PAY RISE · 2026/27
Pay rise calculator
What is the rise worth?
Extra take-home pay
£3,600 more per year
- Gross annual rise
- £5,000
- Current take-home
- £32,320
- New take-home
- £35,920
- You keep
- 72.0%
Why the net rise can be smaller
Income moving into a higher tax band, the NI threshold, student loan repayments and pension deductions all take part of a pay rise. The same gross increase can therefore produce a different net result in Scotland, or when a tax code or deduction changes.
Compare your current and new salary to see the real monthly and annual increase after Income Tax and National Insurance. This is the cleanest way to check whether a raise actually improves your budget.
Calculation assumptions
Uses the standard 1257L tax code with no pension or student loan deduction and assumes even earnings across a full tax year.
What this calculator does
It compares the current salary with the new salary and turns the gross difference into a net difference after tax and NI. That helps users judge whether a promotion, counteroffer or annual review really improves their take-home pay.
Worked example
A £3,000 gross raise does not usually become £3,000 of extra cash. Once tax and National Insurance are applied, the take-home gain is smaller, so the key decision is whether the net increase is enough to justify the new role, commute or workload.
SOURCES & REVIEW
Checked against official guidance
Last reviewed 1 September 2026 · Rule version GB-2026.27.1
Daily/weekly source monitoring. If a source changes, the affected rule set is reviewed before publication.
All source links are kept visible so you can verify the figures used on this page.
Source line: Pay-rise estimates are checked against the same salary and NI rule set used by the take-home and net-to-gross calculators.
GOV.UK: Income Tax rates ↗GOV.UK: National Insurance ↗Sources, methodology and update policy →Report an issue or correction →WHY RESULTS DIFFER
Why two users can see different results
Why the result can differ
Different tax codes, payroll periods, Scottish bands, pension methods or lender assumptions can change the outcome.
One-off bonuses, pay frequency, overpayments, allowances and reliefs can move the result away from a simple annual estimate.
Where a rule depends on eligibility or legal status, this page shows an estimate and links to official guidance.
This section is intentionally repeated on key tools so the explanation stays near the result instead of being hidden in a separate policy page.
COMMON QUESTIONS
Frequently asked questions
Does a pay rise always mean more take-home pay?
Usually yes, but the net increase is smaller than the gross rise because Income Tax and NI are applied.
Can a pay rise push me into a higher tax band?
Yes. Once salary moves into a higher band, part of the increase can be taxed at a higher rate.
Should I compare gross or net?
If you care about monthly spending power, compare the net increase, not only the gross rise.