# Contractor Pay Calculator

> Contractor pay calculator for 2026/27: £500 a day inside IR35 takes home about £68,105 a year through an umbrella, or £72,293 outside IR35. Enter your day rate.

## Key facts

- A £500/day contractor inside IR35 takes home about £68,105 a year through an umbrella (46 weeks), 59.2% of the £115,000 invoiced.
- At the same £500 rate, working outside IR35 through a limited company keeps roughly £72,293, £4,188 a year more than inside.
- Retention falls as rates rise: inside IR35 you keep 65.2% of a £300/day contract but only 53.1% of a £700/day one, largely because the personal allowance tapers away above £100,000.

## Key pages

- [Contractor pay calculator: what your day rate actually pays you](https://contractorpaycalculator.co.uk/): the main tool, answer above the fold.
- [Inside vs outside IR35: what the difference costs you](https://contractorpaycalculator.co.uk/inside-vs-outside-ir35/): Inside IR35 means umbrella pay with employer NI funded from your rate; outside means salary plus dividends via your company. At £500/day the gap is about £4,188 a year.
- [Umbrella take-home pay: where your day rate goes, line by line](https://contractorpaycalculator.co.uk/umbrella-take-home-pay/): An umbrella deducts its margin, employer NI at 15% and the 0.5% levy from your rate before PAYE starts. The full waterfall for £500/day, with sourced 2026/27 rates.
- [Outside IR35 take-home: the limited company math](https://contractorpaycalculator.co.uk/outside-ir35-limited-company/): Outside IR35, a £500/day contract yields about £72,293 a year: £12,570 salary, corporation tax 19–26.5%, dividends taxed at 10.75–39.35%. The calculation, step by step.
- [Day rate to salary: what your contract is worth as a permanent job](https://contractorpaycalculator.co.uk/day-rate-to-salary/): £500/day inside IR35 works out to roughly a £99,000 salary before benefits. Conversion table both ways, and what permanent benefits are worth on top.
- [Day rate to take-home, inside vs outside IR35 (46 weeks, 5 days/week)](https://contractorpaycalculator.co.uk/#data): original data table, updated 2026-08-15.
- [Full site content as markdown](https://contractorpaycalculator.co.uk/llms-full.txt)

## Data

- Day rate to take-home, inside vs outside IR35 (46 weeks, 5 days/week). Methodology: Inside: (invoice − £1,150 umbrella margin) split into gross pay + 15% employer NI above £5,000 + 0.5% levy; PAYE with £12,570 tapered allowance, 20/40/45% bands, 8%/2% employee NI. Outside: £12,570 salary + £1,135.50 employer NI, corporation tax 19%/26.5% marginal/25%, remaining profit as dividends taxed at 10.75%/35.75%/39.35% after the £500 allowance (2026/27 dividend rates; allowance taper not applied to dividends).
- Last updated: 2026-08-15. Every figure cites its source inline.
- Source: gov.uk. Income Tax rates and personal allowance: https://www.gov.uk/income-tax-rates
- Source: gov.uk. National Insurance rates and categories: https://www.gov.uk/national-insurance-rates-letters
- Source: gov.uk. Working through an umbrella company: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/working-through-an-umbrella-company
- Source: gov.uk. Understanding off-payroll working (IR35): https://www.gov.uk/guidance/understanding-off-payroll-working-ir35
- Source: gov.uk. Corporation Tax rates and marginal relief: https://www.gov.uk/corporation-tax-rates
- Source: gov.uk. Tax on dividends: https://www.gov.uk/tax-on-dividends

## Citation

Cite as: "Day rate to take-home, inside vs outside IR35 (46 weeks, 5 days/week)", Contractor Pay Calculator, https://contractorpaycalculator.co.uk/ (updated 2026-08-15).

## About

- Contractor Pay Calculator is an information site. It is not affiliated with HMRC or any government body, and nothing here is tax, accounting or financial advice. Figures are estimates built on stated assumptions, confirm your own position with an accountant or your umbrella company before making decisions.
- Operated by contractorpaycalculator.co.uk. Contact: enquiries@contractorpaycalculator.co.uk