allowance is withdrawn at £1 for every £2 of income, disappearing entirely at £125,140. You're taxed on the extra income and losing tax-free allowance at the same time, which produces a marginal rate far above the headline one: 60% in England, or 62% counting National Insurance, and 67.5% in Scotland, or 69.5% with National Insurance.
It's the strongest argument for a pension contribution or salary sacrifice in the whole tax system, because reducing adjusted net income back below £100,000 restores the allowance pound for pound.
Which calculator to use
For the monthly figure that reaches your account, use the take-home pay calculator. For the tax alone, use income tax or the Scottish income tax calculator. If you're near £100,000, the £100k salary trap calculator shows the taper. There's also a bonus calculator and a mileage allowance calculator for claiming business travel.
The guides go deeper on how much tax you pay, Scotland versus England, tax codes, the 60% tax trap, and salary sacrifice.
Frequently asked questions
How much income tax will I pay in 2026/27?
The first £12,570 is covered by the personal allowance and taxed at nothing. In England, Wales and Northern Ireland the next slice up to £50,270 is taxed at 20 per cent, then 40 per cent to £125,140 and 45 per cent above. Scotland uses six bands running from 19 per cent to 48 per cent. National Insurance is charged separately at 8 per cent between £12,570 and £50,270, and 2 per cent above.
Am I a Scottish taxpayer?
It is decided by where your main home is for most of the tax year, not by where you work or by your employer address. If you live in Scotland you pay Scottish income tax even when commuting to Newcastle. HMRC marks Scottish taxpayers with an S at the front of the tax code, so an S1257L code means Scottish rates are being applied.
At what salary do Scottish and rUK taxpayers pay different amounts?
Below about £29,000 Scottish taxpayers pay slightly less, because of the 19 per cent starter band. Above roughly £29,000 the position reverses. The gap widens sharply past £43,662, where Scotland moves to 42 per cent while the rest of the UK is still charging 20 per cent up to £50,270.
Why is the marginal rate around £100,000 so high?
The personal allowance is withdrawn by £1 for every £2 of income above £100,000, so you lose the allowance and pay tax on the extra income at the same time. In England that produces an effective 60 per cent rate between £100,000 and £125,140, or 62 per cent once National Insurance is added. In Scotland it reaches 67.5 per cent, or 69.5 per cent with National Insurance.
Why was my bonus taxed so heavily?
PAYE treats the month you receive a bonus as though you will earn that much every month, so it withholds tax at the rate that annualised figure implies. The deduction is usually too large. It corrects itself over the following months of the same tax year, and if it has not by 5 April you can reclaim the difference from HMRC.
How do I check my tax code is right?
The number is your tax-free allowance with the final digit removed, so 1257L matches the standard £12,570. A code ending in a letter other than L, or one starting with BR, D0 or K, means something specific is being applied. Codes on a week 1 or month 1 basis ignore your earlier earnings this year, which is a common reason for over-deduction after changing jobs.