Teacher salary calculator
Pay area, scale point, TLR, SEN allowance and fraction of full time. The pension tier is worked out from the result, and the TLR is pro-rated if you are part-time — which is what actually happens and which most teacher calculators miss.
That is £28,434 a year, after the Teachers' Pension tier, income tax and National Insurance.
- Gross
- £38,400
- Pension tier
- 8.9%
- Income tax
- £4,482
- Marginal rate
- 28.0%
| A year | A month | |
|---|---|---|
| Basic pay | £38,400.00 | £3,200.00 |
| Gross pay | £38,400.00 | £3,200.00 |
| Teachers' Pension at 8.9% | £-3,417.60 | £-284.80 |
| Income tax | £-4,482.48 | £-373.54 |
| National Insurance | £-2,065.92 | £-172.16 |
| Take-home pay | £28,434.00 | £2,369.50 |
The pension tiers
| Annual salary | Contribution |
|---|---|
| Up to £36,199 | 7.4% |
| Up to £48,728 | 8.9% |
| Up to £57,777 | 9.9% |
| Up to £76,573 | 10.5% |
| Up to £104,414 | 11.6% |
| Above £104,414 | 12.0% |
Tiering is on your actual pensionable salary including TLRs and allowances. The employer contributes 28.7% on top, including the administration levy. It is a net pay arrangement, so it reduces your taxable pay but not the earnings your National Insurance or student loan is worked out on.
Where the calculation can differ from your payslip
Teachers' pay changes on 1 September while the tax year starts on 6 April, so a tax year spans two pay scales. This page assumes a full year on the current scale, which is what you will be paid from September onwards. April to August of the same tax year was on last year's rates.
Academies are not bound by the School Teachers' Pay and Conditions Document at all, and maintained schools have some discretion outside London. If your school pays off the national scale, enter your actual salary in the main calculator instead.
The statutory School Teachers' Pay and Conditions Document for 2026 has not been published yet - it is expected around November 2026, after the parliamentary review period. The scales here come from the National Education Union and NASUWT, which publish identical figures derived from the accepted 3.5% award. They are very unlikely to move, but individual points could differ by a pound or two in rounding.
Teachers' pay runs from 1 September while the tax year runs from 6 April, so a 2026/27 tax year straddles two pay scales: the September 2025 rates from April to August 2026, and the September 2026 rates from September 2026 to March 2027. Figures on this page assume a full year on the current scale, which is what you will actually be paid from September onwards.
The scale this sits on
| Point | Salary | Pension tier | Take-home a year | A month |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| M1 | £34,069 | 7.4% | £26,033 | £2,169.41 |
| M2 | £36,042 | 7.4% | £27,337 | £2,278.05 |
| M3 | £38,400 | 8.9% | £28,434 | £2,369.50 |
| M4 | £40,941 | 8.9% | £30,083 | £2,506.88 |
| M5 | £43,529 | 8.9% | £31,762 | £2,646.81 |
| M6 | £46,940 | 8.9% | £33,975 | £2,831.23 |
| U1 | £49,134 | 9.9% | £35,005 | £2,917.10 |
| U2 | £50,956 | 9.9% | £36,214 | £3,017.83 |
| U3 | £52,835 | 9.9% | £37,531 | £3,127.56 |
Every figure there is computed from the published 2026/27 scale and the Teachers' Pension tiers confirmed for 1 April 2026, using the same engine that runs the calculator on this page. The inner London scale is several thousand pounds higher at every point, which is why quoting one scale as though it were universal is a serious error rather than a rounding one.
Elsewhere in this section, the pension page sets out the six tiers and where a TLR tips you into the next one, the threshold page works out whether crossing to the upper pay range is worth the application, and the teacher calculator runs your own pay area, point and allowances.
Questions people actually ask
What are the Teachers' Pension contribution rates?
Six tiers from 7.4% to 12.0% for 2026/27, based on actual pensionable salary. The bands were uprated by the September 2025 CPI figure of 3.8% and the rates were unchanged.
Are TLRs pensionable?
Yes, and they count towards the salary that sets your contribution tier, which is why a TLR can cost more than it first appears.
Figures on this page are for the 2026/27 tax year (6 April 2026 to 5 April 2027) and were last checked on 29 August 2026. Every rate we use is listed on the sources page.