This page gives you a full National Living Wage 2026 guide with a live take-home calculator, official rate summary, worked examples, and practical payroll checks. The legal National Living Wage rate from April 2025 for workers aged 21 and over is £12.21 per hour, up from £11.44. If you want a fast answer, a full-time pattern of 37.5 paid hours each week produces £457.88 gross weekly, around £1984 monthly, and roughly £23809 annually before deductions.
The calculator below lets you switch between age bands, set weekly hours, and estimate take-home pay under a standard annual PAYE model. It also includes a personal allowance mode for users whose total annual income is below the threshold. In that scenario, no income tax is due and the simplified rule used on this page is that employee National Insurance begins at £12570. You can compare legal minimum wage figures with Living Wage Foundation rates and see how minimum wage levels have changed over time.
National Living Wage and National Minimum Wage Rates (April 2025)
UK minimum wage law applies a different hourly rate depending on age and apprenticeship status. The National Living Wage is the top legal band and now starts at age 21. This matters because many people still remember older thresholds that used 23+ or 25+ for the highest rate. If you are budgeting for a new job, checking a contract, or auditing a payslip, always match your age on the pay reference date and your employment status to the correct band.
The headline uplift from £11.44 to £12.21 for age 21+ is a significant annual increase for full-time workers. At 37.5 paid hours each week and 52 paid weeks, that higher rate pushes gross annual pay to roughly £23809. For younger workers and apprentices, rates are lower, so the same number of hours can produce very different monthly and annual outcomes. This page keeps those comparisons in one place so you can quickly understand where your own numbers should land.
| Worker category | Rate from April 2025 | Previous rate | Hourly change | Weekly gross at 37.5h |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age 21 and over (National Living Wage) | £12.21 | £11.44 | +£0.77 | £457.88 |
| Age 18-20 | £10.00 | £8.60 | +£1.40 | £375.00 |
| Under 18 | £7.55 | £6.40 | +£1.15 | £283.13 |
| Apprentice | £7.55 | £6.40 | +£1.15 | £283.13 |
Weekly totals above are gross figures only. Actual net pay can be lower once payroll deductions are applied. Deductions depend on total annual earnings, tax code, pension contributions, and any salary sacrifice arrangements. If your annual taxable income remains below your personal allowance, income tax does not apply. Under the simplified rules used here, employee National Insurance starts at £12570.
Quick Full-Time Example (37.5 Hours)
Weekly at 37.5 hours: £457.88 gross = £439 net (under PA).
A common benchmark for minimum wage comparisons is a 37.5-hour week. On the £12.21 NLW rate, this produces £457.88 gross weekly. Multiply by 52 weeks and gross annual pay is £23809 (rounded from £23808.75). Divide by 12 to get approximately £1984 gross per month. The “£439 net” line is an under-personal-allowance style illustration used in quick comparisons, where tax is not applied and only limited deductions are assumed.
In a normal full-year payroll calculation on £23809, income tax and employee NI usually apply, so real net pay for a full year can be lower than the under-PA illustration. That is why the calculator on this page offers two modes: standard annual PAYE estimate and below-personal-allowance mode. Use the setting that best matches your real income pattern. If you are in part-year work, seasonal employment, or combining multiple jobs with changing hours, the below-PA option can still be useful as a scenario check.
National Living Wage Take-Home Calculator
Enter your age band and weekly hours to estimate gross and net earnings. The calculator updates instantly and gives weekly, monthly, and annual figures. You can also add a pension percentage to see how employee pension deductions change take-home pay. The model is deliberately simple and transparent, so you can cross-check every part of the calculation yourself.
Standard PAYE mode: this estimate applies income tax and employee NI with a simplified annual method. Your real payslip can differ.
How Take-Home Pay Is Calculated at Minimum Wage
Every wage estimate on this page starts with a simple gross-pay formula: hourly rate × weekly paid hours × paid weeks. Gross pay is your pay before tax and deductions. Once you have gross annual pay, payroll deductions are usually applied through PAYE. In a simplified model, income tax only starts after the personal allowance, and National Insurance is only charged once earnings cross the NI threshold. Because these thresholds are annual, a worker can have high weekly hours but still stay below the annual trigger if they only work part of the year.
For the 21+ NLW rate of £12.21, the full-year 37.5-hour pattern creates £23809 gross annually, so most workers in that pattern do not remain below the allowance. In other words, the “under-PA” mode is generally for lower annual earnings, shorter contracts, or interrupted work patterns. It is still useful for planning because many people do not work all 52 weeks, and many students or part-year workers care about how much of their pay is likely to be tax-free when annual income is modest.
