Can I claim it as a business cost?
Pick the cost to see whether it's a business expense, how much of it you can claim and the tax it saves, with the catch HMRC looks for.
Your answer
Choose the cost and enter what it cost and your profits.
About this calculator
For sole traders and limited company directors wondering whether a cost can go through the business.
It covers 16 common costs. For anything else, the test is whether it's wholly and exclusively for the business.
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
A cost is a business expense when it's wholly and exclusively for the business. If it's partly personal, sole traders claim only the business part. Some costs are never allowed, such as entertaining clients and fines.
A company can usually claim a director's personal costs as a cost of employing them, but the director is then taxed on them as a benefit, and the company pays employer's National Insurance. The tax saved is the tax on your profits less the tax on your profits after the cost.
Worked example
Only the business part: £360 of the £600 is a business cost, saving you about £94 in tax.
Sole trader · £40,000 profits, your only income · rest of the UK · 60% business use
| What a mobile phone on a contract in your own name cost | £600 |
|---|---|
| Business part: 60% | − £240 |
| Business cost you can claim | £360 |
| Income tax and Class 4 on £40,000 of profits | £7,132 |
| Income tax and Class 4 on £39,640 after the cost | £7,038 |
| Tax it saves | £94 |
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
Can I claim a suit I only wear for work?
No. Everyday clothing isn't allowed even if you only wear it for work. Uniforms, protective clothing and costumes are.
Can my company pay for my gym?
It can, and it can claim the cost, but you're taxed on it as a benefit. Only a gym the company runs itself for all staff is tax-free.
Should I use the flat rate or my real costs?
Sole traders can use either for working from home. The flat rate is simpler; your real costs may give a bigger claim, if you can back them up.
More free calculators
Talk to us about your tax.
A free call with the team. We’ll contact you within 24 hours.