Second Job Tax Calculator
Enter each job's pay and tax code to see what PAYE takes from every payslip and what you really owe on your combined income. Your £12,570 Personal Allowance usually goes to your main job, so a second job is taxed from the first pound on a BR, D0 or D1 code, while National Insurance is worked out on each job separately.
Updated 2026-10-03 · 2026/27 HMRC rates
| Job 1 | Job 2 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross pay | £30,000 | £12,000 | £42,000 |
| Tax code used | 1257L | BR | |
| Income tax (PAYE) | £3,486 | £2,400 | £5,886 |
| National Insurance | £1,394 | £0 | £1,394 |
| Pension | £1,200 | £0 | £1,200 |
| Take-home (payslips) | £23,920 | £9,600 | £33,520 |
| Per month | £1,993.30 | £800.00 | £2,793.30 |
| True income tax on combined pay | £5,886 |
| Tax taken through PAYE | £5,886 |
| Overpaid (refund via P800 or new code) | £0 |
| Personal Allowance on combined income | £12,570 |
| Marginal income tax rate on the extra job | 20% |
| NI if all pay came from one job | £2,354 |
| NI saved by having separate jobs | £960 |
Suggested codes follow HMRC practice: the Personal Allowance goes to the main job (split if it pays less than the allowance), and other jobs get BR, D0 or D1 depending on the band the extra pay lands in. Type your real codes from your payslips to check them.
- Take-home
- Tax
- NI
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Key facts
- The personal allowance stays at £12,570 in 2026/27 and is reduced by £1 for every £2 of adjusted net income over £100,000, so it is gone entirely at £125,140 (HMRC income tax rates and allowances).
- In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, 2026/27 income tax is 20% on the first £37,700 of taxable income, 40% up to £125,140 and 45% above that (HMRC rates and thresholds for employers 2026 to 2027).
- Scotland has six bands in 2026/27: 19% starter on the first £3,967 of taxable income, 20% basic to £16,956, 21% intermediate to £31,092, 42% higher to £62,430, 45% advanced to £125,140 and 48% top above that (HMRC rates and thresholds for employers 2026 to 2027).
- Budget 2025 extended the freeze on income tax thresholds and the equivalent employee and self-employed National Insurance thresholds for a further three years, from April 2028 to April 2031 (HM Treasury Budget 2025).
- Employees pay Class 1 National Insurance at 8% on earnings between £12,570 and £50,270 a year and 2% above that in 2026/27 (HMRC rates and thresholds for employers 2026 to 2027).
- Employers pay 15% National Insurance on earnings above the £5,000 secondary threshold, and eligible employers can claim an Employment Allowance of £10,500 (HMRC rates and thresholds for employers 2026 to 2027).
- Self-employed people pay Class 4 National Insurance at 6% on profits between £12,570 and £50,270 and 2% above that; voluntary Class 2 costs £3.65 a week if profits are below £7,105 (GOV.UK self-employed National Insurance rates).
- Dividend tax rose by 2 percentage points from April 2026: the basic rate is now 10.75% and the higher rate 35.75%, while the additional rate stays at 39.35% and the dividend allowance stays at £500 (GOV.UK tax on dividends).
Related
How much tax do you pay on a second job?
You pay the same income tax on a second job as on any other pay: what matters is your total income for the tax year. In 2026/27 the first £12,570 is tax-free, the next £37,700 is taxed at 20%, and pay above £50,270 at 40% (Scotland has its own bands). What changes with two jobs is how PAYE collects that tax, because each employer only sees its own payroll.
HMRC normally gives your whole Personal Allowance to your main job. Your second job then gets a code with no allowance, so tax is taken from the first pound you earn there. That is why the second payslip looks heavily taxed. It is not extra tax; the tax-free slice has simply been used up in the other job.
The table shows two jobs outside Scotland with no pension. "BR on job 2" is what most people get; "suggested codes" are the codes the calculator recommends for the band the extra pay actually lands in.
| Job 1 + job 2 | True tax due | PAYE with BR | Result with BR | Suggested codes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| £25,000 + £8,000 | £4,086 | £4,086 | Correct | 1257L + BR |
| £30,000 + £10,000 | £5,486 | £5,486 | Correct | 1257L + BR |
| £45,000 + £15,000 | £11,432 | £9,486 | £1,946 underpaid | 1257L + D0 |
| £60,000 + £12,000 | £16,232 | £13,832 | £2,400 underpaid | 1257L + D0 |
| £8,000 + £6,000 | £286 | £1,200 | £914 overpaid | 800L + 457L |
Tax codes for a second job: BR, D0, D1 and a split allowance
Your second job's code tells that employer which rate to apply to all of its pay. These are the codes you will see for a second job in 2026/27:
- BR: everything taxed at the basic rate, 20%. Right when your total income stays under £50,270.
- D0: everything taxed at the higher rate, 40%. Used when your main job already uses up the basic-rate band.
- D1: everything taxed at the additional rate, 45%, for total income above £125,140.
