DAY RATE TO REAL INCOME

£400 a Day Contractor Take-Home & Salary Equivalent

Compare £400/day across 180, 200, 220 and 230 billable days. See inside and outside IR35 cash and salary equivalents, then customise pensions and benefits.

Tax year 2026/27 · Last verified · Methodology · Official sources

Compare £400/day with your current salary

What £400/day can mean over a year

180 billable days

Contract revenue
£72,000
Inside annual cash
£47,249
Outside annual cash
£50,570
Inside cash-equivalent salary
£66,711
Outside cash-equivalent salary
£72,751
Outside cash + pension salary equivalent
£61,558
Show calculation

Inside IR35

Assignment / PAYE rate revenue: £72,000
Day rate × billable days; rate type determines whether employer costs are included.

Umbrella margin: £0
Explicit annual fee. No silent default.

Other employer costs: £0
Deducted before solving worker gross pay.

Employer NI: -£8,739
Assignment rate includes this cost; gross PAYE rate excludes it.

Employer pension: £0
Percentage of gross pay, deducted from assignment budget.

Apprenticeship levy: £0
0.5% of pay when umbrella levy applies.

Gross employment cash: £63,261
Salary + bonus + cash car allowance.

Salary sacrifice: £0
Reduces taxable pay and NI pay; added to employer pension.

Employee pension: £0
Net-pay arrangement: reduces income tax, not NI. Percentage of base salary.

Personal allowance: £12,570
£12,570 reduced £1 for every £2 of adjusted net income above £100,000.

Income tax at 20 %: £7,540
£37,700.00 × 20 %

Income tax at 40 %: £5,196
£12,990.87 × 40 %

Incremental personal tax: -£12,736
Total personal tax with this job less tax on other income alone.

Employee NI: -£3,276
Annual category A estimate: 8% between £12,570 and £50,270; 2% above.

Student loan: £0
Annualised repayments attributable to this job.

Net cash: £47,249
Annual spendable cash from this scenario; excludes other income.

Employer pension: £0
Employer contribution plus salary sacrifice.

Employer NI including Class 1A: £8,739
Employer cost, not deducted from your salary.

Benefits value: £0
Gross non-cash value, separately labelled.

Other deductions: £0
After-tax deductions.

Gross holiday pay accrued: £0
12.07% of base pay, included in total annual gross earnings. Net payment timing depends on payroll; annual cash assumes all accrual is eventually paid.

Outside IR35

Company revenue: £72,000
Contract revenue + other company revenue; excludes VAT.

Allowable expenses: -£3,000
Assumes all entered costs qualify for Corporation Tax deduction.

Director salary: -£12,570
Evaluated salary; paid from company funds.

Employer NI: -£1,136
15% above £5,000 less eligible Employment Allowance.

Company pension: £0
Assumed qualifying employer contribution deductible before Corporation Tax.

Taxable company profit: £55,295
Revenue less expenses, salary, employer NI and pension.

Corporation Tax: -£10,903
19% / 25% with marginal relief; thresholds divided by 1 + associated companies. Assumes 12-month period and no exempt distributions.

Post-tax distributable profit: £44,391
No brought-forward losses or reserves assumed.

Dividends withdrawn: £44,391
Limited to current distributable profit.

Retained company profit: £0
Company reserves, not personal take-home.

Personal allowance: £12,570
£12,570 reduced £1 for every £2 of adjusted net income above £100,000.

Dividend tax at 10.75 %: £3,999
£37,200.00 taxable dividends × 10.75 %

Dividend tax at 35.75 %: £2,392
£6,691.46 taxable dividends × 35.75 %

Incremental income tax: £0
Includes any allowance taper affecting other income.

Incremental dividend tax: -£6,391
Total dividend tax less baseline tax on other dividends.

Employee NI: £0
Annual director category A NI.

Student loan: £0
Self Assessment estimate including unearned income above £2,000.

Take-home cash: £50,570
Salary + dividends − incremental personal tax − employee NI − student loan.

