Take home pay on £12.71 an hour at 37.5, 40 and 48 hours a week
6 minute read · 2026-10-08
On the National Living Wage of £12.71 an hour in the 2026 to 2027 tax year, with the standard 1257L tax code and paid weekly in England, Wales or Northern Ireland, you take home about £410.93 a week for 37.5 hours, £433.81 for 40 hours and £507.02 for 48 hours, before any pension contribution. The working is below, so you can check it against your own payslip.
The thresholds used
- Tax free Personal Allowance: £12,570 a year, which payroll treats as £242 a week.
- Income tax: 20% on the next £37,700 of taxable pay (England, Wales and Northern Ireland).
- Employee National Insurance: 8% on weekly pay between £242 and £967, 2% above.
- Workplace pension (auto enrolment): commonly 5% from you on "qualifying earnings" above £120 a week (£6,240 a year).
Source: GOV.UK: rates and thresholds for employers 2026 to 2027.
The working, week by week
| 37.5 hours | 40 hours | 48 hours | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross pay (hours x £12.71) | £476.63 | £508.40 | £610.08 |
| Pay above £242 | £234.63 | £266.40 | £368.08 |
| Income tax (20% of that) | £46.93 | £53.28 | £73.62 |
| National Insurance (8% of that) | £18.77 | £21.31 | £29.45 |
| Take home before pension | £410.93 | £433.81 | £507.02 |
| Pension, 5% of pay above £120 | £17.83 | £19.42 | £24.50 |
| Real cost of that pension to you (after 20% tax relief) | about £14.27 | about £15.54 | about £19.60 |
| Take home after pension | about £396.66 | about £418.27 | about £487.42 |
Why is the pension "real cost" lower than the contribution? Pension contributions get tax relief. Depending on the scheme, either your contribution is taken before tax is worked out (so your tax bill falls) or 4% is taken from your pay and the government adds the other 1%. For a basic rate taxpayer the result is about the same either way. Your employer adds at least 3% on top, which is not taken from you at all.
Over a year
| 37.5 hours | 40 hours | 48 hours | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross pay (52 weeks) | £24,784.50 | £26,436.80 | £31,724.16 |
| Income tax | £2,442.90 | £2,773.36 | £3,830.83 |
| National Insurance | £977.16 | £1,109.34 | £1,532.33 |
| Take home before pension | £21,364.44 | £22,554.10 | £26,361.00 |
The yearly figures assume 52 paid weeks, which includes paid holiday. The weekly payroll figures differ by a few pence because payroll rounds the weekly allowance to £242.
Things that change the answer
- Scotland: Scottish rates (an S code) give a slightly smaller tax bill at this level of pay, about £40 a year less at 37.5 hours.
- Student loan: at 48 hours, Plan 2 takes about £4.05 a week (9% of pay above £565.10 a week); at 40 hours, Plan 5 takes about £2.49 a week. See student loan deductions.
- An emergency or BR code: can take much more tax until corrected. See tax codes explained.
- Paid monthly: the same arithmetic using £1,048 a month for both the tax and NI thresholds gives nearly the same annual result.
- Overtime and premiums: taxed the same way. A bigger week is not taxed at a higher "rate"; it simply has more pay above the £242 line.
Is 48 hours legal?
Yes. The Working Time Regulations limit you to an average of 48 hours a week, usually over 17 weeks, unless you choose to opt out in writing. A steady 48 hour week is at the limit, not over it. See overtime and the law.
What to do next
Put your own hours and rate into the table's method and compare it with your payslip. If you are paid above the minimum, look at what the work pays for the going rate in your trade, and every advert on our jobs board shows the pay up front.
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