2026/27 pay calculator
Pension contribution cost calculator
Compare the take-home cost of extra workplace pension contributions under net pay or salary sacrifice.
Your details
Tax & student loansStandard Income Tax · No student loan
Input guidance
- Annual gross salary (£)
- Before Income Tax, NI and employee pension deductions.
- Employee pension (% of all salary)
- Applied to the full salary entered, not qualifying earnings.
Your estimate
Reduction in monthly take-home
£80.00
2026/27 estimate. Actual payslips can differ.
Pay breakdown
| Monthly average | Before | After |
|---|---|---|
| Gross pay | £3,750.00 | £3,750.00 |
| Income Tax | £540.50 | £520.50 |
| National Insurance | £216.20 | £216.20 |
| Employee pension | £0.00 | £100.00 |
| Student loans | £0.00 | £0.00 |
| Take-home pay | £2,993.30 | £2,913.30 |
How this estimate works
Net pay contributions reduce Income Tax. Salary sacrifice can also reduce NI and student-loan deductions. This tool compares workplace net pay and salary sacrifice, not relief-at-source pensions. Employer contributions are excluded. Salary sacrifice cannot reduce cash pay below the applicable minimum wage.
- Extra amount going into your pension each month
- £100.00
- Annual Income Tax reduction
- £240.00
- Annual NI reduction
- £0.00
Includes your figures. Share only with people you choose.
More about this calculation
Compare the same extra amount going into your pension
Enter the gross extra pension contribution, before Income Tax relief. The calculator compares current deductions with a larger contribution using the selected workplace pension method. Employer contributions remain outside this comparison.
The method changes the saving
Net pay contributions reduce taxable income but not NI-able earnings. Salary sacrifice reduces contractual cash pay before tax and NI, and can reduce student-loan deductions. Relief-at-source pensions require different handling and are not modelled here.
Check the arrangement before changing contributions
Salary sacrifice requires an employer arrangement and cannot reduce cash pay below the applicable minimum wage. Pension allowances, benefits based on contractual salary and future pension access also matter. This tool estimates cash-flow changes rather than recommending a contribution level.
Worked example
With these settings, reduction in monthly take-home is £80.00. This example stays fixed when you change the calculator.
- Annual gross salary (£)
- £45,000
- Extra gross pension contribution per month (£)
- £100
- Income Tax region
- England, Wales or Northern Ireland
- Employee pension (% of all salary)
- 0%
- Pension method
- Net pay: before Income Tax
- Undergraduate student loan
- None
- Postgraduate loan
- No
Annual gross pay of £45,000.00 minus Income Tax of £6,246.00, NI of £2,594.40, employee pension of £1,200.00 and student loans of £0.00 leaves £34,959.60 for the year.
Sources & assumptions
Checked 25 October 2026
- HMRC: salary sacrifice
- Tax relief on pension contributions
- Income Tax rates
- National Insurance rates
- Student-loan repayments
Salary estimates assume a standard Personal Allowance, employee NI category A and even monthly pay. Individual tax codes, benefits and payroll adjustments can change your payslip.
Read the calculation assumptionsHow the salary calculation works