Updated for 2026/27

Director take-home pay calculator 2026/27

After salary tax, National Insurance and dividend tax, how much do you personally keep? Enter company profit, salary and dividends to see your net annual take-home.

Quick answer (2026/27): on £60,000 of company profit, a director taking a £12,570 salary and the rest as dividends keeps about £46,091, or £3,841 a month. On £100,000 it is about £65,210, as more of the dividends reach the 35.75% higher rate.

Updated for 2026/27. Uses UK corporation tax, dividend tax and PAYE assumptions. Estimates only — not tax advice.

Calculator checked against GOV.UK and HMRC rules on (how we check).

Calculate company tax Read the guides
Personal take-homeSalary and dividendsAll taxes includedEffective rate
2026/27 tax year Company profit to personal take-home Salary plus dividends Retained cash shown

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Company tax estimate

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Tax year 2026/27
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Enter profit before director salary, pension contributions and corporation tax.

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Annual profit used in calculations = monthly profit × 12.

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Amount you plan to withdraw from available post-tax company profit.

Selected dividends exceed available post-tax company profit.
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£
£47,749 personal take-home / year £3,979/mo
Personal take-home is based on salary and dividends withdrawn. Post-tax profit not withdrawn is retained company cash.
Monthly net
£3,979
Total tax
£18,450
Effective rate
24.6%
Personal take-home£47,749
Dividend tax£4,821
Employer NI£1,136
Corporation tax£12,493
Company pension£0
Retained company cash£8,801
Show detailed breakdown ▼
Director salary£12,570.00
Employer National Insurance£1,135.50
Corporation tax£12,493.04
Salary income tax£0.00
Employee National Insurance£0.00
Dividend tax£4,821.25
Retained company cash£8,801.46
Personal take-home£47,748.75
Effective tax rate24.60%
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HMRC 2026/27 · Methodology

Free check · 2026/27

Get your director pay plan for 2026/27

We test every salary for your profit and show the split that leaves you the most, with the Corporation Tax to set aside.

Other income or a pension too?

Updated for 2026/27. Written and reviewed by James Whitfield against current GOV.UK and HMRC guidance · Editorial standards · Methodology. Estimates for planning only — not tax, accounting or financial advice.

Figures reviewed for the 2026/27 tax year. Source: GOV.UK.

About this calculator

Director take-home pay calculator 2026/27: what it covers

This calculator follows the full journey from company profit to the money that actually reaches your bank account. It starts with your trading profit, deducts corporation tax, then splits what remains between a salary and dividends before applying your personal income tax, National Insurance and dividend tax. What is left is your genuine take-home.

The common approach is a salary of £12,570, which uses your full Personal Allowance, with the rest drawn as dividends. Corporation tax is charged at 19% on profits up to £50,000, 25% above £250,000, and an effective 26.5% marginal rate in between. Dividends then come from the post-tax profit and are taxed personally at 10.75%, 35.75% or 39.35% depending on your total income, after the £500 dividend allowance.

The salary-plus-dividends mix is popular because a £12,570 salary avoids employee National Insurance and income tax on the salary itself while remaining a deductible company cost. Viewing the result as a monthly figure, rather than annual, often makes it easier to see what you can realistically draw each month.

Worked example

Take-home from £100,000 of company profit

The number that matters is what actually lands in your account. For a director on a £12,570 salary who extracts the rest of a £100,000-profit company as dividends, the personal bottom line works out as:

Company profit before salary £100,000
Director salary £12,570
Dividends drawn £67,176.46
Dividend tax £14,536.83
Personal take-home (year) £65,209.63
Personal take-home (month) £5,434.14

From £100,000 of company profit, roughly £65,210 reaches you personally — about £5,434 a month once corporation tax, the salary taxes and dividend tax are all accounted for. The £12,570 salary itself carries no income tax or employee NI, so the personal tax here is almost entirely the dividend charge.

How it works

What 'take-home' includes

  1. Your net salary: the salary less income tax and employee NI. On £12,570 neither is due, so the salary is all yours.2
  2. Plus the dividends you actually take, which come from profit after Corporation Tax.
  3. Less dividend tax at 10.75%, 35.75% or 39.35% above the £500 allowance.1
  4. The monthly figure spreads the year evenly. In practice you receive the salary monthly through payroll and the dividends whenever the board declares them.
More worked examples

Budgeting month by month

The £60,000 director above, paid monthly.

