Pension contribution calculator 2026/27
See what a pension contribution costs your take-home pay, what reaches your pot once tax relief is added, and how the three ways of paying in differ.
What different contributions do on £45,000
How your contribution reaches the pension
Your payslip says which one you are on: a contribution taken before the tax line is a net pay arrangement, one taken after it is relief at source, and a reduced gross figure is salary sacrifice.
Common questions
How much does a pension contribution really cost me?
On £45,000 in England, paying 5% through relief at source puts £2,250.00 a year into your pension and takes £1,800.00 out of your take-home pay. That is 80p of take-home for every pound in the pot, because the scheme adds £450.00 of basic-rate relief on top of the £1,800.00 you paid in.
Is salary sacrifice better than relief at source?
Sacrifice also saves National Insurance at 8% on the amount given up, which relief at source does not: the same 5% contribution on £45,000 leaves £180.00 a year more in your pocket. It lowers the pay your employer reports, which can affect anything worked out from salary, and your employer has to offer it.
What if I live in Scotland?
The relief your scheme claims is 20%, and it is the Scottish basic rate that sets it — not the rest-of-UK one. Finance Act 2004 ties the rate to where you live, and for this tax year the Scottish basic rate and the rest-of-UK basic rate are both 20%, so the figure is the same and the rate behind it is not. A Scottish taxpayer charged at the starter rate of 19% still has 20% claimed into the pot, and is not asked for the difference back. Above the basic rate there is further relief to claim on the difference — including at the intermediate rate of 21%, which is not a higher rate and is owed one point.