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Already over £100k this tax year?You can usually still fix it before 5 April.See how much to put in your pension

Over £100k? See what it costs you in tax and childcare, and how to fix it.

The exact pension sacrifice to get back under £100k, the childcare you'd keep, and what lands in the bank.

Your marginal rate, the sacrifice a year and a month, the childcare support at stake, and every line of the working with its GOV.UK source. Free, no signup.

Your household

One earner. England, Wales or Northern Ireland rules, 2026-27.

Children under 5 in nursery
Add a bonus or an existing pension
Pension amount as

Workplace schemes: the amount taken from pay. Personal pension: what you pay in.

Free. No signup. Your numbers stay in this browser tab.

What each extra £1 of salary is worth, from £50k to £150k

Effective marginal rate: income tax, National Insurance and the Child Benefit charge, for one earner with one child, salary only. Each numbered cliff links to an explanation or calculator.

Marginal rate by salary. Flat around 42% until £100,000, 62% to £125,140, then 47%. A step up between £60,000 and £80,000 for the Child Benefit charge.
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  1. Child Benefit charge

    £60k to £80k: 49% with one child, as the benefit is clawed back.

  2. £100k childcare cliff

    £10,550 a year in our England example with one child aged 9 months to 2, subject to eligibility. Universal hours for older children remain.

  3. Personal allowance taper

    £100k to £125,140: 62%, because every £2 also removes £1 of allowance.

  4. £125,140: the taper ends

    Allowance gone, 45% tax plus 2% NI: 47%. Lower than the band below it.

Read the map as a table
Salary bandMarginal rateWhy
£50,270 to £60,00042%40% tax, 2% NI
£60,000 to £80,00049%plus Child Benefit charge (one child)
£80,000 to £100,00042%40% tax, 2% NI
£100,000 to £125,14062%plus the allowance taper; childcare support lost at £100,000
£125,140 to £150,00047%45% tax, 2% NI

Rates on the next £1,000 of salary, rounded. Below £50,270 the rate is lower because NI is 8% rather than 2% but income tax is 20%. Rules 2026-27.

Work out my numberYour own rate, the sacrifice and the childcare at stake.

Start from where you are

Each one is a calculator built for that moment, with its guide alongside.

Not sure which applies? Start with your number. Couples and Scotland come after the England release.

The numbers already worked out

Marginal rate on the next £1,000 and the sacrifice to reach £100k, with no pension. Each page has the full working for that salary.

  1. £60,00042% · £40,000 under £100k
  2. £70,00042% · £30,000 under £100k
  3. £80,00042% · £20,000 under £100k
  4. £90,00042% · £10,000 under £100k
  5. £95,00042% · £5,000 under £100k
  6. £99,00042% · £1,000 under £100k
  7. £100,00062% · on the line
  8. £101,00062% · £1,000 to £100k
  9. £105,00062% · £5,000 to £100k
  10. £110,00062% · £10,000 to £100k
  11. £120,00062% · £20,000 to £100k
  12. £125,00049.1% · £25,000 to £100k
  13. £125,14047% · £25,140 to £100k
  14. £130,00047% · £30,000 to £100k
  15. £150,00047% · £50,000 to £100k
Work out my exact numberAll salaries

Understand the £100k cliff

Start with a question. Each calculator explains the rules, shows a worked example and lets you try your own numbers.

All calculators

How this works

  1. The working is shown. Every result lists each line, its reason and its GOV.UK source, and the calculation runs in your browser; your inputs stay in this browser tab.
  2. The tax year is clear. Calculations use 2026-27 rules.
  3. Guidance, not financial advice. Clearer Money shows what the rules do to your numbers; it doesn't know your whole position. Disclaimer.

How we calculate, with sources

Know your number before the next payslip.

Two minutes, no signup. Your numbers stay in this browser tab, ready to adjust and compare.

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