200 billable days

Contract revenue
£80,000
Inside annual cash
£51,283
Outside annual cash
£54,348
Inside cash-equivalent salary
£74,047
Outside cash-equivalent salary
£79,620
Outside cash + pension salary equivalent
£67,370
Show calculation

Inside IR35

Assignment / PAYE rate revenue: £80,000
Day rate × billable days; rate type determines whether employer costs are included.

Umbrella margin: £0
Explicit annual fee. No silent default.

Other employer costs: £0
Deducted before solving worker gross pay.

Employer NI: -£9,783
Assignment rate includes this cost; gross PAYE rate excludes it.

Employer pension: £0
Percentage of gross pay, deducted from assignment budget.

Apprenticeship levy: £0
0.5% of pay when umbrella levy applies.

Gross employment cash: £70,217
Salary + bonus + cash car allowance.

Salary sacrifice: £0
Reduces taxable pay and NI pay; added to employer pension.

Employee pension: £0
Net-pay arrangement: reduces income tax, not NI. Percentage of base salary.

Personal allowance: £12,570
£12,570 reduced £1 for every £2 of adjusted net income above £100,000.

Income tax at 20 %: £7,540
£37,700.00 × 20 %

Income tax at 40 %: £7,979
£19,947.39 × 40 %

Incremental personal tax: -£15,519
Total personal tax with this job less tax on other income alone.

Employee NI: -£3,415
Annual category A estimate: 8% between £12,570 and £50,270; 2% above.

Student loan: £0
Annualised repayments attributable to this job.

Net cash: £51,283
Annual spendable cash from this scenario; excludes other income.

Employer pension: £0
Employer contribution plus salary sacrifice.

Employer NI including Class 1A: £9,783
Employer cost, not deducted from your salary.

Benefits value: £0
Gross non-cash value, separately labelled.

Other deductions: £0
After-tax deductions.

Gross holiday pay accrued: £0
12.07% of base pay, included in total annual gross earnings. Net payment timing depends on payroll; annual cash assumes all accrual is eventually paid.

Outside IR35

Company revenue: £80,000
Contract revenue + other company revenue; excludes VAT.

Allowable expenses: -£3,000
Assumes all entered costs qualify for Corporation Tax deduction.

Director salary: -£12,570
Evaluated salary; paid from company funds.

Employer NI: -£1,136
15% above £5,000 less eligible Employment Allowance.

Company pension: £0
Assumed qualifying employer contribution deductible before Corporation Tax.

Taxable company profit: £63,295
Revenue less expenses, salary, employer NI and pension.

Corporation Tax: -£13,023
19% / 25% with marginal relief; thresholds divided by 1 + associated companies. Assumes 12-month period and no exempt distributions.

Post-tax distributable profit: £50,271
No brought-forward losses or reserves assumed.

Dividends withdrawn: £50,271
Limited to current distributable profit.

Retained company profit: £0
Company reserves, not personal take-home.

Personal allowance: £12,570
£12,570 reduced £1 for every £2 of adjusted net income above £100,000.

Dividend tax at 10.75 %: £3,999
£37,200.00 taxable dividends × 10.75 %

Dividend tax at 35.75 %: £4,494
£12,571.46 taxable dividends × 35.75 %

Incremental income tax: £0
Includes any allowance taper affecting other income.

Incremental dividend tax: -£8,493
Total dividend tax less baseline tax on other dividends.

Employee NI: £0
Annual director category A NI.

Student loan: £0
Self Assessment estimate including unearned income above £2,000.

Take-home cash: £54,348
Salary + dividends − incremental personal tax − employee NI − student loan.

220 billable days

Contract revenue
£88,000
Inside annual cash
£55,318
Outside annual cash
£58,126
Inside cash-equivalent salary
£81,383
Outside cash-equivalent salary
£86,488
Outside cash + pension salary equivalent
£73,183
Show calculation

Inside IR35

Assignment / PAYE rate revenue: £88,000
Day rate × billable days; rate type determines whether employer costs are included.

Umbrella margin: £0
Explicit annual fee. No silent default.

