Earning over £100,000: is the rise worth it?
Over £100,000 you can keep less than 40p of each extra pound. See the pension payment that gets you back under.
Your answer
Enter your salary to see the effect of the £100,000 limit.
About this calculator
For anyone earning around £100,000, or expecting a rise or bonus that takes them over it.
What happens to your answers
We don’t keep them. Your answers go to our server to do the sums and aren’t stored or logged. If you copy a link to your answers, they’re in the link itself, so only share it with people you trust.
How it’s worked out
Above £100,000 you lose £1 of your tax-free allowance for every £2, until it's gone at £125,140. With 40% tax, that works out at 60% on the slice in between, plus National Insurance. Above £100,000 you also lose Tax-Free Childcare and free childcare hours. Paying the excess into a pension brings your income back down.
Worked example
You keep about £38 of every £100 above £100,000. Paying the £10,000 into a pension would really cost you £4,000 (40%) and save £4,000 of Tax-Free Childcare.
2026/27 tax year · England · no pension · no student loan
| Income for the £100,000 test | £110,000 |
|---|---|
| Over £100,000 by | £10,000 |
| Tax-free allowance lost | £5,000 |
| Tax-Free Childcare lost (2 children) | £4,000 |
| Pay £10,000 into a personal pension (£8,000 from your bank; the provider adds the rest) | £8,000 |
| Less tax-free allowance won back (less tax through your pay) | − £2,000 |
| Less higher-rate relief you claim back | − £2,000 |
| Real cost to you | £4,000 |
Worked out using HMRC's published rates for the 2026/27 tax year (6 April 2026 to 5 April 2027), on a yearly basis.
Questions people ask
Which income counts?
Your income after pension contributions and Gift Aid. Salary sacrifice and pension payments reduce it.
Is putting it all in my pension sensible?
It's very tax-efficient, but the money is locked away until you're at least 55 (57 from April 2028). Talk to us about the right amount.
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