£80,000 Salary Breakdown (2025/2026)

£80k Salary Overview

A salary of £80,000 places you comfortably within the Higher Rate (40%) tax band. At this level, effective tax planning (such as pension contributions) becomes very important to retain more of your earnings.

Child Benefit: The 100% Repayment Point

£80,000 is the upper limit of the High Income Child Benefit Charge taper. This means if you or your partner earn £80k or more, you must repay 100% of any Child Benefit received.

At this stage, many parents choose to opt out of receiving the payments entirely to avoid the administrative burden of filing a Self Assessment tax return just to pay it all back.

Tax & National Insurance

With a 1257L code:

  • Income Tax: approx. £19,432. (You pay 40% on the £29,730 above the basic rate threshold).
  • National Insurance: approx. £3,610. (2% rate applies to earnings over £50,270).

Student Loan Deductions

If you have student loans, the deductions are significant at this income level:

  • Plan 1: ~£4,850/year (~£404/month).
  • Plan 2: ~£4,630/year (~£386/month).
  • Postgraduate: ~£3,540/year (~£295/month).