NHS Band 3 Salary 2026/27: Pay Scale, Hourly Rate & Take-Home
Agenda for Change Band 3 in England pays £25,760 rising to £27,476 in 2026/27, after a 3.3% rise — £13.17 an hour at entry. After income tax, National Insurance and NHS Pension that is about £1,727.27 a month take-home (£1,822.80 at the top of the band).
Updated 2026-10-03 · NHS Employers 2026/27 pay scales · HMRC 2026/27 tax
Band 3 pay points 2026/27
| Pay point | Annual | 2025/26 | Monthly gross | Hourly | Pension rate | Take-home / month |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Entry | £25,760 | £24,937 | £2,146.67 | £13.17 | 6.5% | £1,727.27 |
| Top (after 2 years) | £27,476 | £26,598 | £2,289.67 | £14.05 | 6.5% | £1,822.80 |
- Gross / month
- Take-home / month
Progression is automatic once you meet the pay-step requirements (an appraisal and completed mandatory training). The step from entry to the top of Band 3 is worth £1,716 a year before tax, or £95.52 a month after tax and pension.
What comes out of a Band 3 payslip
| Monthly | Entry (£25,760) | Top (£27,476) |
|---|---|---|
| Gross pay | £2,146.67 | £2,289.67 |
| NHS Pension | -£139.53 | -£148.83 |
| Income tax | -£191.93 | -£218.67 |
| National Insurance | -£87.93 | -£99.37 |
| Take-home | £1,727.27 | £1,822.80 |
NHS Pension contributions are deducted before tax (net pay arrangement), so a 6.5% contribution costs you less than it looks. With a Plan 2 student loan, entry-level take-home falls to £1,727.27 a month (£0.00 repaid).
Band 3 in London (HCAS)
High cost area supplements are a percentage of basic pay, subject to a minimum and maximum.
| Area | Supplement | Entry with HCAS | Top with HCAS | Take-home / month (entry) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Inner London | 20% (min £5,794, max £8,746) | £31,554 | £33,270 | £2,011.94 |
| Outer London | 15% (min £4,870, max £6,137) | £30,630 | £32,346 | £1,961.61 |
| Fringe | 5% (min £1,346, max £2,270) | £27,106 | £28,850 | £1,802.20 |
Unsocial hours and overtime for Band 3
- Saturdays and weekday nights (8pm–6am): +35% — £17.78 an hour at entry.
- Sundays and bank holidays: +69% — £22.26 an hour at entry.
- Overtime: time and a half (£19.76 an hour), or double time on bank holidays (£26.35).
Example: one 12.5-hour Sunday shift a month adds £114 of enhancement on top of basic pay at entry level — about £76 a month after tax, NI and pension.
Band 3 in Scotland, 2026/27
NHS Scotland has its own pay scales and a 3.75% rise for 2026/27. Band 3 pays £29,103 to £31,409 — £3,343 more than in England at entry — but Scottish income tax rates apply.
| Pay point | Scotland | Take-home / month (Scotland) | England take-home / month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Entry | £29,103 | £1,906.97 | £1,727.27 |
| Top (after 2 years) | £31,409 | £2,034.57 | £1,822.80 |
Typical Band 3 jobs
- Senior healthcare assistant
- Clinical support worker
- Ward clerk / receptionist
- Phlebotomist
- Emergency care assistant
Banding is set by job evaluation against national profiles, so the same job title can sit in a different band at another trust. Moving up to Band 4 starts at £28,392 (£916 above the top of Band 3). Band 2 tops out at £25,272.
Calculate your own Band 3 pay
| Basic pay | £27,476 |
| High cost area supplement | £0 |
| NHS Pension (6.5% tier) | £1,786 |
| Income tax | £2,624 |
| National Insurance | £1,192 |
| Student loan | £0 |
| Take-home pay | £21,874 |
- Take-home £21,874 79.6%
- Income tax £2,624 9.6%
- NI £1,192 4.3%
- NHS Pension £1,786 6.5%
Your result is ready
All bands: Band 1 · Band 2 · Band 4 · Band 5 · Band 6 · Band 7 · Band 8a · Band 8b · Band 8c · Band 8d · Band 9
Band 3 vs Band 2: what the extra responsibility pays
Band 3 starts just £488 a year above Band 2 in England (£25,760 against £25,272), and its top point of £27,476 after two years is £2,204 above Band 2. After tax, NI and pension, the top of Band 3 takes home £122.69 a month more than Band 2. Both bands pay the same 6.5% pension tier, because all Band 3 pay sits below the £28,854 tier boundary.
