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National Insurance calculator

Quickly calculate how much you owe in National Insurance if you're earning money from employment or self-employment.

How NI is calculated on your income

No contributions

£9,500

At 9%

£39,500

NI contributions you need to make

£3,714

Class 2 NI: £159

No Class 4 NI on your first £9,500

Class 4 NI at 9% on your next £39,500: £3,555

You also need to pay income tax

£7,300

View how the income tax is calculated

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How your National Insurance contributions are calculated

As a self-employed you have to pay your National Insurance contributions yourself during your annual Self Assessment, together with any income tax you might owe.

National Insurance breakdown

You pay no NI contributions on the first £9,500 that you make.

You will need to pay Class 2 NI worth £159.

You will also have to pay £3,555 (9%) on your income between £9,500 and £49,000.

What is National Insurance?

National Insurance is a tax that we all have to pay in the UK to be entitled to claim certain state provided benefits. You have to pay it whether you’re employed or self-employed – although the type (or class) that you pay is determined by your employment status.

Here are some of the benefits that you’re entitled to as a result of paying National Insurance:

Job Seeker’s Allowance
State Pension
Use of the NHS
Maternity Allowance
Statutory sick pay

What do I pay?

Well, of course, you could just use our National Insurance calculator above to see exactly what you’ll end up paying, but if you’d like a breakdown of the rates, check out the table below.

NI class	Who pays	How is it paid	How much is it
Class 1	Employees earning more than £183 per week who are under State Pension age a year	Your employer deducts it through PAYE	12% (or 2% if you earn over £262 a week)
Class 1A or 1B	Employers for employees earning over £183 per week	Your employer pays it on top of your Class 1	13.8%
Class 2	Self-employed people earning over £6,515 a year	Through a Self Assessment tax return	Flat £159 per year
Class 3	Voluntary contributions – you can pay them to fill gaps in your NI record	Through a Direct Debit	£15.30 per week
Class 4	Self-employed people earning over £9,568 a year	Through a Self Assessment tax return	9% (or 2% if you earn over £50,270)

Do I pay National Insurance if I earn less than the Personal Allowance?

In short, yes.

When you earn less than £12,570 in a tax year, you’re exempt from paying Income Tax. The first £12,570 of your income is known as the Personal Allowance. You don’t pay Income Tax on it unless you earn over £100,000, at which point you start to lose your eligibility to it.

But no matter how much you earn, you’re not exempt from paying National Insurance. The table above shows you how much National Insurance you’ll owe based on your earnings.