What is employer National Insurance?
When your employer pays you, it also pays its own National Insurance to HMRC, on top of your salary. You never see it come off your pay, but it is part of what your job costs. Knowing it helps when you compare a job with contracting, negotiate a raise, or weigh up salary sacrifice.
What are the employer NI rate and threshold for 2026/27?
For most employees (category A), the employer pays 15% on earnings above the secondary threshold:
- £96 a week
- £417 a month
- £5,000 a year
Unlike employee NI, there is no lower rate at the top: every pound over the threshold is charged at 15%. The rate went up from 13.8% to 15%, and the threshold came down from £9,100 to £5,000, in April 2025. Both stayed the same for 2026/27 as in 2025/26.
What does a job cost an employer at each salary?
| Salary | Employer NI | Total cost | Employee takes home |
|---|---|---|---|
| £15,000 | £1,500 | £16,500 | £14,320 |
| £25,000 | £3,000 | £28,000 | £21,520 |
| £30,000 | £3,750 | £33,750 | £25,120 |
| £50,000 | £6,750 | £56,750 | £39,520 |
| £80,000 | £11,250 | £91,250 | £56,957 |
| £120,000 | £17,250 | £137,250 | £76,157 |
The take-home column assumes England, Wales or Northern Ireland, the standard tax code, no pension and no student loan. At £30,000 the employer spends £33,750 and the employee keeps £25,120: about 74p of every pound the job costs.
How much employer NI is paid on £30,000?
On £30,000: the pay above £5,000 is £25,000, and 15% of that is £3,750.00. Paid monthly, it is 15% of £2,083 each month (£312.45), which comes to almost the same over the year.
What does a pay rise really cost?
Every pound of extra salary costs your employer an extra 15% in NI. So a £1,000 rise on £30,000 costs the business £1,150, while you keep £720 of it after income tax and your own NI. On £60,000 the same rise still costs £1,150, but you keep only £580, because you pay 40% tax on it.
That gap is why a pension contribution from your employer can be worth more than the same amount added to your salary. An employer pension contribution carries no employer NI and no tax for you, so every pound of it reaches your pension. It is a fair thing to raise in a pay review.
How do I compare a job with contracting?
When a contract or day rate is compared with a salary, the fair comparison is with the total cost of the job, not the salary alone. A £50,000 salary costs the employer £56,750 before any pension contribution, holiday pay or other benefits. The calculator shows the total cost for any salary.
Does salary sacrifice save employer NI?
With salary sacrifice your salary is lower, so your employer’s NI bill is lower as well. On £40,000 with a 5% sacrifice, the employer pays £4,950.00 instead of £5,250.00: a saving of £300.00 a year. Some employers add part or all of that to your pension. It is worth asking.
Is employer NI paid on a bonus?
A bonus carries employer NI too, at 15% with no upper limit. A £5,000 bonus therefore costs the business £5,750. If the bonus is sacrificed into your pension instead, the employer saves that £750, and some employers pass the saving on to you.
What does the cost leave out?
- Employer pension contributions. Workplace pensions usually include a contribution from the employer. That is a real cost to them, but it is not in our figures.
- Benefits. Employers pay 15% Class 1A NI on most taxable benefits, such as a company car.
- Reliefs. Under-21s, apprentices under 25 and some other groups have a 0% employer rate up to a limit. Small employers can also claim the Employment Allowance.
What does my job cost my employer?
Every result in the calculator and every salary page shows the employer NI and the total cost of the job.