Other employer costs: £0
Deducted before solving worker gross pay.

Employer NI: -£10,826
Assignment rate includes this cost; gross PAYE rate excludes it.

Employer pension: £0
Percentage of gross pay, deducted from assignment budget.

Apprenticeship levy: £0
0.5% of pay when umbrella levy applies.

Gross employment cash: £77,174
Salary + bonus + cash car allowance.

Salary sacrifice: £0
Reduces taxable pay and NI pay; added to employer pension.

Employee pension: £0
Net-pay arrangement: reduces income tax, not NI. Percentage of base salary.

Personal allowance: £12,570
£12,570 reduced £1 for every £2 of adjusted net income above £100,000.

Income tax at 20 %: £7,540
£37,700.00 × 20 %

Income tax at 40 %: £10,762
£26,903.91 × 40 %

Incremental personal tax: -£18,302
Total personal tax with this job less tax on other income alone.

Employee NI: -£3,554
Annual category A estimate: 8% between £12,570 and £50,270; 2% above.

Student loan: £0
Annualised repayments attributable to this job.

Net cash: £55,318
Annual spendable cash from this scenario; excludes other income.

Employer pension: £0
Employer contribution plus salary sacrifice.

Employer NI including Class 1A: £10,826
Employer cost, not deducted from your salary.

Benefits value: £0
Gross non-cash value, separately labelled.

Other deductions: £0
After-tax deductions.

Gross holiday pay accrued: £0
12.07% of base pay, included in total annual gross earnings. Net payment timing depends on payroll; annual cash assumes all accrual is eventually paid.

Outside IR35

Company revenue: £88,000
Contract revenue + other company revenue; excludes VAT.

Allowable expenses: -£3,000
Assumes all entered costs qualify for Corporation Tax deduction.

Director salary: -£12,570
Evaluated salary; paid from company funds.

Employer NI: -£1,136
15% above £5,000 less eligible Employment Allowance.

Company pension: £0
Assumed qualifying employer contribution deductible before Corporation Tax.

Taxable company profit: £71,295
Revenue less expenses, salary, employer NI and pension.

Corporation Tax: -£15,143
19% / 25% with marginal relief; thresholds divided by 1 + associated companies. Assumes 12-month period and no exempt distributions.

Post-tax distributable profit: £56,151
No brought-forward losses or reserves assumed.

Dividends withdrawn: £56,151
Limited to current distributable profit.

Retained company profit: £0
Company reserves, not personal take-home.

Personal allowance: £12,570
£12,570 reduced £1 for every £2 of adjusted net income above £100,000.

Dividend tax at 10.75 %: £3,999
£37,200.00 taxable dividends × 10.75 %

Dividend tax at 35.75 %: £6,596
£18,451.46 taxable dividends × 35.75 %

Incremental income tax: £0
Includes any allowance taper affecting other income.

Incremental dividend tax: -£10,595
Total dividend tax less baseline tax on other dividends.

Employee NI: £0
Annual director category A NI.

Student loan: £0
Self Assessment estimate including unearned income above £2,000.

Take-home cash: £58,126
Salary + dividends − incremental personal tax − employee NI − student loan.

230 billable days

Contract revenue
£92,000
Inside annual cash
£57,336
Outside annual cash
£60,015
Inside cash-equivalent salary
£85,051
Outside cash-equivalent salary
£89,923
Outside cash + pension salary equivalent
£76,089
Show calculation

Inside IR35

Assignment / PAYE rate revenue: £92,000
Day rate × billable days; rate type determines whether employer costs are included.

Umbrella margin: £0
Explicit annual fee. No silent default.

Other employer costs: £0
Deducted before solving worker gross pay.

Employer NI: -£11,348
Assignment rate includes this cost; gross PAYE rate excludes it.

Employer pension: £0
Percentage of gross pay, deducted from assignment budget.

Apprenticeship levy: £0
0.5% of pay when umbrella levy applies.

Gross employment cash: £80,652
Salary + bonus + cash car allowance.

