🇬🇧 United Kingdom Tax Brackets 2026
UK income tax bands 2026/27. All figures sourced from official publications — see sources below.
| Total income | Rate |
|---|---|
| Up to £12,570 | 0% (Personal Allowance) |
| £12,570 – £50,270 | 20% |
| £50,270 – £125,140 | 40% |
| Over £125,140 | 45% |
Scotland uses six different bands (starter 19% up to top 48%) — see the Scotland page. National Insurance is charged separately.
What these 2026 bands cost in practice
On the £35,000 United Kingdom median, the 2026 brackets above cost £4,486 in income tax, with a further £1,794 going to contributions, leaving £2,393 a month.
Across the range the effective rate runs from 7.9% at £17,500 to 32.9% at £105,000 — a 25.0-point climb across a sixfold difference in pay, which is what a progressive United Kingdom schedule looks like once you convert its rates into money.
| Gross salary | Income tax | Other deductions | Take-home / month | Effective rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| £17,500 | £986 | £394 | £1,343 | 7.9% |
| £26,250 | £2,736 | £1,094 | £1,868 | 14.6% |
| £35,000 | £4,486 | £1,794 | £2,393 | 17.9% |
| £43,750 | £6,236 | £2,494 | £2,918 | 20.0% |
| £52,500 | £8,432 | £3,061 | £3,417 | 21.9% |
| £70,000 | £15,432 | £3,411 | £4,263 | 26.9% |
| £105,000 | £30,432 | £4,111 | £5,871 | 32.9% |
Who the 2026 United Kingdom bands apply to
The 4 rows above apply to a 2026 tax resident of the UK on employment income, and take the effective rate on £35,000 to 17.9%. Residency here turns on presence and ties rather than nationality, so a non-resident earning the UK can face a different schedule entirely, and anyone who arrived or left part-way through 2026 is usually assessed on a split basis instead of this one.
United Kingdom applies these 2026 bands uniformly: no nation-level income tax sits on top, so £35,000 yields the same £2,393 a month anywhere in the country, and the nation selector above changes nothing about the tax. Earlier United Kingdom schedules are archived rather than deleted, so a page describing a previous year stays available and correct alongside this 2026 one.
What sits alongside the 2026 bands
The schedule above is only the income-tax layer. United Kingdom payroll also applies national insurance, and those lines are charged on their own thresholds rather than the ones in the bracket table — which is why two salaries in the same band can carry noticeably different totals.
Every line below is what a £52,500 salary — half again the United Kingdom median — carries in 2026, so you can see the bands and their companions on the same figure rather than reading them separately.
| Line | Per year | Per month | Share of gross |
|---|---|---|---|
| Income Tax | £8,432 | £703 | 16.1% |
| National Insurance | £3,061 | £255 | 5.8% |
| Total leaving your pay | £11,493 | £958 | 21.9% |
Sources
- 2026/27 Income Tax bands for rUK and Scotland; personal allowance £12,570 frozen. (retrieved 2026-06-22)
- Official Income Tax rates and Personal Allowance (confirm exact 2026/27 figures here). (retrieved 2026-06-22)
- Class 1 employee NI: 8% main rate, 2% above UEL; PT £12,570, UEL £50,270. (retrieved 2026-06-22)
- Student loan repayment plan thresholds (VERIFY annually). (retrieved 2026-06-22)
Frequently Asked Questions
+What are the United Kingdom tax brackets for 2026?
England, Wales & Northern Ireland. Personal Allowance £12,570 taxed at 0%. 2026/27. Scotland uses six different bands (starter 19% up to top 48%) — see the Scotland page. National Insurance is charged separately.
+How much tax would I pay on the United Kingdom median salary in 2026?
On £35,000, the 2026 brackets cost about £4,486 in income tax, plus £1,794 in contributions — an effective 17.9% overall, leaving £2,393 a month.
+Does moving into a higher United Kingdom bracket cost me money?
No. Only the income above a threshold is charged at the higher rate; everything beneath it keeps the rate of its own band. That is why the effective rate in the table below rises smoothly from 7.9% to 32.9% rather than jumping at each boundary.
+Where can I check my exact take-home pay?
Use our free United Kingdom salary calculator to apply these 2026 brackets to your salary and see your net monthly take-home with a full breakdown.
Estimate only — not tax advice. Figures are estimates based on publicly available tax rules and may not reflect your full circumstances. See our methodology & sources (last reviewed June 2026). Always confirm with an official tax authority or a licensed adviser before making decisions.