Pension contribution tax calculator
Calculate the tax savings from a contribution into a SIPP or other personal pension, then compare your income tax position with and without the contribution.
Other settings
Results
| Tax computation | Without contribution | With contribution | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total income | £0 | £0 | ||
| Personal allowance | -£12,570 | -£12,570 | ||
| Taxable income | £0 | £0 | ||
| Non dividend income | Amount taxed | Tax | Amount taxed | Tax |
| Total income tax | £0 | £0 | ||
| Effective tax rate | 0% | 0% | ||
How to use the pension contribution tax calculator
Enter employment or self-employment income and the personal pension contribution you plan to pay. Use other settings for dividends, other taxable income, existing pension contributions, Gift Aid, Scottish residence, and the tax year.
Steps
- Enter annual employment or self-employment income before tax.
- Enter the personal pension contribution you will pay into a relief-at-source pension.
- Add dividend income, other taxable income, existing personal pension contributions, and Gift Aid payments where relevant.
- Choose the tax year and whether Scottish income tax rates apply.
- Review the results table to see the basic rate tax uplift, higher/additional rate tax saved, total effective savings, relief rate and the tax comparison.
Input notes
- Annual earned income
- Enter your annual earned income for example your salary before tax or self employment profit. Do not include dividend income, pension income, rental profits or interest income here.
- Pension contribution
- Use the amount actually paid into a relief-at-source pension, such as a personal pension or SIPP. The calculator adds the provider's basic rate uplift.
- Tax year
- The default setting is the current 2026/27 tax year. Change this if you want to compare against an earlier year because personal allowances, tax bands, dividend allowances and tax rates can change from year to year.
- Scottish residence
- Choose yes if Scottish income tax rates apply to your employment, self-employment, or other non-savings income. Dividend tax still uses UK-wide dividend rates.
- Dividend income
- Use taxable dividends outside ISAs.
- Other income
- Use other taxable non-dividend, non-savings income such as rental profit, pension income or taxable benefits not already included in annual income.
- Pension contributions already made
- Use personal relief-at-source pension payments already made in the tax year. Existing contributions affect band extension, adjusted net income, and the remaining earned income limit.
- Gift Aid payments
- Use the amount donated personally. The calculator grosses this up for the income tax band and adjusted net income calculation.
What the results mean
- Higher/additional rate tax saved compares estimated income tax before and after the new pension contribution.
- Basic rate uplift is the 20% relief added inside the pension by the provider.
- Total tax relief is the higher/additional rate tax saved plus the basic rate uplift.
- Tax relief rate is the total tax relief divided by the gross pension contribution.
Common questions
Is the pension contribution entered before or after tax relief?
Enter the amount you personally pay. For relief-at-source pensions, the provider normally claims 20% basic rate relief and adds it to the pension, so £800 paid personally becomes a £1,000 gross contribution.
Why can the tax saved be more than ordinary higher rate relief?
A pension contribution can also reduce adjusted net income, which may restore some personal allowance for incomes above the taper threshold. That can make the effective relief rate higher than 45% for earners above the taper threshold.
Does this calculate the annual allowance charge?
No. It flags common annual allowance risk points, but it does not calculate carry forward, employer contributions, defined benefit pension input amounts, money purchase annual allowance, or tapered annual allowance charges.
Can I use this for a SIPP contribution?
Yes, if the SIPP uses relief at source. Enter the amount you pay personally into the SIPP, before the provider adds basic rate tax relief.
Do I need to claim extra pension tax relief from HMRC?
You may need to claim extra relief if you pay tax above the basic rate and your pension provider only adds basic rate relief. This is usually claimed through Self Assessment or by asking HMRC to adjust your tax code.
Why does the calculator ask for existing pension contributions?
Existing relief-at-source contributions can already extend your tax bands and reduce adjusted net income. Entering them helps the calculator estimate the extra effect of the new contribution rather than counting the same relief twice.
Does a pension contribution reduce dividend tax?
It can. Relief-at-source pension contributions extend the basic and higher rate bands, so some dividends may move into a lower dividend tax band.
Can pension contributions restore my personal allowance?
They can reduce adjusted net income. If your adjusted net income is above the personal allowance taper threshold, a grossed-up pension contribution may restore some or all of the allowance.
What if my contribution is more than my earnings?
The calculator caps the relief estimate using the remaining 100% of earned income limit after existing personal pension contributions. Amounts above that limit are shown as outside the relief estimate.
Assumptions
- Pension contributions are treated as personal relief-at-source payments. The amount entered is the amount actually paid, before the pension provider adds basic rate tax relief.
- Gift Aid payments and pension contributions already made are entered as amounts actually paid and are grossed up at the basic rate in the calculation.
- The calculation caps relief on the new contribution by the remaining 100% of earned income limit after pension contributions already made.
- The calculator flags when entered and existing contributions exceed the annual allowance before any carry forward.
- The high income annual allowance taper can reduce the annual allowance where threshold income and adjusted income are high. The calculator flags this risk but does not calculate a tapered allowance charge.
- Dividend income is stacked after employment, self-employment, and other non-dividend income.
- The Scottish setting applies Scottish non-savings, non-dividend income tax rates to employment, self-employment, and other non-dividend income.
Source notes
- GOV.UK Tax on your private pension contributions: overviewLimits for tax-free pension contributions, including 100% of earnings and the standard annual allowance.
- GOV.UK Tax on your private pension contributions: tax reliefRelief at source, basic rate uplift, and extra relief for higher rate and Scottish taxpayers.
- GOV.UK Tax on your private pension contributions: annual allowanceAnnual allowance and tapered annual allowance overview.
- GOV.UK Income Tax rates and Personal AllowancesPersonal allowance and UK income tax bands.
- Scottish Government income tax rates and bandsScottish non-savings, non-dividend income tax rates and bands.
- GOV.UK Tax on dividendsDividend allowance and dividend tax rates.
- GOV.UK Adjusted net incomeTreatment of pension contributions and Gift Aid when calculating adjusted net income.