National Insurance rates: 2026/27
What employees and the self-employed actually pay — this tax year next to last, in plain English, with the sums shown to the penny. These are the exact figures the calculator uses, taken from official sources and dated.
What National Insurance is
In practice, a second income tax with its own thresholds — paying it builds your entitlement to the State Pension and some benefits. It's charged only on what you earn above a threshold, never on the whole amount, and your employer pays its own NI on top, which never appears on your payslip.
Employees — Class 1
Deducted from each payslip automatically. You pay nothing below the primary threshold, the main rate up to the upper earnings limit, and a much lower rate above it.
| Item | 2025/26 | 2026/27 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Primary threshold NI starts above | £12,570 | £12,570 | frozen |
| Main rate to the upper earnings limit | 8% | 8% | frozen |
| Upper earnings limit | £50,270 | £50,270 | frozen |
| Rate above the upper earnings limit | 2% | 2% | frozen |
Self-employed — Class 4 and Class 2
Class 4 is charged on trading profit through Self Assessment. Compulsory Class 2 was abolished in April 2024 — profits over the small-profits threshold earn National Insurance credits for free; below it you can pay voluntarily to protect your State Pension record.
| Item | 2025/26 | 2026/27 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class 4 lower profits limit Class 4 starts above | £12,570 | £12,570 | frozen |
| Class 4 main rate to the upper profits limit | 6% | 6% | frozen |
| Class 4 upper profits limit | £50,270 | £50,270 | frozen |
| Class 4 rate above the upper profits limit | 2% | 2% | frozen |
| Class 2 small-profits threshold | £6,845 | £7,105 | £260 |
| Class 2 voluntary rate | £3.50/wk | £3.65/wk | £0.15 |
What changed this April
The employee rates and thresholds are frozen again — the freeze itself is the story, because pay rises pull more of each salary above the lines. What moved:
- £260Class 2 small-profits threshold — the profit level below which Class 2 becomes worth considering £6,845 → £7,105.
- £0.15Class 2 voluntary rate £3.50/wk → £3.65/wk.
Why "frozen" still costs you: a threshold that stays put while pay rises quietly pulls more income into NI — the same fiscal drag as income tax. Greener prices it against your numbers, not a headline.
An employee on £35,000
| Class 1, 2026/27 thresholds | Per year |
|---|---|
| 8% of earnings between £12,570 and £35,000 £22,430 in this slice | £1,794.40 |
| A year about £150 a month, deducted through PAYE | £1,794.40 |
Below the primary threshold you pay nothing at all — NI only ever applies to the slice above it.
An employee on £60,000
| Class 1, 2026/27 thresholds | Per year |
|---|---|
| 8% of earnings between £12,570 and £50,270 £37,700 in this slice | £3,016.00 |
| 2% of earnings above £50,270 £9,730 in this slice | £194.60 |
| A year about £268 a month | £3,210.60 |
Past the upper earnings limit the rate drops to 2% — so at higher salaries each extra £1,000 loses less to NI, and more to income tax instead.
A sole trader on £35,000 profit
| Class 4 + Class 2, 2026/27 thresholds | Per year |
|---|---|
| Class 4 — 6% of profit between £12,570 and £35,000 £22,430 in this slice | £1,345.80 |
| Class 2 no longer compulsory; profits over £7,105 earn NI credits for free | £0.00 |
| A year paid through Self Assessment | £1,345.80 |
That's £448.60 less NI than the employee on the same £35,000 — but with no employer pension, sick pay or paid holiday behind it. Greener's self-employed mode prices both sides of that trade, not just the tax line.
Employed vs self-employed: the honest comparison
The self-employed pay less National Insurance on the same income — but the NI line is the smallest part of the real difference. There's no employer pension going in, no sick pay, no paid holiday, and the income is less certain. That's why a day rate has to be well above the salary it replaces to break even, and why comparing the two on take-home alone flatters going solo.
The calculator's self-employed mode does this properly — Class 4 and Class 2, unpaid weeks, the pension you'd have to fund yourself — and the day rate vs salary guide walks the break-even.
These are the rates. What do they mean for you?
Greener applies every one of them to your actual offer — take-home, pension, student loans, commute and the life side — and gives you a verdict you can audit.