Salary sacrifice: £0
Reduces taxable pay and NI pay; added to employer pension.

Employee pension: £0
Net-pay arrangement: reduces income tax, not NI. Percentage of base salary.

Personal allowance: £12,570
£12,570 reduced £1 for every £2 of adjusted net income above £100,000.

Income tax at 20 %: £7,540
£37,700.00 × 20 %

Income tax at 40 %: £12,153
£30,382.17 × 40 %

Incremental personal tax: -£19,693
Total personal tax with this job less tax on other income alone.

Employee NI: -£3,624
Annual category A estimate: 8% between £12,570 and £50,270; 2% above.

Student loan: £0
Annualised repayments attributable to this job.

Net cash: £57,336
Annual spendable cash from this scenario; excludes other income.

Employer pension: £0
Employer contribution plus salary sacrifice.

Employer NI including Class 1A: £11,348
Employer cost, not deducted from your salary.

Benefits value: £0
Gross non-cash value, separately labelled.

Other deductions: £0
After-tax deductions.

Gross holiday pay accrued: £0
12.07% of base pay, included in total annual gross earnings. Net payment timing depends on payroll; annual cash assumes all accrual is eventually paid.

Outside IR35

Company revenue: £92,000
Contract revenue + other company revenue; excludes VAT.

Allowable expenses: -£3,000
Assumes all entered costs qualify for Corporation Tax deduction.

Director salary: -£12,570
Evaluated salary; paid from company funds.

Employer NI: -£1,136
15% above £5,000 less eligible Employment Allowance.

Company pension: £0
Assumed qualifying employer contribution deductible before Corporation Tax.

Taxable company profit: £75,295
Revenue less expenses, salary, employer NI and pension.

Corporation Tax: -£16,203
19% / 25% with marginal relief; thresholds divided by 1 + associated companies. Assumes 12-month period and no exempt distributions.

Post-tax distributable profit: £59,091
No brought-forward losses or reserves assumed.

Dividends withdrawn: £59,091
Limited to current distributable profit.

Retained company profit: £0
Company reserves, not personal take-home.

Personal allowance: £12,570
£12,570 reduced £1 for every £2 of adjusted net income above £100,000.

Dividend tax at 10.75 %: £3,999
£37,200.00 taxable dividends × 10.75 %

Dividend tax at 35.75 %: £7,647
£21,391.46 taxable dividends × 35.75 %

Incremental income tax: £0
Includes any allowance taper affecting other income.

Incremental dividend tax: -£11,646
Total dividend tax less baseline tax on other dividends.

Employee NI: £0
Annual director category A NI.

Student loan: £0
Self Assessment estimate including unearned income above £2,000.

Take-home cash: £60,015
Salary + dividends − incremental personal tax − employee NI − student loan.

Inside assumes an assignment rate, no margin, levy or pension. Outside assumes £3,000 expenses, a salary at Personal Allowance, no pension or retained profit. England, no other income or student loan. Salary equivalents assume 5% employee and employer pension.

How a contract gap changes the result

Dropping from 220 to 200 billable days reduces gross invoices by £8,000. Net cash does not fall by the same amount because taxes are recalculated. Compare the 200-day and 220-day cards, or model your own gap.

Model time between contracts

Compare £400/day with your job

The personalised tool below includes pension, benefits, package break-even and a risk-adjusted target.

YOUR NEXT MOVE, IN NUMBERS

Make the comparison yours

2026/27 tax year

220 days × £400 = £88,000Annual contract revenue · before costs and tax

Calculate my billable days

Weekdays are counted for the selected tax year. Enter your own regional bank holidays.

Permanent pension, bonus & benefits
Inside IR35 · rate type & umbrella costs

An assignment rate includes employer costs. Gross PAYE is worker pay before personal deductions. Annual estimates assume category A NI and even pay; actual payroll depends on pay periods.

Outside IR35 · company, pension & dividends

Pension relief assumes qualifying contributions. Annual allowance, taper, carry-forward and MPAA are not modelled. No VAT, capital allowances, opening reserves or company losses are modelled.

