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UK Tax & SalarySalary2026/27 Tax Year

National Insurance Calculator

Inputs

Your gross earnings, in the frequency you select below.

Results

Enter values and calculate to see results.

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Disclaimer: Tax and take-home pay estimates are based on published 2026/27 UK, Scottish and Welsh statutory rates and allowances. This is not tax advice, but an annual mathematical model. For personal tax planning or complex affairs, consult HMRC or a qualified tax adviser.

How employee National Insurance is charged

National Insurance works in the opposite direction to Income Tax: the rate falls as you earn more, dropping from 8% to 2% above the upper earnings limit.

Figures stated for the 2026/27 UK tax year. Content last checked against official sources on .

What this calculator does

  • Works out employee Class 1 National Insurance on a category A record for 2026/27.
  • Shows the charge yearly, monthly, weekly and as an hourly equivalent.
  • Makes the two-slice structure visible, including the rate drop above £50,270.
  • Does not cover employer contributions or self-employed Class 2 and Class 4.

How the calculation works

Employee Class 1 National Insurance is charged in two slices. Nothing is due on earnings up to the primary threshold of £12,570 a year. Earnings between that threshold and the upper earnings limit of £50,270 are charged at the main rate of 8%. Earnings above the upper earnings limit are charged at just 2%. That falling structure is the reverse of Income Tax, and it is why the marginal deduction rate actually drops when you cross £50,270 even as Income Tax rises from 20% to 40%. This ruleset assesses contributions on annual earnings. HMRC also publishes weekly and monthly thresholds that are not exact divisions of the annual figures — £242 a week and £1,048 a month against £12,570 a year — and real payroll assesses each pay period against those. The calculator records that difference in its own output rather than hiding it, so periodic figures here are an annual result divided into periods.

The rule

National Insurance = 8% × (earnings between £12,570 and £50,270) + 2% × (earnings above £50,270).

Step by step

  1. Convert entered earnings to an annual gross figure.
  2. Charge nothing on the first £12,570.
  3. Charge 8% on earnings between £12,570 and £50,270.
  4. Charge 2% on any earnings above £50,270.
  5. Divide the annual total into the periodic figures.

Worked example

Daniel earns £45,000 a year and wants to see his National Insurance separately from his Income Tax.

What was entered

Inputs used in the worked example
Earnings£45,000
Income frequencyAnnual
Payroll frequencyMonthly

The arithmetic

  1. The first £12,570 of earnings carries no National Insurance.
  2. £45,000 is below the £50,270 upper earnings limit, so none of it reaches the 2% rate.
  3. Earnings in the 8% band are £45,000 − £12,570 = £32,430.
  4. National Insurance is 8% of £32,430 = £2,594.40 for the year.
  5. That is £216.20 a month, or £49.89 a week.

What the calculator returns

Results produced by the worked example
National Insurance for the year£2,594.40
National Insurance per month£216.20
National Insurance per week£49.89

Key assumptions

  • Category A employee contributions are modelled — the standard category for most employees.
  • Contributions are assessed on annual earnings rather than per pay period.

Limitations

  • Categories for deferred, reduced-rate and over-State-Pension-age records are not modelled.
  • Employer secondary Class 1 contributions are excluded; they are a cost to your employer, not a payslip deduction.
  • HMRC's weekly and monthly thresholds are not exact divisions of the annual figures, so a payslip can differ by pence per period.
  • With more than one employment each employer applies the thresholds independently, which can cause under- or overpayment the calculator cannot detect.
  • Self-employed Class 2 and Class 4 contributions follow different rules entirely.

Common questions

Why does my National Insurance rate fall when I earn more?
Above the upper earnings limit of £50,270 the employee rate drops from 8% to 2%. National Insurance is designed to build benefit entitlement, and entitlement stops accruing above that limit, so the charge above it is much lower.
Do contributions affect my State Pension?
Yes. Qualifying years build entitlement to the new State Pension. Check your actual record on GOV.UK rather than inferring it from a calculator, because gaps, credits and contracted-out periods all affect it.
Does my employer pay National Insurance too?
Yes, employers pay secondary Class 1 contributions on your earnings. That is a cost to them rather than a deduction from your pay, so it does not appear on your payslip or in this figure.
I have two jobs — is my National Insurance right?
Each employer applies the thresholds independently, so two jobs can mean getting the £12,570 threshold twice, or overpaying above the upper earnings limit. HMRC can review this after the year end; this calculator models a single employment.

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Official sources

Every figure in this guide was checked against the sources below. Where a source could not confirm a figure, it is marked as requiring verification rather than presented as settled.