- Split allowance, for example 800L and 457L: when no single job pays more than £12,570, HMRC can divide your allowance so each job gets part of it. With jobs of £8,000 and £6,000, total pay of £14,000 leaves £286 of tax to pay.
- Scotland: SBR (20%), SD0 (21%), SD1 (42%), SD2 (45%) and SD3 (48%).
- K codes and emergency codes: if your main job has a K code, or a new job puts you on 1257L M1 or W1, the totals can drift. Check every new code against your payslips.
When the second job pushes you into the higher rate
Problems start when your combined pay crosses £50,270 but your second job is still on BR. Take a main job of £45,000 on 1257L and a £15,000 second job on BR. PAYE takes £9,486, but the true bill on £60,000 is £11,432, so £1,946 is underpaid. HMRC usually collects this by reducing next year's tax code, or sends a P800 calculation after the year ends.
The opposite happens with D0 if only part of the second job's pay is above the line: the slice that still fits in the basic-rate band is taxed at 40% instead of 20%, and you get a refund later. If you know your pay for the year, ask HMRC to review both codes so each job collects closer to the right amount.
Why two jobs can mean less National Insurance
National Insurance does not reconcile at the end of the year. Each employer works it out on its own pay, using the £12,570 primary threshold (£1,048 a month). So pay below that threshold in a second job carries no employee NI at all.
With jobs of £30,000 and £10,000, you pay £1,394 of NI. The same £40,000 from a single employer would cost £2,194, so the two-job set-up saves £800 a year. It can work the other way for high earners: if both jobs pay above the upper earnings limit, you pay 8% in both instead of 2%. Employees in that position can ask to defer NI in one job (category letter J), paying the 2% deferment rate there.
Earning above the lower earnings limit of £6,708 a year in either job still gives you a qualifying year for the State Pension.
Student loans and pensions with more than one job
Student loan deductions are also worked out separately in each job. If neither job pays above your plan threshold (£29,385 a year for Plan 2), payroll takes nothing, even if the total is well above it. The Student Loans Company does not automatically collect the difference from employees who don't file a tax return, but if you complete Self Assessment for another reason the full amount is worked out on your total income.
Pension auto-enrolment is per job too. An employer only has to enrol you if you earn more than £10,000 a year in that job and are aged 22 or over. Below that you can still ask to join, and if you earn over £6,240 the employer must contribute.
Frequently asked questions
Do you get taxed more on a second job?
No. The rate depends on your total income, not on which job the money comes from. A second job only looks heavily taxed because it usually gets no tax-free allowance on its own code.
How much tax do you pay on a second job?
Usually 20% of everything you earn there (code BR), because your tax-free allowance is used in your main job. If your combined pay is over £50,270, the part above that line is taxed at 40%.
What tax code should I have for a second job?
BR if your total income stays in the basic-rate band, D0 if your main job already pays higher-rate tax, D1 above £125,140. If both jobs pay under £12,570, ask HMRC to split your allowance between them.
Can I split my tax-free allowance between two jobs?
Yes. Ask HMRC through your personal tax account or the HMRC app. It is useful when your main job pays less than the full allowance.
Do I pay National Insurance on both jobs?
Only on pay above £12,570 a year in each job. NI is worked out per job, so a small second job often has none.
Do I need to tell HMRC about a second job?
Your new employer reports you to HMRC when they pay you. Fill in the starter checklist and tick that you have another job, then check the code HMRC issues.
Is there a two jobs tax calculator on GOV.UK?
HMRC’s “estimate your Income Tax” service in your personal tax account shows each job’s code and estimated pay. This page does the same sums without logging in and adds NI, student loans and the over or underpayment.
Sources
Figures are taken from official government publications and were last reviewed on 2026-10-03.
- HMRC: Rates and thresholds for employers 2026 to 2027
- GOV.UK: Tax on dividends
- HM Treasury: Budget 2025
- HMRC: Income Tax rates and allowances for current and past years
- GOV.UK: Tax on savings interest – how much is tax free
- GOV.UK: Self-employed National Insurance rates
- HMRC: Capital Gains Tax rates and annual tax-free allowances
- GOV.UK: Business Asset Disposal Relief
- HMRC: Pension schemes rates and allowances
- HMRC: Work out your tapered annual allowance
- GOV.UK: Workplace pensions – what you, your employer and the government pay
- The Pensions Regulator: Work out who to put into a pension
- HMRC: Corporation Tax rates and allowances
- HMRC: Tax credits, Child Benefit and Guardian’s Allowance rates
- GOV.UK: High Income Child Benefit Charge
- GOV.UK: Marriage Allowance
- GOV.UK: Tax-free allowances on property and trading income
- GOV.UK: Tax-Free Childcare
- GOV.UK: VAT rates
- GOV.UK: VAT registration – when to register
- GOV.UK: Tax codes – what your tax code means
- GOV.UK: If you think your tax code is wrong
- GOV.UK: Emergency tax codes
- GOV.UK: Tax overpayments and underpayments (P800)
- GOV.UK: National Insurance category letters
- HMRC: Rates and allowances – National Insurance contributions
- GOV.UK: Repaying your student loan – what you pay