Other income, student loans & comparison settings

THE MONEY THAT MATTERS

Your annual comparison

Monthly figures are annual cash ÷ 12

Permanent

£5,005/ month cash

£60,057 annual take-home

Gross cash salary
£90,000
Pension (not cash)
£9,000
Gross benefits value
£0
Inspect every deduction
Gross employment cash£90,000.00

Salary + bonus + cash car allowance.

Salary sacrifice£0.00

Reduces taxable pay and NI pay; added to employer pension.

Employee pension-£4,500.00

Net-pay arrangement: reduces income tax, not NI. Percentage of base salary.

Personal allowance£12,570.00

£12,570 reduced £1 for every £2 of adjusted net income above £100,000.

Income tax at 20 %£7,540.00

£37,700.00 × 20 %

Income tax at 40 %£14,092.00

£35,230.00 × 40 %

Incremental personal tax-£21,632.00

Total personal tax with this job less tax on other income alone.

Employee NI-£3,810.60

Annual category A estimate: 8% between £12,570 and £50,270; 2% above.

Student loan£0.00

Annualised repayments attributable to this job.

Net cash£60,057.40

Annual spendable cash from this scenario; excludes other income.

Employer pension£4,500.00

Employer contribution plus salary sacrifice.

Employer NI including Class 1A£12,750.00

Employer cost, not deducted from your salary.

Benefits value£0.00

Gross non-cash value, separately labelled.

Inside IR35

£4,610/ month cash

£55,318 annual take-home

Contract revenue
£88,000
Pension (not cash)
£0
Gross benefits value
£0
Gross PAYE earnings
£77,174

−£4,739 / year
−£395 / month vs permanent

Inspect every deduction
Assignment / PAYE rate revenue£88,000.00

Day rate × billable days; rate type determines whether employer costs are included.

Umbrella margin£0.00

Explicit annual fee. No silent default.

Other employer costs£0.00

Deducted before solving worker gross pay.

Employer NI-£10,826.09

Assignment rate includes this cost; gross PAYE rate excludes it.

Employer pension£0.00

Percentage of gross pay, deducted from assignment budget.

Apprenticeship levy£0.00

0.5% of pay when umbrella levy applies.

Gross employment cash£77,173.91

Salary + bonus + cash car allowance.

Salary sacrifice£0.00

Reduces taxable pay and NI pay; added to employer pension.

Employee pension£0.00

Net-pay arrangement: reduces income tax, not NI. Percentage of base salary.

Personal allowance£12,570.00

£12,570 reduced £1 for every £2 of adjusted net income above £100,000.

Income tax at 20 %£7,540.00

£37,700.00 × 20 %

Income tax at 40 %£10,761.57

£26,903.91 × 40 %

Incremental personal tax-£18,301.57

Total personal tax with this job less tax on other income alone.

Employee NI-£3,554.08

Annual category A estimate: 8% between £12,570 and £50,270; 2% above.

Student loan£0.00

Annualised repayments attributable to this job.

Net cash£55,318.27

Annual spendable cash from this scenario; excludes other income.

Employer pension£0.00

Employer contribution plus salary sacrifice.

Employer NI including Class 1A£10,826.09

Employer cost, not deducted from your salary.

Benefits value£0.00

Gross non-cash value, separately labelled.

Other deductions£0.00

After-tax deductions.

Gross holiday pay accrued£0.00

12.07% of base pay, included in total annual gross earnings. Net payment timing depends on payroll; annual cash assumes all accrual is eventually paid.

Outside IR35

£4,844/ month cash

£58,126 annual take-home

Contract revenue
£88,000
Pension (not cash)
£0
Gross benefits value
£0
Company reserves
£0
Director salary
£12,570

−£1,931 / year
−£161 / month vs permanent

Inspect every deduction
Company revenue£88,000.00

Contract revenue + other company revenue; excludes VAT.

Allowable expenses-£3,000.00

Assumes all entered costs qualify for Corporation Tax deduction.

Director salary-£12,570.00

Evaluated salary; paid from company funds.

