Answers · UK 2025/26
How much tax do I pay on a £5,000 bonus in the UK?
A £5,000 bonus is taxed at your marginal rate. A basic-rate taxpayer keeps about £3,600 after 20% Income Tax and 8% National Insurance; a higher-rate taxpayer keeps about £2,900 after 40% tax and 2% NI. Bonuses are not taxed more harshly — they just stack on top of your salary.
Full answer
A bonus is taxed as ordinary earnings at whatever marginal rate it falls into once added to your salary, for 2026/27. Two worked examples. Basic-rate taxpayer (salary £35,000): the £5,000 bonus sits entirely in the 20% band, so Income Tax is £1,000 and National Insurance at 8% is £400, leaving £3,600 net. Higher-rate taxpayer (salary £60,000): the bonus falls above £50,270, taxed at 40% = £2,000 plus 2% NI = £100, leaving £2,900 net. People often think bonuses are taxed at a special penal rate; they are not. The illusion comes from PAYE applying your monthly tax code as if that month's pay were repeated all year, which can over-deduct in the bonus month and then correct itself in later months. If a bonus pushes you over £50,270, £100,000 or £125,140, part of it can be taxed at the higher 40%, the 60% Personal Allowance taper, or 45%. Salary-sacrificing a bonus into a pension avoids both Income Tax and NI on the sacrificed amount. Scottish taxpayers use Scottish rates (up to 48%). Use the Bonus Tax calculator to see your exact take-home.
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This answer is informational only and does not constitute financial, tax or legal advice. Figures are for the 2025/26 UK tax year. See our methodology and sources.