UK Self-Employed Tax Calculator 2026/27
Estimate income tax and Class 4 National Insurance on sole-trader profits for 2026/27, your take-home, and the January and July payments on account.
| Taxable profit | — |
|---|---|
| Personal allowance | — |
| Income tax | — |
| Class 4 National Insurance | — |
| Class 2 National Insurance | — |
| Effective rate on profit | — |
| Take-home from the business | — |
| Monthly take-home | — |
| Balancing payment due 31 January | — |
| Payments on account for next year (31 Jan + 31 Jul) | — |
In short
A UK sole trader in 2026/27 pays income tax on profits above the £12,570 personal allowance (20% to £50,270, 40% to £125,140, 45% above) plus Class 4 National Insurance of 6% on profits between £12,570 and £50,270 and 2% above; Class 2 is treated as paid once profits reach £7,105. Bills over £1,000 trigger two payments on account of 50% each for the following year.
Who this is for: UK sole traders and freelancers estimating their Self Assessment bill, take-home and payments on account.
What a sole trader pays in 2026/27
- Income tax on profit (turnover − allowable expenses, or − the £1,000 trading allowance if that is higher) added to any other income: 0% on the first £12,570, 20% to £50,270, 40% to £125,140, 45% above. The personal allowance tapers away above £100,000.
- Class 4 National Insurance: 6% on profits between £12,570 and £50,270, 2% above.
- Class 2 National Insurance: no longer compulsory. Profits of £7,105 or more earn the State Pension credit automatically; below that you can pay £3.65 a week voluntarily to keep your record.
- Payments on account: once your bill exceeds £1,000 (and less than 80% of your tax was collected at source), you pay 50% of this year's bill towards next year on 31 January and 31 July, then a balancing payment the following January.
Pension contributions extend your basic-rate band (and reduce the income used for the allowance taper), which is why they are asked for separately. Scottish income tax bands differ; this calculator uses the England/Wales/NI bands with UK-wide NI.
Assumptions
- Profit = turnover − max(expenses, £1,000 trading allowance).
- Income tax on profit + other income with the 2026/27 bands, pension contributions extending the bands and tapering the allowance; tax on other income is shown separately as PAYE.
- Class 4 NI 6%/2% on profit; Class 2 shown as voluntary £3.65/week below £7,105; payments on account = 50% of the bill each when over £1,000.
Worked example
Profit = £48,000. Income tax: (48,000 − 12,570) × 20% = £7,086. Class 4 NI: (48,000 − 12,570) × 6% = £2,126. Class 2: treated as paid.
Total £9,212 (19.2% of profit); take-home £38,788, about £3,232 a month.
Payments on account for next year: 2 × £4,606. In a first trading year, the 31 January payment would be £9,212 + £4,606 = £13,818.
Frequently asked questions
Should I become a limited company instead?
At £48,000 profit a company paying a small salary plus dividends saves a few thousand a year in NI, but adds accountancy and admin costs and dividend rates rose in April 2026. Many sole traders find the break-even around £40,000–£50,000 of profit — model both before switching.
Is the trading allowance instead of expenses?
Yes — you claim either £1,000 or your actual expenses, never both. With turnover under £1,000 you need not register at all.
Do I pay NI on rental or investment income?
No. Class 4 applies only to trading profits; rental income is taxed through income tax alone.
When do I need to file?
Register for Self Assessment by 5 October after the tax year you started trading; file online and pay by 31 January. Making Tax Digital quarterly updates apply from April 2026 for turnover over £50,000 and April 2027 over £30,000.
How much tax do I pay on £50,000 self-employed?
About £7,486 income tax and £2,246 Class 4 NI — roughly £9,730, or 19.5% of profit, with no other income.
Do I still pay Class 2 National Insurance?
Not compulsorily — profits of £7,105 or more earn the credit automatically; below that you can pay £3.65 a week voluntarily.
Related calculators
See all United Kingdom calculators → · All free online calculators
Found an error? Report it — tell us the inputs, the result you got, what you expected and the rule or source. Confirmed corrections are published within a week.
Ready to build your next digital solution?
Send the brief and you get a scoped response with approach, milestones and a fixed price range. Not a sales call.
A 30-minute call with the engineer who would run your project
Within 2 business daysA written scope: approach, module breakdown, milestones, fixed price range
Within 5 business daysYou decide. No retainer, no obligation, and the scope document is yours to keep either way
Your timelineSend your brief
Three fields to start. Add project details if you have them.