Employer NI-£1,135.50

15% above £5,000 less eligible Employment Allowance.

Company pension£0.00

Assumed qualifying employer contribution deductible before Corporation Tax.

Taxable company profit£71,294.50

Revenue less expenses, salary, employer NI and pension.

Corporation Tax-£15,143.04

19% / 25% with marginal relief; thresholds divided by 1 + associated companies. Assumes 12-month period and no exempt distributions.

Post-tax distributable profit£56,151.46

No brought-forward losses or reserves assumed.

Dividends withdrawn£56,151.46

Limited to current distributable profit.

Retained company profit£0.00

Company reserves, not personal take-home.

Personal allowance£12,570.00

£12,570 reduced £1 for every £2 of adjusted net income above £100,000.

Dividend tax at 10.75 %£3,999.00

£37,200.00 taxable dividends × 10.75 %

Dividend tax at 35.75 %£6,596.40

£18,451.46 taxable dividends × 35.75 %

Incremental income tax£0.00

Includes any allowance taper affecting other income.

Incremental dividend tax-£10,595.40

Total dividend tax less baseline tax on other dividends.

Employee NI£0.00

Annual director category A NI.

Student loan£0.00

Self Assessment estimate including unearned income above £2,000.

Take-home cash£58,126.06

Salary + dividends − incremental personal tax − employee NI − student loan.

YOUR BREAK-EVEN RATE

Inside £443/day

Outside £419/day

Matching cash take-home. Permanent economic value: £69,057.

With 0% risk premium: inside £443, outside £419.

EQUIVALENT PERMANENT SALARY

£86,488

Cash-only equivalent
£86,488
Cash + pension equivalent
£73,183
Total-value equivalent
£73,183

Outside IR35, matching cash take-home. Uses your pension percentages, bonus and benefit assumptions.

KEEP THE VALUES SEPARATE

Economic value adds cash, pension, gross benefits and company reserves. It is a comparison measure, not after-tax spendable wealth. Employer NI is excluded from this measure.

Full comparison table
Annual measurePermanentInside IR35Outside IR35
Revenue / gross salary£90,000£88,000£88,000
Income tax£21,632£18,302£0
Dividend tax£0£0£10,595
Employee NI£3,811£3,554£0
Employer NI£12,750£10,826£1,136
Corporation Tax£0£0£15,143
Expenses£0£0£3,000
Student loan£0£0£0
Pension£9,000£0£0
Gross benefits£0£0£0
Annual net cash£60,057£55,318£58,126
Monthly net cash£5,005£4,610£4,844
Company reserves£0£0£0
Economic value (mixed basis)£69,057£55,318£58,126
Employer gross package£107,250£88,000£0
Effective tax / revenue42.4 %37.1 %30.5 %

A shared link contains your financial inputs in its URL fragment. Share it only with people you choose. Saves remain in this browser.

Estimates for comparison only, not tax or financial advice. Other income affects tax bands but is excluded from scenario cash. Taxes are annualised; payroll rounding and payment timing can differ.

Nearby published rates

How this calculation works

Revenue is day rate multiplied by billable days. The shared engine applies payroll taxes inside IR35 and company plus personal taxes outside IR35. Equivalent salary and rate solvers match cash, cash plus pension or economic value.

Important assumptions

Annual estimates, England by default, no other income or student loan. Illustrations use £3,000 company expenses, no opening reserves and a 12-month accounting period. Pension, gross benefits and retained profit are not spendable cash.

Frequently asked questions

Is revenue the same as take-home?

No. Employment costs, expenses and taxes can apply before money reaches you. Pension and retained profit are separate.

Can this decide IR35 status?

ContractorMoney.co.uk does not determine IR35 employment status. We model financial consequences after you select a status.

Sources and review

Tax year 2026/27 · Last verified · Methodology · Official sources

ContractorMoney.co.uk does not determine IR35 employment status. Use HMRC's official status guidance. Estimates only, not tax, financial, legal, accounting or investment advice. Read the limitations.

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