2026/27 calculator
Student loan repayment calculator
You repay 9% of your income above your plan's threshold, and 6% above £21,000 on a Postgraduate loan. In 2026/27 the thresholds are £26,900 for Plan 1, £29,385 for Plan 2, £33,795 for Plan 4 and £25,000 for Plan 5.
Pick your plan to see what comes out of each payslip and what you repay over the year.
Take-home pay
£2,481.15a month
£29,774 a year
- Income tax
- £5,486
- National Insurance
- £2,194
- Effective rate
- 21.6%
- Marginal rate
- 40%
- Into your pension
- £267/mo
- Student loan
- £79/mo
Repayments on a £40,000 salary, 2026/27
| Scenario | Student loan | Take-home a year | Marginal rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plan 1 | £1,176 | £31,146 | 40% |
| Plan 2 | £948 | £31,374 | 40% |
| Plan 4 | £552 | £31,770 | 40% |
| Plan 5 | £1,344 | £30,978 | 40% |
| Plan 2 and Postgraduate | £2,088 | £30,234 | 40% |
| Plan 2 with 10% salary sacrifice | £588 | £28,854 | 37% |
Repayments are worked out on each monthly payslip and rounded down to the pound, as payroll does.
Repayment thresholds 2026/27
| Plan | Who has it | Threshold | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plan 1 | England or Wales before September 2012, Northern Ireland | £26,900 | 9% |
| Plan 2 | England or Wales, September 2012 to July 2023 | £29,385 | 9% |
| Plan 4 | Scotland | £33,795 | 9% |
| Plan 5 | England, from August 2023 | £25,000 | 9% |
| Postgraduate | Master's and doctoral loans | £21,000 | 6% |
Plan 5 borrowers make their first repayments in the 2026/27 tax year. If you have two undergraduate plans, you repay 9% above the lower threshold. A Postgraduate loan is collected on top.
How payroll works it out
Employers deduct repayments each payday using that period's threshold, for example £2,448.75 a month for Plan 2. Each deduction is rounded down to the pound. A bonus month can trigger a large deduction even if your annual income is below the threshold, and the Student Loans Company refunds any overpayment after the tax year ends if you ask.
Salary sacrifice reduces repayments
Repayments are based on your earnings after salary sacrifice. Every pound sacrificed into a pension or an electric car scheme above the threshold saves 9p of student loan on top of the income tax and National Insurance saving. For a higher rate taxpayer with a Plan 2 loan, £100 of pension through salary sacrifice costs £49 of take-home pay.
Self Assessment and other income
If you file a tax return, repayments are worked out on your total income, including self-employed profit. Unearned income such as rent, savings interest and dividends counts once it is over £2,000 a year, and then all of it counts.
Should you overpay?
Plan 2 loans are written off 30 years after you were first due to repay, and Plan 5 loans after 40 years. Many Plan 2 borrowers will never repay the full balance, so overpaying only makes sense if you expect to clear the loan before it is written off. The Plan 2 threshold is due to stay at £29,385 until April 2030, which means repayments will grow as pay rises.
Common questions
What is the Plan 2 student loan threshold for 2026/27?
£29,385 a year, which is £2,448.75 a month or £565 a week. You repay 9% of income above it.
What is the Plan 5 repayment threshold?
£25,000 a year in 2026/27, the first year Plan 5 repayments are taken. You repay 9% of income above it.
How much do I repay on a Postgraduate loan?
6% of income above £21,000 a year, collected on top of any undergraduate plan repayments.
Does a pension reduce student loan repayments?
Salary sacrifice does, because repayments are worked out on pay after the sacrifice. Relief at source and net pay pensions leave repayments unchanged.
What happens if I have two student loan plans?
You repay 9% of income above the lower of the two thresholds, and the Student Loans Company splits it between the plans.
Will the Plan 2 threshold rise?
It is due to stay at £29,385 for 2027/28, 2028/29 and 2029/30, then rise with RPI from April 2030.
Official sources
Every rate and threshold on this page is checked against these official pages. How we calculate
Related calculators
- Salary sacrificeSee what salary sacrifice saves you in 2026/27. Compare pension, EV and cycle to work schemes, with tax, NI and student loan worked out per payday.
- Pay riseSee how much of a pay rise you actually keep in 2026/27 after income tax, National Insurance, student loan and the Child Benefit charge, at every salary band.
- Bonus taxFind out how much of your bonus you keep in 2026/27 after income tax, National Insurance and student loan, and what sacrificing it into your pension is worth.
- Scottish income taxTake-home pay in Scotland for 2026/27 using all six Scottish income tax bands, with NI, pensions and student loans, plus a side-by-side comparison with England.
- Full take-home calculatorEvery deduction, every income source, with an AI assistant that uses your figures.
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