Pension Tax Relief Calculator
Estimate pension tax relief from a gross contribution and tax rate.
Estimated tax relief
£200.00
- Effective personal cost
- £800.00
Simple estimate for 2026/27. Higher-rate relief may require claiming through Self Assessment and pension arrangements differ.
v1.0 · Reviewed September 2026
How this is worked out
Relief is the gross contribution × the marginal tax rate you enter, and the effective personal cost is the contribution less that relief.
Worked example
- Gross contribution £1,000
- Marginal rate 20%
1,000 × 20%
£200.00 of relief, so £800.00 from your own pocket
Assumptions and limits
- Applies one flat rate to the whole contribution. A contribution that straddles two tax bands gets relief at more than one rate.
- How relief arrives depends on the scheme. Relief at source adds 20% automatically and higher or additional rate relief is usually claimed through Self Assessment, while net pay arrangements give full relief through payroll.
- The annual allowance, tapering for high earners and the rules on relief above your relevant earnings are not modelled.