How much tax do I pay on £29,000 in the UK?

Full answer

For a £29,000 salary in 2026/27, taxable income after the £12,570 Personal Allowance is £16,430, all within the 20% basic rate band, giving £3,286 Income Tax. National Insurance is 8% of £16,430, which is £1,314.40. Combined deductions of £4,600.40 leave £24,399.60 take-home a year, roughly £2,033.30 a month or £469.22 a week. This is close to the UK's median full-time salary for many entry- to mid-level roles, including bus drivers, warehouse team leaders and junior technicians. In Scotland, the same taxable income spans the starter, basic and intermediate bands, giving Income Tax of approximately £3,206 -- about £80 less than the rest of the UK. A Plan 5 student loan borrower repays 9% of the £4,000 above the £25,000 threshold, or £360 a year, reducing take-home to £24,039.60. A Plan 1 borrower repays 9% of £2,100 above their £26,900 threshold, or £189 a year. Plan 2 borrowers are just below their £29,385 threshold at £29,000, so they pay nothing yet -- an extra £385 of salary would trigger their first pound of repayment. This salary is also a useful benchmark for the point at which many people first feel the effect of a student loan repayment kicking in, since three of the five plan types now have thresholds within a few thousand pounds of £29,000.

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