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Compare salary, dividends and employer-pension scenarios for limited-company directors in England, Wales and Northern Ireland under stated assumptions. This is a simplified estimate, not an optimization or tax-return calculation.
Reviewed 1 October 2026. Rates shown are for 2026/27; company and personal circumstances can change the result.
Illustrative starting scenario: £80,000 company profit, £5,000 director salary, £20,000 dividends, £10,000 employer pension, single-director company, no Employment Allowance and outside-IR35 status. This is an editable illustration. Replace these values with your own records before relying on the estimate.
Net Personal
£23,718
£25,000 drawn
Company retained
£31,525
After CT + extraction
Total Tax
£14,757
18% effective rate
Corporation Tax
£13,475
Marginal Relief range (19%–25%); modeled taxable company profit £65,000
Employer NI
£0
15% above the £5,000 threshold before any selected Employment Allowance
Employee NI
£0
8% main rate above £12,570; 2% above £50,270
Dividend tax
£1,282
£500 allowance, then 10.75%/35.75%/39.35%
The retained-profit figure is a company scenario, not a disposal gain. BADR depends on the shares or assets sold, ownership period, trading conditions, shareholder role, lifetime limit and transaction facts. Confirm eligibility and any 2026/27 rate with HMRC or a qualified adviser before comparing an exit with dividends.
Compare salary-only, salary-plus-dividend and entered-mix estimates. The first two use no employer pension contribution; confirm distributable profits and payroll costs separately.
| Measure | Net director income | Company retained | Total modeled tax |
|---|---|---|---|
| Salary Only | £56,957 | £0 | £34,293 |
| Salary + Div | £55,012 | £0 | £24,988 |
| Entered Mix | £23,718 | £31,525 | £14,757 |
Salary-only, dividend-only and entered salary-then-dividend mixes. Other active inputs, including pension and Employment Allowance, stay fixed.
| Measure | Salary only | Dividend only | Entered salary/dividend mix |
|---|---|---|---|
| £16,000 | 15.9% | 18.9% | 17.2% |
| £32,000 | 19.9% | 21.0% | 19.4% |
| £48,000 | 24.2% | 23.2% | 21.5% |
| £64,000 | 31.5% | 25.7% | 24.6% |
| £80,000 | 42.9% | 25.7% | 24.6% |
Holds profit, dividends, pension, region and allowance assumption constant while varying salary.
| Measure | Director net income | Total modeled tax |
|---|---|---|
| Salary £0 | £19,255 | £15,545 |
| Salary £5,000 | £23,718 | £14,757 |
| Salary £10,000 | £28,180 | £14,521 |
| Salary £20,000 | £35,823 | £15,499 |
| Salary £35,000 | £45,441 | £19,854 |
| Salary £50,000 | £46,594 | £23,406 |
Save different scenarios to compare extraction strategies side by side in this page session. Scenario values are not saved in browser storage.
| Strategy | Salary | Divs | Pension | Net | Retained | Tax | Eff.% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Salary Only | £80,000 | £0 | £0 | £56,957 | £0 | £34,293 | 42.9% |
| Salary + Div | £5,000 | £58,875 | £0 | £55,012 | £0 | £24,988 | 31.2% |
| Entered Mix | £5,000 | £20,000 | £10,000 | £23,718 | £31,525 | £14,757 | 18.4% |
Complete valid URL inputs take priority over the editable example. The address includes the entered company and personal assumptions; do not share it if you prefer to keep them private. This page does not restore or save calculator inputs in browser storage; comparison scenarios remain only until you leave this page.
Directors of limited companies in England, Wales and Northern Ireland can compare extracting profits as salary, dividends, or a combination. Each option has different tax, National Insurance and company-accounting implications. This calculator uses rest-of-UK personal Income Tax bands and does not identify an optimal structure.
Enter your company profit, director salary, dividend drawings, and employer pension contributions. The tool calculates your personal net income, company retained profits, and total tax under different extraction strategies, including Corporation Tax, employer and employee NI, and dividend tax.
These HMRC and GOV.UK sources explain the rules behind the calculator. They take priority over any simplified scenario shown above.