UK International Nurse Salary Reality Calculator

💡 About this calculator

This tool estimates your realistic take-home pay as an NHS Band 5 nurse using the 2025/26 Agenda for Change pay scales in the UK. It includes London weighting (High Cost Area Supplements), unsocial hours, overtime and bank shifts.

It uses NHS Band 5 pay, current income tax rules (England/Wales/NI and Scotland) and National Insurance.

It doesn’t include private hospital pay, agency rates, pension contributions, student loan repayments or trust-specific extras.

Your result is an estimate only – real pay will vary by trust, rota and payroll.

Where will you be paying income tax?

England, Wales or Northern IrelandScotland

Where are you on band 5?

Newly qualified Band 5Mid Band 5Top of Band 5

Where will you be working most of the time?

Central London (Inner London weighting – 20%)Outer London (15%)Fringe HCAS area around London (5%)No London weighting

Do you already know roughly what your rota will be like?

Yes, I have an idea of my patternNo, I'm not sure yet - assume mostly weekday shifts

Average hours per week between 8pm–6am or on Saturdays?

Average hours per week on Sundays or Bank Holidays?

Overtime vs Bank Shifts: An Explanation

Overtime = extra hours on your main contract (enhancement depends on employer policy)
Bank = flexible, casual shifts via the staff bank, outside your contract

For most UK nurses, picking up bank shifts is the more common way to work extra hours, as true overtime is limited and employer dependent.

How many overtime hours per week do you plan to work, on top of your normal 37.5 hours?

Most of those overtime hours will be:

Mostly weekday day shiftsMostly nights / SaturdaysMostly Sundays / Bank Holidays

How many bank hours per month do you realistically plan to work?

Expected bank hourly rate (£ per hour)

I’m not sure – use a typical Band 5 bank rate for me

annual_basic

hcas_pct

annual_hcas

annual_basic_total

hourly_basic_total

night_sat_hours_per_week

sun_bh_hours_per_week

annual_unsocial_night_sat

annual_unsocial_sun_bh

annual_unsocial_total

overtime_hours_year

overtime_hourly

annual_overtime_total

bank_rate

bank_hours_year

annual_bank_total

annual_gross

gross_minus_ni_pt

gross_minus_ni_uel

ni

taxable_income

tax

annual_net

monthly_basic_total

monthly_net

annual_enhancements

monthly_enhancements

Income Assessor for UK