NHS Band 5 pay after tax
Take-home pay a month
£2,040.36
A full-time Band 5 salary in England starts at £32,073. After income tax, National Insurance and NHS Pension contributions you take home £2,040.36 a month.
Band 5 is where many newly qualified clinical professionals start, nurses among them. In England it has three points in 2026/27, from £32,073 to £39,043. Monthly take-home after the NHS Pension, tax and National Insurance runs from £2,040.36 to £2,380.95.
| Pay point | Salary | Pension | Take-home a year | Take-home a month |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Entry | £32,073 | £2,662.06 | £24,484.31 | £2,040.36 |
| Intermediate | £34,592 | £2,871.14 | £26,130.73 | £2,177.56 |
| Top | £39,043 | £3,826.21 | £28,571.39 | £2,380.95 |
Pay scale: www.nhsemployers.org/system/files/2026-02/2026%20AfC%20pay%20scales.pdf, effective 1 April 2026
| Pay point | Salary | Pension | Take-home a year | Take-home a month |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Point 1 | £34,544 | £3,005.33 | £26,008.45 | £2,167.37 |
| Point 2 | £36,911 | £3,211.26 | £27,526.33 | £2,293.86 |
| Point 3 | £43,039 | £4,217.82 | £31,082.03 | £2,590.17 |
Pay scale: www.publications.scot.nhs.uk/files/pcs2026-afc-01.pdf, effective 1 April 2026
Who is paid on Band 5
The NHS careers pay rates page gives ICT test analyst as a Band 5 example, along with many newly qualified clinical professionals such as nurses, operating department practitioners, podiatrists and therapeutic radiographers.
Three points, two pension tiers
The entry and middle points of England's Band 5 share one pension tier. Take-home rises from £24,484.31 to £26,130.73 between them. The top point, £39,043, lies above the upper edge of that tier, so the contribution rate goes up on the whole salary and the pension deduction reaches £3,826.21.
Even with the higher rate, the Band 5 top point leaves £28,571.39 a year, or £2,380.95 a month. Income tax stays at the basic rate at every point, from £3,366.39 to £4,527.56.
Every Band 5 salary is above the Plan 2 student loan threshold of £29,385, so graduates on Plan 2 repay part of their pay at each point. The tables leave loans out. The NHS pay calculator adds them.
Band 5 in Scotland
The Scottish Band 5 scale has three points too: £34,544, £36,911 and £43,039. Each one is higher than the matching England point, and the Scottish first point is almost as high as the England middle point.
Scottish income tax reaches the intermediate rate of 21% at all three points. The higher pay more than makes up for it, and Scottish take-home is £26,008.45, £27,526.33 and £31,082.03 a year. As in England, the Scottish top point starts a new pension tier, with a deduction of £4,217.82. The Band 6 page continues the scale.
Questions
What does a newly qualified nurse take home on Band 5?
At the Band 5 entry point in England a full-time nurse takes home £2,040.36 a month in 2026/27, before any student loan, overtime or unsocial hours pay.
Why does the pension deduction jump at the Band 5 top point?
The top point falls in a higher NHS Pension tier than the first two points. The higher rate applies to the whole salary, so the deduction rises more than the pay does.
How does Scottish Band 5 take-home compare?
A Scottish Band 5 employee keeps £2,167.37 a month at the first point, against £2,040.36 at the England entry point, because the Scottish scale pays more.
Is Band 5 taxed at the higher rate?
No. Every Band 5 point in England is taxed only at the basic rate. The NHS Pension comes off before tax, which keeps taxable pay further below the higher rate threshold.