On a typical salary in England, Wales or Northern Ireland, you keep 72p of every extra £1 you're given: 20p goes in income tax and 8p in National Insurance. Once you earn over £50,270 you keep 58p. Between £100,000 and £125,140 you keep just 38p. A pay rise never leaves you worse off overall, but how much of it reaches your bank account depends on which band the extra money lands in.
What you keep from each extra £1
These are the marginal rates for 2026/27, meaning the tax and NI on the next pound you earn, not your average rate across the whole salary.
| Salary (England, Wales, NI) | Income tax | NI | You keep |
|---|---|---|---|
| Up to £12,570 | 0% | 0% | £1.00 |
| £12,570 to £50,270 | 20% | 8% | 72p |
| £50,270 to £100,000 | 40% | 2% | 58p |
| £100,000 to £125,140 | 60% | 2% | 38p |
| Over £125,140 | 45% | 2% | 53p |
The 60% band isn't an official rate. It happens because you lose £1 of your £12,570 Personal Allowance for every £2 you earn over £100,000. Our guide to the 60% tax trap explains it in full.
One thing to clear up: going into a higher band only affects the money above the threshold. Nobody's whole salary suddenly gets taxed at 40% because they crossed £50,270.
Example: £30,000 to £33,000
A £3,000 rise, or 10%, sitting comfortably in the basic rate band.
| £30,000 | £33,000 | Difference | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Income tax | £3,486 | £4,086 | +£600 |
| National Insurance | £1,394.40 | £1,634.40 | +£240 |
| Take-home pay | £25,119.60 | £27,279.60 | +£2,160 |
| Per month | £2,093.30 | £2,273.30 | +£180 |
So £250 a month more on paper becomes £180 a month in your account. That's 72% of the rise, exactly what the table above predicts.
Example: £48,000 to £52,000
This rise crosses the higher rate threshold at £50,270. The first £2,270 is taxed at the basic rate and the other £1,730 at the higher rate.
| £48,000 | £52,000 | Difference | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Income tax | £7,086 | £8,232 | +£1,146 |
| National Insurance | £2,834.40 | £3,050.60 | +£216.20 |
| Take-home pay | £38,079.60 | £40,717.40 | +£2,637.80 |
| Per month | £3,173.30 | £3,393.12 | +£219.82 |
You keep about 66% of this rise, somewhere between the 72p and 58p rates, because it straddles both bands. Still a decent rise in your pocket. It's a myth that crossing into the higher rate band can leave you worse off.
Example: £100,000 to £105,000
A £5,000 rise. Income tax goes up by £3,000 (60%) and NI by £100 (2%). Take-home pay rises by £1,900, or about £158 a month.
If you'd rather keep more of it, sacrificing the £5,000 into your pension keeps your taxable pay at £100,000. Your take-home pay stays where it was, and the full £5,000 goes into your pension instead of £1,900 reaching your bank. The salary sacrifice guide covers how that works.
Student loans take another slice
If you have a student loan and earn above your plan's threshold, 9% of each extra pound goes on repayments (6% for a Postgraduate Loan). That turns 72p into 63p, and 58p into 49p.
With a Plan 2 loan (threshold £29,385), the £30,000 to £33,000 rise costs another £270 a year in repayments. Your take-home gain falls from £2,160 to £1,890, or £157.50 a month. On the £48,000 to £52,000 rise, Plan 2 repayments go up by £360 and your gain falls to £2,277.80, or about £189.82 a month.
The student loan thresholds guide lists each plan's threshold.
Pensions take some, but it isn't lost
If you pay a percentage of your salary into a workplace pension, your contribution grows with your pay. On the £30,000 to £33,000 rise with a 5% salary sacrifice pension, your pension gets an extra £150 a year and your take-home pay rises by £2,052 instead of £2,160. Your employer's contribution usually goes up too, so a pay rise is often worth more than the payslip suggests.
Scotland is different
Scotland has six income tax bands, so the marginal rates are different:
| Salary (Scotland) | Income tax | NI | You keep |
|---|---|---|---|
| £12,570 to £16,537 | 19% | 8% | 73p |
| £16,537 to £29,526 | 20% | 8% | 72p |
| £29,526 to £43,662 | 21% | 8% | 71p |
| £43,662 to £50,270 | 42% | 8% | 50p |
| £50,270 to £75,000 | 42% | 2% | 56p |
| £75,000 to £100,000 | 45% | 2% | 53p |
| £100,000 to £125,140 | 67.5% | 2% | 30.5p |
| Over £125,140 | 48% | 2% | 50p |
The band between £43,662 and £50,270 is the one to watch. You pay the 42% higher rate but still the full 8% NI, so half of each extra pound goes. A Scottish taxpayer going from £48,000 to £52,000 keeps £2,103.80 of the £4,000 rise, about £534 less than someone doing the same job in England.
Check your own numbers
- The pay rise calculator shows your new salary, the extra each month after tax, and whether the rise beats inflation.
- The salary after tax pages give full breakdowns for common salaries, such as £30,000, £33,000, £48,000 and £52,000.
- For student loans, pensions and Scottish tax together, use the take-home pay calculator.
Last reviewed October 2026.