🇬🇧 UK National Insurance Calculator
2026/27 rates: what you pay and what your employer pays.
Your National Insurance deduction
Estimates for planning only, not financial advice.
UK National Insurance for 2026/27 charges employees 8 percent on earnings between £12,570 and £50,270, then 2 percent above that. Employers pay 15 percent on everything above £5,000. On a £35,000 salary, the employee pays £1,794.40 a year while the employer pays £4,500 on top, making the true cost of employment £39,500.
How to Use This Calculator
Enter gross annual salary and select the age group. Employees over State Pension age stop paying employee NI but their employer keeps paying. The calculator shows both sides and the total employment cost, the number that actually matters in hiring decisions.
Enter gross salary. Use the Category A standard rates, which cover most employees.
Select the age group. State Pension age status switches off the employee charge.
Read both NI bills. For the income tax side of UK pay, our income tax calculator covers the other deduction.
2026/27 National Insurance Rates
The employer rate rose to 15 percent and its threshold fell to £5,000 in April 2025, a major increase in employment costs that still shapes hiring in 2026/27. The £10,500 Employment Allowance lets eligible small employers offset the first £10,500 of their employer bill. Employee thresholds are frozen, so inflation drags more pay into NI each year.
Worked Example
Salary £35,000, under State Pension age. Employee NI: (£35,000 - £12,570) at 8 percent is £22,430 x 0.08 = £1,794.40. Nothing exceeds £50,270, so no 2 percent band. Employer NI: (£35,000 - £5,000) at 15 percent is £30,000 x 0.15 = £4,500. Total employment cost: £39,500. The employer's hidden NI bill is two and a half times the employee's visible one.
Reading Your Result
Focus on the total employment cost when comparing job offers or hiring. A £35,000 salary costs the employer £39,500 before pension contributions, and that gap widens with pay since employer NI has no upper limit. For contractors weighing inside-versus-outside IR35, the employer NI is the tax the engager would rather not pay.
My rule: the employee NI line on your payslip is less than a third of the story. Employer NI never appears on your payslip, yet it comes out of the same pot that funds your salary: every rise in employer NI trims future pay rises. When the government raises the employer rate and calls it a business tax, read it as a future wage tax wearing a costume. For the full UK take-home picture including income tax, pair this with our paycheck calculator.
Estimates for planning only, not financial advice.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much National Insurance do I pay in 2026/27?
Employees pay 8 percent on earnings between £12,570 and £50,270, and 2 percent above £50,270. On £35,000 that is £1,794.40 a year. Below £12,570 you pay nothing, though earnings above £6,500 still count toward your State Pension record. The 8 percent band is the main rate; the 2 percent above 50,270 aligns with the higher-rate tax threshold.
What is the employer National Insurance rate?
15 percent on earnings above £5,000 per year, with no upper limit. The rate rose from 13.8 percent and the threshold fell from £9,100 in April 2025. Eligible employers can claim the £10,500 Employment Allowance against the bill. The Employment Allowance rise to 10,500 in 2025 was the sweetener for the rate increase.
Do I pay NI after State Pension age?
No employee NI, but your employer still pays the 15 percent secondary contribution on your earnings. The calculator's age selector handles this: employee NI drops to zero while employer NI continues. Class 1 employee NI stops at State Pension age; the self-employed equivalent rules differ slightly.
What does National Insurance pay for?
The State Pension, the NHS, unemployment benefits, maternity and paternity pay, and bereavement support. Your contribution record, built from years above the Lower Earnings Limit, determines your State Pension entitlement. Unlike income tax, NI was historically not charged on savings or pension income: it is a tax on work.
What is the difference between NI and income tax?
They are separate deductions with separate thresholds and rates, though both come off pay through PAYE. NI has the Upper Earnings Limit where the rate drops to 2 percent; income tax keeps climbing through its bands. Together they form the true marginal rate on earnings.
How much NI do self-employed people pay?
Class 4 at 6 percent on profits between £12,570 and £50,270, and 2 percent above, plus flat-rate Class 2 of £3.65 a week at lower profits. The self-employed rates are lower than the combined employee-plus-employer burden, reflecting fewer benefit entitlements.
What is the Employment Allowance?
A £10,500 annual reduction in employer NI for eligible small businesses. It effectively wipes out the employer bill on the first few employees. One claim per employer, and some sectors are excluded. Check eligibility on GOV.UK: connected companies and single-director firms face restrictions.
Why is employer NI called a hidden tax?
Because it never appears on the employee's payslip, yet it raises the cost of employing someone by up to 15 percent of pay above £5,000. Economists treat it as largely falling on wages over time through smaller pay rises. HMRC estimates billions in lost revenue yearly from disguised-employment schemes: IR35 enforcement targets exactly this.
Are bonuses subject to National Insurance?
Yes. Bonuses, overtime, commission, and most benefits in kind count as earnings for NI purposes and face the same rates. Salary sacrifice arrangements can reduce the NI bill for both sides on items like pensions and cycle schemes. Benefits in kind face Class 1A employer NI at 15 percent instead, reported via P11D.
What happens if I earn below £12,570?
You pay no employee NI. If you earn above the Lower Earnings Limit of £6,500, you still build qualifying years toward the State Pension at zero cost. Below that, you may pay voluntary Class 3 contributions to fill gaps. Thirty-five qualifying years currently buys the full new State Pension: check your record on GOV.UK.