Pension contributions can also materially change take-home pay. If you are auto-enrolled, your employee contribution is normally deducted through payroll. A 4% to 5% employee contribution can reduce weekly take-home by a noticeable amount, even when tax is low. Salary sacrifice pension arrangements can change tax and NI outcomes further. Student loans, attachment orders, and childcare deductions can also reduce net pay. That is why this calculator is best used as a transparent baseline rather than a full payroll simulator.
The key practical point is this: if you are checking legal compliance, compare your gross hourly pay against the correct legal rate for your age or apprenticeship category. If you are checking household cash flow, use net estimates with realistic deduction assumptions and then compare with your actual payslip once paid. Gross legal entitlement and net spendable income answer different questions, so both views matter.
National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage History
Looking at historic rates helps explain why many workers experienced sharper pay rises in recent years. The National Living Wage first appeared in 2016 as a higher legal minimum for older workers, initially with a 25+ age threshold. Over time, government policy shifted the top rate to younger workers, first 23+ and then 21+. This widened eligibility and changed payroll costs across sectors that rely on younger staff, such as retail, hospitality, leisure, and care.
The long-run pattern has been upward, but annual increases have varied in size. Smaller yearly uplifts were more common earlier in the series, while larger cash increases became more visible when inflation pressure and cost-of-living concerns intensified. For budgeting, this trend means employers often review pay structures each spring, and employees near the minimum should check new rates from April rather than assuming their prior rate is still lawful.
| Year (from April) | Top legal adult rate | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | £7.20 | National Living Wage introduced for age 25+ |
| 2017 | £7.50 | Incremental increase under 25+ framework |
| 2018 | £7.83 | Continued annual uplift |
| 2019 | £8.21 | Steady increase before major threshold reforms |
| 2020 | £8.72 | Age threshold reduced to 23+ |
| 2021 | £8.91 | Further rise with wider eligibility |
| 2022 | £9.50 | Larger uplift as labour market pressure increased |
| 2023 | £10.42 | Double-digit hourly level reached |
| 2024 | £11.44 | Top rate extended to age 21+ |
| 2025 | £12.21 | Current NLW benchmark used in this calculator |
Historical tables are useful, but compliance is always determined by the active rate in the pay period. If a pay reference period crosses April changes, payroll systems usually apply the correct legal rate to hours worked in the relevant period. If you changed age band or apprenticeship status during the year, that timing also matters. Keep payslips, rotas, and timesheets so you can show the exact hours and dates when checking underpayment.
Minimum wage history also explains why annual salary comparisons between workers can be misleading if hours differ. A headline yearly amount may look close to another worker’s figure, but one person may have overtime, unpaid breaks, or varying shift premiums. For legal checks, return to the hourly effective rate after any deductions that count for minimum wage calculations. For personal budgeting, use expected net monthly cash and a realistic number of paid weeks.
Legal Minimum Wage vs Living Wage Foundation (Voluntary)
The legal National Living Wage and National Minimum Wage rates are statutory minimums. Employers must not pay eligible workers below these legal floors. The Living Wage Foundation rates are different: they are voluntary rates that accredited employers choose to pay. On this page, the voluntary benchmark figures are London £13.85 and UK £12.60. These figures can be higher than legal minimums and are intended to reflect living costs rather than a statutory floor.
It is common for job adverts and social posts to mix these terms, so it helps to separate them clearly. If a contract says “National Living Wage,” it refers to the legal government rate for your age group. If a contract says “Real Living Wage” or references Living Wage Foundation accreditation, that usually indicates the voluntary scheme. Both can be positive signals, but only one is the legal minimum standard used for enforcement.
For workers, the practical impact is on take-home cash and progression. A voluntary rate above legal minimum can increase weekly and monthly income immediately, especially in high-rent regions. For employers, the decision to pay above statutory minimum can support retention and recruitment but increases wage costs. When comparing offers, run both figures through the calculator: the gross hourly difference may appear small, but annual net income differences can be meaningful once hours and deductions are applied.
Payroll Checks, Rights, and Common Mistakes
Minimum wage underpayment often comes from process issues rather than explicit rate decisions. Frequent causes include unpaid mandatory training time, uniform or tools deductions that reduce effective hourly pay, incorrect treatment of waiting time, and missed birthday-driven rate changes. Apprentices can also be misclassified if payroll uses the apprentice rate beyond the period where a higher age-related rate should apply.
A simple check is to divide your eligible gross pay by eligible hours in the pay reference period and compare the result with the correct legal rate. If the effective hourly figure is below your legal band, raise it with payroll in writing and include supporting documents. Keep records of hours worked, required travel time between assignments, and any deductions linked to work. Clear records are the fastest way to resolve disputes.