Band 3 jobs score 216 to 270 points under the NHS Job Evaluation Scheme. NHS Employers' profile index lists 35 national Band 3 profiles. Typical examples:
- Nursing Band 3 (senior healthcare assistant), scoring 217 to 267
- Higher-level clinical support workers in dietetics, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, radiography and speech and language therapy
- Entry-level dental nurse and entry-level anatomical pathology (mortuary) technician
- Ambulance call handler and entry-level dispatcher
- Security officer, cook and support service supervisor
- Finance officer, clinical coding officer, health records team leader and higher-level GP practice receptionist or medical secretary
Reaching the top of Band 3
In England you move from £25,760 to £27,476 on your pay step date two years after starting in the band. The pay step is not automatic: under Annex 23 your manager checks that you had an appraisal in the last 12 months, are not in a formal capability process, have no live formal disciplinary sanction, and have completed statutory and mandatory training. Training you could not do because of staffing or rota problems should not hold you back. Previous continuous NHS service counts towards the two years.
If the step is delayed, it is applied from the earliest date the standards are met, and your pay step date for later years does not move.
Student loans on Band 3 pay
Band 3 pay is below the £29,385 Plan 2 threshold, so graduates on Plan 2 repay nothing from basic pay at either point. Plan 5 is different: its threshold is £25,000, so a Band 3 on Plan 5 repays about £68 a year at entry and £222 at the top. Overtime and unsocial hours payments can also push a Plan 2 borrower over the threshold in individual months.
In Scotland, Band 3 pays £29,103 to £31,409, which is £15.50 to £16.73 an hour on NHS Scotland's 36-hour week, compared with £13.17 to £14.05 in England.
Frequently asked questions
How much is NHS Band 3 per hour?
£13.17 an hour at entry and £14.05 at the top in 2026/27, based on a 37.5-hour week (annual ÷ 52.143 ÷ 37.5).
What is Band 3 take-home pay per month?
About £1,727.27 at entry in England with no student loan, after income tax, NI and a 6.5% NHS Pension contribution. At the top of the band it is about £1,822.80.
How much did Band 3 go up in 2026/27?
Entry pay rose from £24,937 to £25,760 (+£823), the 3.3% pay award from 1 April.
How long does it take to reach the top of Band 3?
after 2 years, subject to meeting pay-step requirements.
How much more is Band 3 than Band 2?
£488 a year at entry and £2,204 at the top of Band 3 in 2026/27, before tax.
Do Band 3 staff repay a Plan 2 student loan?
Not from basic pay: the top of Band 3 (£27,476) is below the £29,385 Plan 2 threshold. Plan 5 borrowers do repay, because their threshold is £25,000.
What job evaluation score is Band 3?
216 to 270 points under the NHS Job Evaluation Scheme.
Sources
Figures are taken from official government publications and were last reviewed on 2026-10-03.
- NHS Employers – Pay scales for 2026/27
- NHS Pay Review Body Thirty-Ninth Report 2026
- NHSBSA – Cost of being in the Scheme (contribution tiers)
- Scottish Government circular PCS(AFC)2026/1 – AfC pay 2025-26 and 2026-27
- SPPA – NHS Scotland member contributions
- NHS Employers – NHS Terms and Conditions of Service (Agenda for Change) Handbook
- NHS Employers – National job profiles and profile index (January 2026)
- NHS Terms and Conditions Handbook – Section 1: Pay structure (job weight by band, pay on promotion)
- NHS Terms and Conditions Handbook – Annex 23: Pay progression (England)
- GOV.UK – Repaying your student loan: what you pay
- NHS Terms and Conditions Handbook – Section 1: Pay structure (Scotland)