Net salary each month £1,047.50
Dividends each month (if taken evenly) £3,124.88
Set aside for dividend tax each month £331.44
Spendable each month £3,840.93

Putting the dividend tax aside monthly avoids a January bill you cannot meet.

The first-year January bill

For your first year of dividends, HMRC usually asks for the year's tax plus a first payment on account towards the next year, both on the same 31 January.

Dividend tax for 2026/27, due 31 January 2028 £3,977.34
First payment on account for 2027/28 (half) £1,988.67
Total due 31 January 2028 £5,966.01
Second payment on account, 31 July 2028 £1,988.67

Payments on account apply when the bill is £1,000 or more and no more than 80% of your tax was taken at source. If next year's income will be lower you can ask HMRC to reduce them.5

Same profit, different situations

How take-home on £60,000 of profit changes for two common variations.

England, Wales or Northern Ireland £46,091.21
Scotland £46,091.21
With a £20,000 PAYE job as well (company pay only) £38,627.57

Scotland makes no difference here because a £12,570 salary pays no income tax there either and dividends are taxed at UK rates. A second job does: it uses the allowances your company pay would otherwise have used.

Mistakes and edge cases

Why the money in your account can differ

Dividends you do not take are not take-home
The calculator assumes you take every pound of post-tax profit unless you enter a lower dividend. Retained profit stays in the company.
Expenses reimbursed are not pay
Mileage or costs the company repays you are not income and are not in this figure.
Student loan
Dividends count towards student loan repayments through Self Assessment, which this calculator does not include.
Child Benefit
If your total income, dividends included, is over £60,000, the High Income Child Benefit Charge can take back some or all of the Child Benefit.
By profit

Director take-home at each profit level

A £12,570 salary plus all remaining profit as dividends, for one director with no other income.

Profit before salaryDividendsTake-home a yearTake-home a month
£40,000£21,299£31,633£2,636
£60,000£37,499£46,091£3,841
£80,000£52,476£55,765£4,647
£100,000£67,176£65,210£5,434
£120,000£81,876£74,654£6,221

The monthly figure spreads the year evenly. Dividend tax is not paid monthly: it falls due through Self Assessment.

Key figures

  • Dividends are taxed at 10.75%, 35.75% and 39.35% above a £500 allowance, for 2026/27 and 2027/28. Budget 2026 Annex A
  • Employer National Insurance is 15% above £5,000 a year for 2026/27 and 2027/28. Budget 2026 Annex A
  • The Personal Allowance is £12,570 and the higher-rate threshold £50,270 for 2026/27 and 2027/28 (rest of the UK). Budget 2026 Annex A

Checked 1 November 2026.

Common questions

Director take-home pay calculator 2026/27 — FAQs

Why is a £12,570 salary combined with dividends so common?
A £12,570 salary matches the Personal Allowance, so no income tax is due on it, and it stays below the £12,570 primary threshold for employee National Insurance. The salary is also a deductible cost for the company. The remaining profit is then drawn as dividends, which carry no National Insurance and are taxed at lower rates than salary.
How does corporation tax affect my take-home?
Dividends can only be paid from profit after corporation tax, so the company tax bill directly reduces what is available to distribute. Profits up to £50,000 are taxed at 19%, above £250,000 at 25%, and between those thresholds at an effective 26.5% marginal rate. Your salary, being a deductible expense, reduces the profit that corporation tax is charged on.
What deductions reduce a director's take-home?
On the salary side you may face employee National Insurance at 8% between £12,570 and £50,270 (then 2%) and income tax if the salary exceeds the Personal Allowance. On the dividend side, dividends above the £500 allowance are taxed at 10.75%, 35.75% or 39.35%. Corporation tax is applied at company level before any dividends are paid.
Should I look at monthly or annual take-home?
Both are useful. The annual figure shows your total position for the tax year and matches how tax bands and allowances work, while a monthly figure helps with budgeting and cash flow. Remember that dividend tax is usually paid in a lump sum through Self Assessment, so setting money aside monthly avoids a surprise in January.
Sources & references

Where these figures come from

The rates and rules on this page are drawn from the official UK government sources below, using the confirmed 2026/27 figures. Each link opens the relevant HMRC, GOV.UK or Companies House page in a new tab.