If you believe underpayment has not been corrected, formal reporting routes exist. Enforcement can require employers to repay arrears and may involve financial penalties. Most disputes are resolved earlier when evidence is complete and the legal rate is clearly identified. Even if your net pay appears low because of deductions, the legal test still starts with gross hourly entitlement under minimum wage rules.
This is also why separating legal compliance from budgeting is important. Legal compliance asks, “Was the minimum hourly entitlement paid?” Budgeting asks, “How much money reaches my bank account?” The first uses minimum wage rules; the second uses tax, NI, pension, and other deduction rules. Use both views together to avoid false alarms and to spot genuine payroll errors faster.
Frequently Asked Questions
1) What is the National Living Wage in 2026?
The headline legal National Living Wage rate used in this 2026 calculator is £12.21 per hour for workers aged 21 and over, effective from April 2025. This replaced the previous £11.44 rate. Many users call this the “2026 NLW” because it applies through the 2025/26 period and remains the reference point for payroll checks and budgeting on this page. Always confirm the rate in force for the exact pay period if your wages cover dates across a spring rate change.
2) What are the official rates for 18-20, under 18, and apprentices?
From April 2025, the legal rates shown here are £10.00 for age 18-20, £7.55 for under 18, and £7.55 for apprentices. The correct rate depends on legal status and timing, not only on job title. If you turn 21, payroll should move you to the 21+ rate from the correct pay reference date. If you are an apprentice, make sure your status is current and correctly coded, because incorrect coding can produce underpayment across multiple pay cycles.
3) How do you get £457.88 weekly, £1984 monthly, and £23809 annually?
The math uses the 21+ rate and a 37.5-hour week. Weekly gross is 37.5 × £12.21 = £457.875, shown as £457.88. Annual gross assumes 52 paid weeks: £457.875 × 52 = £23808.75, rounded to £23809. Monthly gross is annual divided by 12, around £1984. These are gross amounts before deductions. Net pay depends on tax, NI, pension, and any other payroll deductions. This page includes both a standard annual PAYE estimate and a below-personal-allowance mode for scenario planning.
4) Why does this page mention “£457.88 gross = £439 net (under PA)”?
That line is a quick under-personal-allowance style illustration frequently used for comparison snippets. It assumes no income tax in the scenario and limited deductions. It is not the same as a full-year standard PAYE result at £23809 annual gross, where tax and NI generally apply. The calculator therefore offers a checkbox for below-allowance mode so you can model low-annual-income cases separately from standard annual payroll treatment. If you work full year at 37.5 hours, use standard mode for a more realistic net estimate.
5) Is the Living Wage Foundation rate legally required?
No. Living Wage Foundation rates are voluntary and paid by employers that choose to adopt that standard. The figures referenced here are London £13.85 and UK £12.60. They may be above legal minimum wage and can improve take-home pay, but legal enforcement is based on statutory minimum wage rates, not voluntary ones. If a role advertises “Real Living Wage,” check whether the employer is accredited and whether the stated hourly figure is contractual.
6) When does National Insurance start for this calculator?
This page uses the simplified threshold statement that employee NI starts at £12570. In practical payroll, NI can be assessed by pay period rules and can vary with changes announced in future budgets. For planning, this threshold-based estimate is useful and easy to audit. For exact payslip validation, your payroll software settings, tax code, and period-specific rules matter. If your real payslip differs from this calculator by a modest amount, check those technical payroll inputs first.
7) What should I do if I think my employer paid below minimum wage?
First, gather your evidence: payslips, timesheets, rota screenshots, and records of required training or travel time between assignments. Then calculate your effective hourly rate for the pay reference period and compare it with the legal rate for your age or apprenticeship status. Raise the issue with payroll in writing and request correction. If not resolved, formal reporting and enforcement routes are available. Underpayment can require repayment of arrears and may trigger penalties, so documenting dates and hours clearly is crucial.
Method Notes and Scope
This calculator is designed for transparent planning and education. It is not legal advice and not a substitute for a full payroll engine. It assumes straightforward earnings and uses a simplified annual tax and NI treatment to produce clear, comparable estimates. Real payroll can differ due to tax code adjustments, student loan plans, salary sacrifice, occupational pension arrangements, statutory leave payments, and pay-period rounding rules.
Even with those limits, the model is useful because it shows the core wage mechanics clearly: your legal hourly entitlement, your expected gross pay over time, and the key points where deductions begin. For most users, that is the fastest route to understanding whether a wage offer, contract rate, or payslip figure is roughly in the correct range.