NHS Band 5 salary in England: 2026/27 take-home pay
A Band 5 nurse or other Agenda for Change worker in England starts on £32,073 a year. After tax, National Insurance and NHS Pension, that’s about £2,040 a month.
Pay scales for England from NHS Employers, effective 1 April 2026. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have their own pay scales. Your tax region below changes Income Tax rates; it does not change the England pay scale.
| Pay point | Years in band | Annual salary | Take-home a month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Entry | under 2 years | £32,073 | £2,040.21 |
| Mid | 2–4 years | £34,592 | £2,177.41 |
| Top | 4+ years | £39,043 | £2,380.80 |
Source: NHS Employers pay scales. Progression is subject to the pay-step requirements; it is not guaranteed by time served alone. Tables use full-time hours, tax code 1257L, NHS Pension, no HCAS, unsocial hours or student loan. Changing the calculator updates its result; these reference tables keep their stated examples.
| Pay point | Pension tier | Rate | Pension a month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Entry | Tier 3 | 8.3% | £221.84 |
| Mid | Tier 3 | 8.3% | £239.26 |
| Top | Tier 4 | 9.8% | £318.85 |
Source: NHSBSA contribution tiers. Your actual pensionable pay sets the rate applied to all pensionable pay.
Calculate your Band 5 take-home pay
Your take-home pay
£2,040.21 a month
Monthly deductions: Income Tax £280.68; National Insurance £130.02; NHS Pension £221.84.
Band 5, entry (under 2 years); 37.5 hours a week. No HCAS. Tax region: England, Wales or Northern Ireland; tax code 1257L. NHS Pension: 8.3%. No student loan.
- Take-home 76.3%
- Income Tax 10.5%
- National Insurance 4.9%
- Pension 8.3%
Effective Income Tax rate: 10.5%. Take-home is 76.3% of gross pay.
Annual estimates use annual thresholds. Your employer’s period PAYE deductions may differ.
Full breakdown
| Pay and deductions | Year | Month | Week | Day | Month |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gross pay | £32,073.00 | £2,672.75 | £616.79 | £123.36 | £2,672.75 |
| Income Tax | £3,368.19 | £280.68 | £64.77 | £12.95 | £280.68 |
| National Insurance | £1,560.24 | £130.02 | £30.00 | £6.00 | £130.02 |
| Pension deduction | £2,662.06 | £221.84 | £51.19 | £10.24 | £221.84 |
| Take-home pay | £24,482.51 | £2,040.21 | £470.82 | £94.16 | £2,040.21 |
Gross hourly equivalent: £16.45. Take-home hourly equivalent: £12.56.
How we got this
- NHS basic pay: £32,073.00
- High Cost Area Supplement (HCAS): £0.00
- Unsocial hours premium: £0.00
- Personal Allowance used: £12,570.00
- Taxable pay after allowances: £16,840.94
- Basic rate: £3,368.19
- Higher rate: £0.00
- Additional rate: £0.00
- Employee National Insurance: £1,560.24
- Student loan repayments: £0.00
- Pension deducted from your pay: £2,662.06
- Salary exchanged for pension contributions: £0.00
- Your annual take-home pay: £24,482.51
| Band | Earnings | Rate | Deduction |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic rate | £16,840.94 | 20% | £3,368.19 |
| Band | Earnings | Rate | Deduction |
|---|---|---|---|
| Between the primary and upper earnings thresholds | £19,503.00 | 8% | £1,560.24 |
| Above the upper earnings limit | £0.00 | 2% | £0.00 |
| Basic pay | £32,073.00 |
|---|---|
| HCAS | £0.00 |
| Unsocial hours premium | £0.00 |
| Actual pensionable pay | £32,073.00 |
| NHS Pension tier | Tier 3 (8.3%) |
NHS Pension uses actual pensionable pay, including HCAS and the estimated unsocial premium. It reduces pay for Income Tax; National Insurance and student loan earnings are unchanged.
Part-time HCAS is an estimate: we scale the full-time supplement and its minimum and maximum by contracted hours ÷ 37.5. Unsocial hours assume the same average weekly pattern throughout the year; HCAS is excluded from the premium base.
Part-time Band 5 pay
| Hours a week | Gross a year | Take-home a month |
|---|---|---|
| 22.5 | £19,244 | £1,364.54 |
| 30 | £25,658 | £1,721.62 |
| 37.5 | £32,073 | £2,040.21 |
Pension tiers use your actual part-time pensionable pay, rather than the full-time salary.
Band 5 with London Weighting (HCAS)
| Area | HCAS a year | Take-home a month |
|---|---|---|
| Inner London | £6,414.60 | £2,351.10 |
| Outer London | £4,870.00 | £2,268.52 |
| Fringe | £1,603.65 | £2,127.56 |
HCAS is pensionable. For part-time estimates, the calculator scales the full-time supplement and its minimum and maximum by hours ÷ 37.5. This is an estimate; confirm the supplement with payroll.
Moving from Band 5 to Band 6
| Band | Gross a year | Take-home a month |
|---|---|---|
| Band 5 | £32,073 | £2,040.21 |
| Band 6 | £39,959 | £2,429.78 |
Common questions about NHS pay
Is this calculator official?
No. PayCompass is an independent website. It is not run by the NHS, NHS Employers or HMRC. We use their published pay scales and tax rates. Your payslip is the final word.
How are unsocial hours estimated?
Enter average weekly unsocial hours within your contracted hours, counting each hour once. We add only the premium to basic pay. The basic salary is already paid for those hours. HCAS is excluded from the premium base; the premium is pensionable.
This assumes a steady weekly pattern for the year. It does not model overtime, on-call payments, changes during the year or local arrangements. NHS Employers unsocial hours rules.
Why might my payslip differ?
These annual estimates assume the same pay and working pattern throughout the year. Your employer’s period PAYE calculation, pay-step date and other deductions may change the amount paid.
Can I use another NHS pay scale?
This calculator uses England’s Agenda for Change scale. It does not cover doctors’ contracts or the NHS pay scales for Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland.