NHS Pay Calculator 2026
Agenda for Change pay scales for England, including the 3.6% 2025/26 award and a projection for the 2026/27 pay rise. See gross pay, take-home after tax, National Insurance and pension, plus London weighting for every band.
Your role
What the 2025/26 pay rise is worth to you
Band 5, entry point, Rest of UK — a 3.6% consolidated uplift.
Gross before
£29,970
Gross after
£31,049
Extra take-home per month
£60
Because tax, National Insurance and pension all scale with pay, roughly a quarter to a third of a headline uplift is deducted before it reaches your bank account.
NHS pay bands 2025/26
| Band | Min | Max | Typical role |
|---|---|---|---|
| Band 2 | £24,465 | £24,465 | Domestic, porter, catering |
| Band 3 | £24,938 | £26,598 | Healthcare assistant, admin |
| Band 4 | £27,485 | £30,162 | Assistant practitioner, senior admin |
| Band 5 | £31,049 | £37,796 | Newly qualified nurse, AHP, paramedic |
| Band 6 | £38,682 | £46,581 | Senior nurse, specialist AHP |
| Band 7 | £47,809 | £54,710 | Ward manager, advanced practitioner |
| Band 8 | £55,690 | £62,682 | Band 8a — Lead practitioner |
| Band 9 | £103,487 | £119,087 | Director, very senior manager |
NHS pay questions
- How much is a Band 5 nurse paid in 2026?
- A newly qualified Band 5 nurse in England starts on £31,049 after the 3.6% 2025/26 Agenda for Change uplift, rising to £37,796 at the top of the band. Inner London adds a High Cost Area Supplement of 20% of basic pay, subject to a minimum and maximum.
- What is the NHS pay rise for 2026?
- The 2025/26 Agenda for Change award was a 3.6% consolidated increase for all bands in England. The 2026/27 award has not yet been confirmed by the NHS Pay Review Body, so this calculator lets you model a projected uplift between 0% and 6% to see the effect on your take-home pay.
- How much NHS pay do I actually take home?
- From your gross salary the NHS deducts income tax, National Insurance and your pension contribution (tiered by full-time equivalent salary, typically 6.5% to 12.5%). On a Band 5 starting salary the take-home is roughly three quarters of gross.
- Do NHS jobs with visa sponsorship pay the same?
- Yes. Agenda for Change pay is identical whether you are a UK resident or on a Skilled Worker visa. Your salary must also meet the Skilled Worker minimum salary threshold and the going rate for your occupation code, which most Band 5 and above roles do.
- Does the calculator cover Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland?
- The figures shown are the England Agenda for Change scales. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland negotiate separate awards and their band values differ slightly, so treat these as an England-based estimate.
Find a sponsored NHS role at this pay
Every vacancy is cross-checked against the official UK sponsor licence register.
Based on the NHS Agenda for Change scales for England, uplifted by the 3.6% 2025/26 award. The 2026/27 award has not been announced and is shown only as a user-selected projection. Tax and NI are approximate and exclude student loan, salary sacrifice and other deductions. Pension shown is Tier 1 (6.5%); your tier depends on full-time equivalent salary. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have separate AfC scales.