UK · 2026 to 2027 tax year
PAYE calculator
| Item | This payment |
|---|---|
| Pay before tax | £3,000.00 |
| Income tax (PAYE) | −£390.40 |
| Employee National Insurance | −£156.16 |
| Take-home | £2,453.44 |
| Employer National Insurance (paid on top) | £387.45 |
How HMRC’s method works this out
- Tax code
- 1257L
- Pay to date (month 6)
- £18,000.00
- Tax-free pay to date
- £6,289.56
- Taxable pay to date, rounded down to the pound
- £11,710.00
- Top rate reached (England and Northern Ireland)
- 20%
- Tax due to date
- £2,342.00
- Less tax already deducted this tax year
- £1,951.60
- Earnings for National Insurance (category A)
- £3000.00
- At 8% (above £1048.00 up to £4189.00)
- £1952.00
- At 2% (above £4189.00)
- £0.00
- Employee National Insurance
- £156.16
- Employee National Insurance is for category letter A. Directors use an annual earnings period.
- Cumulative code: the result depends on the pay and tax to date you entered for earlier periods this tax year.
The official method, step by step
- The pay date sets the tax month or week (month 1 starts on 6 April).
- Tax-free pay to date comes from the tax code: for 1257L, £1,048.26 for each month so far.
- Tax to date is worked out on pay to date, rounded down to the pound, using the year's bands pro-rated to date.
- This payment's tax is tax to date less tax already deducted, capped at half of this payment.
- W1, M1 or X codes treat the payment on its own, ignoring earlier pay.
- Employee National Insurance is worked out on this payment alone: 8% from £1,048 to £4,189 a month, 2% above.
What this leaves out
- Student and postgraduate loans
- Pensions (enter pay after a net pay pension if you use one)
- National Insurance letters other than A, and directors
- Week 53 payments
Sources: HMRC, Specification for PAYE Tax Table Routines, version 24.0 (February 2026), Appendices A–C; HMRC, Rates and thresholds for employers 2026 to 2027; HMRC, 2026 to 2027: Employer further guide to PAYE and National Insurance contributions (CWG2).
PAYE calculator: common questions
How is PAYE calculated?
HMRC's method is cumulative: it takes your pay so far this tax year, subtracts tax-free pay from your tax code, taxes the rest at the year's rates pro-rated to date, and deducts only what hasn't already been paid.
Why does my tax change from month to month?
Because PAYE looks at the whole year so far. A bonus, a change of tax code or a month of lower pay changes the tax to date, so this month's figure moves to catch up or refund.
What is employer National Insurance?
Employers pay 15% on each employee's earnings above £417 a month (£96 a week) in 2026/27, on top of the salary. It doesn't come out of the employee's pay.
Can I make a payslip from this?
Yes. “Make the payslip with these numbers” opens the payslip generator with this pay, the tax code, PAYE and National Insurance filled in. Once you add the pay date, the same calculation can run again for that date.
More on PAYE and tax codes
- Net-to-gross salary calculatorFree UK net-to-gross salary calculator for 2026/27: enter the take-home you want a month or a year and get the gross salary, tax and NI behind it.
- UK tax codes on a payslipWhat the tax code on your payslip means: the numbers, the letters (L, M, N, T, BR, D0, D1, NT, K, S, C) and emergency codes, as defined by GOV.UK.
- C1257L tax code: Welsh rates explainedWhat the C1257L tax code means, the Welsh income tax rates for 2026/27, and why a payslip on C1257L shows the same tax as 1257L this year.
Need a payslip for this pay?
Free to create and preview. No account or card.