UK take-home pay · 2026/27 tax year
£21,000 after tax in 2026/27
On a £21,000 salary you take home £18,640 a year after Income Tax and National Insurance, which is £1,553 a month or £358 a week. You pay £1,686 in Income Tax and £674 in National Insurance, so you keep 88.8% of what you earn. The figures use 2026/27 rates for England, Wales and Northern Ireland; Scotland is covered further down.
Figures checked against GOV.UK on .
Take-home pay
£18,640
per year
Per month
£1,553
after tax and NI
Income Tax
£1,686
per year
National Insurance
£674
per year
£21k take-home pay by year, month, pay period and hour
| Period | Gross pay | Income Tax | National Insurance | Take-home |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | £21,000 | £1,686 | £674.40 | £18,639.60 |
| Month | £1,750 | £140.50 | £56.20 | £1,553.30 |
| 4 weeks | £1,615.38 | £129.69 | £51.88 | £1,433.82 |
| 2 weeks | £807.69 | £64.85 | £25.94 | £716.91 |
| Week | £403.85 | £32.42 | £12.97 | £358.45 |
| Day | £80.77 | £6.48 | £2.59 | £71.69 |
| Hour | £10.77 | £0.86 | £0.35 | £9.56 |
How tax and National Insurance are worked out on £21,000
- The first £12,570 is your Personal Allowance, so it is tax-free.
- £8,430 is taxed at 20% (basic rate), which is £1,686.
- National Insurance is 8% of the £8,430 you earn between £12,570 and £50,270: £674.40.
- £21,000 minus £1,686 tax and £674.40 NI leaves £18,639.60 a year.
Which tax band you are in
All of your taxable pay falls in the 20% basic-rate band. Higher-rate tax only starts at £50,270, so a pay rise of up to £29,270 is still taxed at 20%.
What a pay rise is worth
Out of the next £1,000 you earn, you would keep £720 after tax and National Insurance.
What you cost your employer
On top of your salary, your employer pays 15% National Insurance on earnings above £5,000 a year, which is £2,400 at £21,000. So employing you costs at least £23,400 a year before any workplace pension contribution. Small employers may be able to offset some of this with the Employment Allowance.
£21,000 after tax in Scotland
Scottish taxpayers on £21,000 take home £39.67 more a year, because the first £3,967 of taxable pay is charged at the 19% starter rate. Your National Insurance of £674.40 is the same wherever you live in the UK.
| England, Wales and NI | Scotland | |
|---|---|---|
| Income Tax | £1,686 | £1,646 |
| National Insurance | £674 | £674 |
| Take-home per year | £18,640 | £18,679 |
| Take-home per month | £1,553 | £1,557 |
Student loan repayments on £21,000
| Plan | Threshold | Per year | Per month | Take-home after repayment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plan 1 (England or Wales before September 2012, or Northern Ireland) | £26,900 at 9% | £0 | £0 | £18,640 |
| Plan 2 (England or Wales between September 2012 and July 2023) | £29,385 at 9% | £0 | £0 | £18,640 |
| Plan 4 (Scotland) | £33,795 at 9% | £0 | £0 | £18,640 |
| Plan 5 (England from August 2023) | £25,000 at 9% | £0 | £0 | £18,640 |
| Postgraduate Loan (Master's or Doctoral loan) | £21,000 at 6% | £0 | £0 | £18,640 |
Pension contributions on £21,000
| You pay in | Into pension per year | Take-home per year | Per month | Cost to take-home |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3% | £630 | £18,186 | £1,516 | £454 |
| 5% | £1,050 | £17,884 | £1,490 | £756 |
| 8% | £1,680 | £17,430 | £1,453 | £1,210 |
| 10% | £2,100 | £17,128 | £1,427 | £1,512 |
What a pay rise on £21k is worth
| Rise | New salary | New take-home | Extra per year | Extra per month |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3% | £21,630 | £19,093 | £454 | £37.80 |
| 5% | £22,050 | £19,396 | £756 | £63 |
| 10% | £23,100 | £20,152 | £1,512 | £126 |
How £21,000 compares with the UK average
A £21,000 salary is £18,900 less than the typical full-time wage in the UK. The Office for National Statistics measured median full-time pay at £766.60 a week in April 2025, which is roughly £39,900 over a year.
Nearby salaries after tax
- £16,000 after tax £15,040 a year
- £19,000 after tax £17,200 a year
- £20,000 after tax £17,920 a year
- £22,000 after tax £19,360 a year
- £23,000 after tax £20,080 a year
- £26,000 after tax £22,240 a year
- £31,000 after tax £25,840 a year
Full salary after tax table · Calculate with your own pension and tax code
Guides and definitions
- High Income Child Benefit Charge: how it is worked out and cut
- How to read your payslip: every line explained, with an example
- National Insurance rates 2026/27: what you pay and how it works
- Emergency tax code: An emergency tax code, marked W1, M1 or X, taxes each payday on its own, as if you were paid that amount every period of the year.
- Marginal tax rate: Your marginal tax rate is the share of your next pound or dollar of income that goes in tax and deductions.
- P60: A P60 is the yearly summary of your pay and tax from one employer, due by 31 May if you work there on 5 April.
- Personal Allowance: The Personal Allowance is the income you can earn each UK tax year before Income Tax starts: £12,570 for 2026/27.
- Tax code: A UK tax code tells your employer or pension provider how much tax-free pay to give you; 1257L, meaning £12,570, is the most common.
Questions about £21k after tax
How much is £21k a month after tax?
A £21,000 salary gives you £1,553.30 a month after Income Tax and National Insurance in 2026/27, before any pension or student loan deductions. Before tax, that is £1,750 a month.
How much tax do I pay on £21,000?
You pay £1,686 in Income Tax and £674.40 in National Insurance a year, £2,360.40 in total. That is an effective rate of 11.2% of your salary.
£21k a year is how much an hour?
£10.77 an hour before tax if you work 37.5 hours a week for 52 weeks, or £10.10 on a 40-hour week. After tax and National Insurance it is £9.56 an hour, which is £358.45 a week.
How much is £21,000 after tax in Scotland?
In Scotland you would take home £18,679 a year, or £1,556.61 a month. Scottish Income Tax on £21,000 is £1,646.33, compared with £1,686 in the rest of the UK.
How much student loan do I repay on £21,000?
Nothing on Plan 1, 2 or 5 at £21,000, because it is below all of their thresholds. A Postgraduate Loan would take £0 a year (6% over £21,000).
How much more would I take home on £22,000?
On £22,000 you would take home £19,360 a year, £720 more than on £21,000. That is £60 extra a month.
Sources and assumptions
- Employee in England, Wales or Northern Ireland on the standard 1257L tax code, unless the Scotland section says otherwise.
- No student loan, pension contribution, benefits in kind or other deductions in the headline figures.
- Hourly figures assume 37.5 hours a week for 52 weeks; daily figures assume 260 working days a year.
- Pension examples assume salary sacrifice, so contributions come off before tax and National Insurance.
- Income Tax rates and Personal Allowances
- Scottish Income Tax
- National Insurance: how much you pay
- Repaying your student loan: what you pay
- ONS: Employee earnings in the UK 2025
These are estimates. Your payslip can differ if your tax code, pension scheme or benefits are different.