National Insurance Calculator
Calculate employee and employer National Insurance contributions by earnings with 2026/27 thresholds and rates
Employee National Insurance
Annual NI
£1,794
Monthly NI
£149.53
Effective Rate
5.13%
Take-Home Pay
Annual Take-Home
£33,206
Monthly Take-Home
£2,767.13
Employer National Insurance
Annual Employer NI
£3,574
Total Cost to Employer
£38,574
Employer pays 13.8% NI on salary above £9,100/year
2026/27 rates. This is for reference only. Check HMRC guidance for your specific circumstances.
How Much National Insurance Do You Pay in 2026/27?
Employees pay 8% on earnings between the primary threshold of £12,570 and the upper earnings limit of £50,270, then 2% on everything above. On a £35,000 salary you pay £1,794 a year (£149.50 a month). On £50,000 you pay £2,994 a year (£249.50 a month). On £100,000 you pay £4,008 a year (£334 a month). NI tops out as a flat 2% rate above £50,270, which is why high earners feel income tax bite far more than NI.
Employer National Insurance is the bigger number most employees never see. From April 2026 the employer rate is 15% (up from 13.8%) on salary above £5,000 (down from £9,100), so the cost to employ someone on £35,000 is now around £4,500 of employer NI on top of their salary. This is why salary sacrifice schemes are popular: the employer saves their NI on the sacrificed amount and often passes some or all of that saving back to the employee.
The Self-Employed and Class 4 NI
Self-employed people pay Class 4 NI on profits at 6% between £12,570 and £50,270, then 2% above (down from 9% in earlier tax years). Class 2 NI was effectively abolished from April 2024; you no longer pay the £3.45 weekly Class 2 contribution but you still get qualifying years for State Pension based on profits above £6,725. So a sole trader with £40,000 of profit pays roughly £1,646 in Class 4 NI, with no Class 2 due. Compare that to an employee on £40,000 salary paying £2,194 in Class 1 NI, plus their employer paying another £5,250 in employer NI on top.
Most directors of small limited companies optimise around this gap by paying themselves a salary at or just above the personal allowance and taking the rest as dividends, which avoids NI entirely. The trade-off is that dividends do not count towards State Pension qualifying years, so the small salary needs to be at least £6,500 a year to pick up an NI credit without actually paying contributions. The [salary sacrifice calculator](/uk-salary-sacrifice-calculator) is useful for employees considering pension sacrifice, which removes the NI charge on the sacrificed pound.
When You Stop Paying NI
You stop paying employee NI the day you reach State Pension age, even if you keep working. State Pension age is 66 throughout 2026, rising to 67 between April 2026 and March 2028, and to 68 between 2044 and 2046. Self-employed Class 4 NI also stops at State Pension age but is reconciled at the end of the tax year, so you typically pay a part-year amount in the year you cross the threshold. Voluntary Class 3 contributions (£17.45 a week in 2026/27) let you fill gaps in your NI record up to six years back, which can be worth thousands in lifetime State Pension if you are short of qualifying years.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the NI threshold for 2026/27?
The primary threshold (the point where employees start paying NI) is £12,570 a year, the same as the income tax personal allowance. The upper earnings limit (where the rate drops from 8% to 2%) is £50,270. Both thresholds have been frozen since 2022 and are scheduled to remain frozen until at least April 2028.
Do I pay NI on my pension?
No. Pension income is subject to income tax but not National Insurance. This is one of the largest tax differences between salary and pension income, and is part of why retirees on the same gross income as workers have noticeably more take-home pay.
How many years of NI do I need for a full State Pension?
35 qualifying years for the full new State Pension (£11,973 a year in 2026/27). 10 years is the minimum to get any State Pension at all. If you have fewer than 35 years on your record, you can pay voluntary Class 3 contributions to fill gaps; check your record on the gov.uk State Pension forecast page before paying, because some gap years cannot be backfilled.
Does salary sacrifice reduce my NI?
Yes, and that is one of its main benefits. Sacrificing £5,000 of salary into pension reduces your Class 1 NI bill by 8% of £5,000 (£400 a year if the sacrifice is below the upper earnings limit) and saves your employer 15% (£750 a year). Many employers pass the employer saving back into your pension, making sacrifice a roughly 23% boost on the contribution before any income tax saving.