  1. Tax on dividends www.gov.uk/tax-on-dividends
  2. Income Tax rates and Personal Allowances www.gov.uk/income-tax-rates
  3. Rates and thresholds for employers 2026 to 2027 www.gov.uk/guidance/rates-and-thresholds-for-employers-2026-to-2027
  4. Running payroll www.gov.uk/running-payroll
  5. Understand your Self Assessment tax bill: payments on account www.gov.uk/understand-self-assessment-bill/payments-on-account
  6. High Income Child Benefit Tax Charge www.gov.uk/child-benefit-tax-charge
Verified against published UK government guidance.
Power tools

More calculators

Limited company tax calculator
Company profit to take-home: Corporation Tax, employer NI, salary and dividend tax in one view.
Corporation tax calculator 2026/27
The company's bill at 19%, 25% or with marginal relief, and when it is due.
Salary vs dividend calculator 2026/27
Compare taking money as salary or dividends and see which salary leaves you the most.
Director salary calculator 2026/27
£0, £5,000, £9,100 or £12,570: what each salary costs the company and saves you.
Dividend tax calculator 2026/27
Dividend tax on top of your salary, band by band, after the £500 allowance.
Available dividends calculator
How much the company can lawfully pay out after salary, pension and Corporation Tax.
Retained profit calculator 2026/27
What stays in the company when you take less than all the profit, and the tax that defers.
Employer NI calculator for directors 2026/27
Employer NI on a director's salary, and when Employment Allowance cancels it.
Practical guides

Limited company guides

Limited Company Tax in Scotland 2026/27: Salary, Dividends and Corporation Tax
In Scotland, corporation tax is the same 19%–25% as the rest of the UK and dividends are taxed at the UK rates of 10.75%, 35.75% and 39.35%. Only a director's salary uses Scottish income tax bands. 2026/27 examples.
Corporation Tax Rates 2026/27: 19%, 25% and Marginal Relief
Corporation tax rates 2026/27: 19% on profits up to £50,000, 25% over £250,000, marginal relief between (26.5% marginal rate). £100,000 profit pays £22,750. Table and examples.
Optimal Salary and Dividend Split for Directors 2026/27
How to calculate the tax-efficient salary and dividend combination for a limited company director in 2026/27, covering corporation tax, income tax, NI and the dividend allowance.
Salary vs Dividends 2026/27: The Optimal Split for Company Directors
The tax-efficient salary vs dividends split for UK company directors in 2026/27: a £12,570 salary, then dividends taxed at 10.75%. Corporation tax, the £500 dividend allowance, employer NI and a full worked example extracting £50,000.
Director's Loan Account 2026/27: s455 at 35.75%, 30-Day Rule
Overdrawn director's loan account in 2026/27: s455 at 35.75% if not repaid 9 months and 1 day after year end, refundable later; £10,000 benefit-in-kind limit; 30-day rule.
Limited Company Allowable Expenses: A Practical Guide 2026/27
What a limited company can legitimately deduct as business expenses, reducing corporation tax. Covers running costs, director expenses, travel, equipment, and home office claims.
Getting set up

Business bank accounts

A limited company must keep its finances separate from personal accounts. These accounts are free to open.

Starling Business
Permanently free, no monthly fee. A fully licensed UK bank - eligible deposits are FSCS protected up to £120,000 per eligible depositor, per authorised bank (brands sharing one banking licence share one limit). A limited company's account is protected separately from your personal accounts. Accepts limited companies and sole traders. 0.7% on Post Office cash deposits.
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Tide
Free to open. Built-in invoicing and expense tracking. 20p per outgoing transfer on the free tier (Tide Plus is £9.99/month). Funds are safeguarded as e-money, not FSCS protected. Usually has a new-account offer.
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Mettle by NatWest
Free. Single-director limited companies only (max two owners, one account user). Includes FreeAgent bookkeeping at no extra cost. Funds are safeguarded as e-money, not FSCS protected. No cash deposits.
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Registering at Companies House

Companies House now charges £100 to register a limited company online (up from £50 in February 2026). Same-day registration is £156, through software filing only (for example via a formation agent). You can register directly at gov.uk or through a formation agent.