National Insurance Calculator

Use the National Insurance calculator

Type your gross annual salary into the tool above and choose whether you want the result yearly, monthly or weekly. It applies the Category A Class 1 rates for 2026/27 and returns the National Insurance deducted from your pay. For a fuller picture of what actually reaches your bank account, pair it with our take-home pay calculator, which strips out Income Tax and pension as well.

How National Insurance is worked out

Class 1 NI for employees is charged in two bands, and only on the part of your earnings inside each band. The plain-English formula is:

NI = 8% of earnings between the Primary Threshold and the Upper Earnings Limit, plus 2% of anything above the Upper Earnings Limit.

For 2026/27 the Primary Threshold (PT) is £12,570 a year and the Upper Earnings Limit (UEL) is £50,270 a year. You pay nothing on the first £12,570. You pay 8% on the slice from £12,570 up to £50,270. On earnings above £50,270 the rate drops to 2%. That falling top rate is why a higher earner can pay a smaller percentage of their total salary in NI than someone on a middle income.

Unlike Income Tax, NI is not cumulative across the year. It's worked out separately each pay period, using period thresholds. Monthly, the PT is £1,048 and the UEL is £4,189; weekly, they're £242 and £967. So a one-off bonus in a single month can push more of that month's pay above the UEL, where it's only charged 2%, while a steady salary spreads evenly across each period. An annual-salary calculator uses the yearly thresholds as a close approximation; payroll uses the per-period version, so a few pounds of difference between the two is normal.

One more thing worth clearing up: the National Insurance your employer pays on top of your wage is a separate cost to the business and is never deducted from you. This calculator only shows your own employee contribution.

Worked example: a nurse on £30,000

Take a nurse earning £30,000 a year. Only earnings above the £12,570 threshold count, and all of it sits below the £50,270 UEL, so it's taxed at the single 8% rate:

• Earnings in the 8% band: £30,000 − £12,570 = £17,430
• NI: £17,430 × 8% = £1,394.40 a year
• That's roughly £116 a month or £27 a week.

Seeing NI come off every payslip can feel like money disappearing, but it's what builds your entitlement to the State Pension and contributory benefits. You can check the years you've built up with the State Pension forecast tool.

Worked example: a manager on £55,000

Now take someone on £55,000, who crosses into the 2% band. The calculation runs in two parts:

• 8% band: (£50,270 − £12,570) × 8% = £37,700 × 8% = £3,016.00
• 2% band: (£55,000 − £50,270) × 2% = £4,730 × 2% = £94.60
• Total NI: £3,016.00 + £94.60 = £3,110.60 a year

Notice how the £5,000 of salary above the UEL only adds £94.60 of NI. The same £5,000 would attract far more Income Tax once you're a higher-rate taxpayer, which our Income Tax calculator sets out band by band.

2026/27 Class 1 National Insurance rates & thresholds

These are the Category A employee figures for the 2026/27 tax year, checked against gov.uk.

Source: gov.uk rates and thresholds for employers 2026 to 2027. These rates apply across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. National Insurance is a UK-wide charge, so — unlike Income Tax, which has separate Scottish bands — there is no regional variation in the NI you pay.

Are you self-employed instead?

If you work for yourself rather than on PAYE, you don't pay Class 1. You pay Class 4 NI on your profits, charged at 6% between £12,570 and £50,270 and 2% above that — a lower main rate than the employee 8%. The thresholds match, but the rate and the form (Self Assessment rather than a payslip) differ. Work yours out with the self-employed tax calculator.

How to legitimately reduce the NI you pay

National Insurance is charged on your gross pay, so anything that lowers your NI-able earnings before the deduction is applied will cut the bill:

• Salary sacrifice into a pension. Giving up some salary for an employer pension contribution reduces the earnings NI is charged on, so you save NI as well as Income Tax. Our salary sacrifice calculator shows the combined effect.
• Other salary-sacrifice schemes such as the Cycle to Work scheme or electric-car schemes work the same way, reducing both NI and tax.
• Check your records are complete. NI builds your State Pension. If you've had gaps — time abroad, low-paid years, or a career break — you may be able to fill them with voluntary contributions. The State Pension top-up calculator helps you weigh that up.

Common mistakes people make with NI

• Confusing NI with Income Tax. They use the same £12,570 and £50,270 markers in 2026/27, but they're separate deductions with different rates. Your payslip lists them on separate lines.
• Assuming Scotland pays different NI. Scotland sets its own Income Tax bands, but National Insurance is identical UK-wide. Don't apply Scottish rates to your NI.
• Forgetting NI is per-period. A big bonus month can look odd because more of that month's pay sits above the monthly UEL at 2%. Over a steady year it evens out.
• Expecting your second job to be NI-free. Each employment has its own thresholds, so a second job can carry its own NI even if your tax code looks sorted. Check it with the second job tax calculator.
• Ignoring the wrong tax code. A wrong code won't change your NI, but it can distort the take-home figure you compare against — worth checking with the tax code calculator.

These figures are estimates for guidance only and are not personal tax or financial advice; for help with your own circumstances, see MoneyHelper or speak to a qualified adviser.

Who should use this calculator

National Insurance is the deduction people understand least, partly because it works on completely different thresholds from Income Tax and partly because employees and the self-employed pay different classes. This shows Class 1 for employees and Class 4 for the self-employed, so you can see which applies and what it costs.

The detail worth knowing is that NI, unlike Income Tax, is charged per pay period rather than annually for employees. That is why a one-off bonus attracts more NI than the same money spread across the year, and why it does not even out later the way Income Tax does.

What this calculator assumes

• Class 1 applies to employees on earnings above the primary threshold, with a lower rate above the upper earnings limit.
• Class 4 applies to self-employed profit at 6% between £12,570 and £50,270, and 2% above.
• Class 2 is voluntary below the small profits threshold of £7,105, at £3.65 a week, and still buys a qualifying year towards the State Pension.
• NI is charged on earnings, not on total income — savings, dividends and rent are outside it entirely.
• Employees over State Pension age stop paying NI; the self-employed stop paying Class 4 from the following tax year.

Limitations — what it does not cover

• Employer National Insurance, which is a cost to your employer rather than a deduction from you.
• Per-period assessment for employees, which affects irregular pay and bonuses.
• Class 3 voluntary contributions, used to fill gaps in your record for State Pension purposes.
• Directors’ annual earnings basis, which differs from the standard employee method.
• Multiple employments, where each is assessed separately and you may overpay.

Related calculators

Once you've sorted your NI, see the full deduction picture with the net salary calculator, work out a one-off payment with the bonus tax calculator, or check the tax on your earnings with the Income Tax calculator.