Band 5 nurse pay after tax 2026/27

Take-home pay a month

£2,040.36

£24,484.31 a year from a salary of £32,073.00

Your details

Pay point Point 1Point 2Point 3

Hours a week

Full time is 37.5 hours a week

I pay into this pension scheme

Student loan NonePlan 1Plan 2Plan 4 (Scotland)Plan 5 Postgraduate loan as well

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Where your salary goes

	A year
Salary	£32,073.00
NHS Pension (8.3%)	£2,662.06
Income tax	£3,366.39
National Insurance	£1,560.24
Take-home pay	£24,484.31

How this was worked out

1. Pension rate: pay of £32,073.00 is in the tier from £28,855 to £35,155, so 8.3%
2. Salary: £32,073
3. Pension (net pay): £32,073 × 8.3% = £2,662.06, taken off before tax
4. Personal allowance: £12,570. Payroll applies it as tax code 1257L, which gives £12,579 of tax-free pay.
5. Taxable income: £29,410.94 − £12,579 = £16,831.94
6. Basic rate: £16,831.94 × 20% = £3,366.39
7. Income tax: £3,366.39
8. National Insurance: (£32,073 − £12,570) × 8% = £1,560.24
9. Take-home pay: £32,073 − £3,366.39 − £1,560.24 − £2,662.06 = £24,484.31

• Tax year: 2026/27. Tax code: 1257L. Income tax nation: England.
• Pension: NHS Pension Scheme contribution at the tier for the selected pay. Student loan: none unless selected in the calculator.
• Full-time basic pay, for a full tax year. Money is rounded to the nearest penny.

A Band 5 nurse in England is paid £32,073 to £39,043 in 2026/27. After the NHS Pension, income tax and National Insurance, that is about £2,040.36 to £2,380.95 a month.

NHS Band 5 pay after tax

What Band 5 nurses do

Band 5 is the usual starting band for a registered nurse. The national job profile for Band 5 nursing describes assessing patients, planning and carrying out programmes of care, giving clinical supervision to other staff and students, and giving health promotion advice. Some Band 5 nurses also allocate and check the work of support staff.

The three points and when they apply

England's Band 5 has 3 points. NHS careers guidance links them to experience: the entry point for under two years, the middle point for two to four years, and the top point after four years.

The top point moves into a higher NHS Pension tier, so the pension deduction rises faster than pay on that step. The NHS Band 5 page has the full table, including Scotland, and shows the tier change row by row.

Band 5 in Wales

A Band 5 nurse in Wales is paid a little more than one in England at each of the three points in 2026/27. The pension tiers line up with England's, so the Welsh nurse keeps slightly more each month on the same hours.

Questions

What does a newly qualified nurse take home?

At the Band 5 entry point in England, about £2,040.36 a month in 2026/27, before any student loan, unsocial hours or overtime.

How long until a Band 5 nurse reaches the top point?

NHS careers guidance gives the top point as applying after four years of experience in the band.

Do Band 5 nurses repay their student loan?

Yes, if the loan is on Plan 2 or Plan 5, because every Band 5 salary is above those thresholds. The repayment is not in the table.