NHS Band 5 pay 2026/27
A full-time Band 5 starts on £32,073, about £2,040 a month after tax, NI and pension, rising to £39,043 at the top step.
Band 5 pay and take-home at each step
Full time (37.5 hours a week), outside London, paying into the NHS Pension, with tax code 1257L and no student loan. The step names are our labels; the years come from NHS Employers' pay scales.
| Step | Pay a year | Pension | Income tax | NI | Take-home a year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Entry | £32,073 | £2,662 (8.3%) | £3,368 | £1,560 | £24,483 |
| Intermediate (after 2 years) | £34,592 | £2,871 (8.3%) | £3,830 | £1,762 | £26,129 |
| Top (after 4 years) | £39,043 | £3,826 (9.8%) | £4,529 | £2,118 | £28,570 |
Monthly figures
Deductions are NHS Pension, income tax and National Insurance. Each figure is rounded to the nearest pound, so the columns may not add up exactly.
| Step | Pay a month | Deductions a month | Take-home a month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Entry | £2,673 | £633 | £2,040 |
| Intermediate (after 2 years) | £2,883 | £705 | £2,177 |
| Top (after 4 years) | £3,254 | £873 | £2,381 |
Every Band 5 pay point is 3.3% higher than in 2025/26, after the 2026/27 pay award. The award took effect from 1 April 2026 and was paid in April 2026 salaries.
Band 5 pay in London
Staff in Inner London, Outer London and the fringe areas get a high cost area supplement on top of basic pay. It is 20%, 15% or 5% of basic pay, held between a minimum and maximum, and it counts towards your pension rate. Figures are full time with NHS Pension contributions.
| Area | Supplement (entry) | Take-home a month (entry) | Supplement (top) | Take-home a month (top) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Outside London | None | £2,040 | None | £2,381 |
| Fringe | £1,603.65 | £2,128 | £1,952.15 | £2,485 |
| Outer London | £4,870 | £2,269 | £5,856.45 | £2,694 |
| Inner London | £6,414.60 | £2,351 | £7,808.60 | £2,798 |
Band 5 part-time pay
Part-time pay is pro rata: the full-time salary × your hours ÷ 37.5. Your NHS Pension rate is based on what you actually earn, so it can be lower when you work fewer hours. These figures are for the entry step, outside London.
| Hours a week | Pay a year | Pension rate | Take-home a year | Take-home a month |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 37.5 (full time) | £32,073 | 8.3% | £24,483 | £2,040 |
| 30 | £25,658 | 6.5% | £20,659 | £1,722 |
| 22.5 | £19,244 | 6.5% | £16,374 | £1,365 |
| 15 | £12,829 | 5.2% | £12,141 | £1,012 |
Who is on Band 5?
Examples of roles at Band 5 listed by NHS Health Careers include ICT test analyst and many newly qualified clinical professionals, such as nurses, operating department practitioners (ODPs), podiatrists and therapeutic radiographers. Your band depends on the job description, so check your contract or job advert. Source: Agenda for Change pay rates (NHS Health Careers).
Could 2026/27 pay change?
A separate reform of the Agenda for Change pay structure is being negotiated through the NHS Staff Council. If a deal is agreed, pay for some staff could change, with any increases backdated to 1 April 2026. As of 12 October 2026 no new pay scales had been published, so the figures here may change if a deal is agreed. We will update these pages if that happens.
More NHS pay
Compare with Band 4 pay or Band 6 pay, or see every band and step in the NHS pay calculator. Working extra shifts? Try the overtime calculator. For any other salary, use the take home pay calculator.
How this is worked out
We take the full-time salary for your band and step from the NHS Employers 2026/27 pay scales, scale it by your hours ÷ 37.5, and add any high cost area supplement. Your NHS Pension rate is picked from your actual yearly pensionable pay and taken off before income tax. Income tax, National Insurance and student loan then use the same 2026/27 rules as our take home pay calculator.
What this calculator assumes
- Agenda for Change pay scales for England, effective 1 April 2026, and the 2026/27 tax year with England, Wales and Northern Ireland income tax rates, tax code 1257L and no other income.
- The high cost area supplement is a percentage of basic pay, held between the minimum and maximum. For part-time hours we scale the supplement, including the minimum and maximum, by your hours ÷ 37.5 (our reading of handbook section 11.1, which gives part-time staff the same entitlements pro rata).
- NHS Pension (England and Wales) is one rate on all pensionable pay (basic pay plus any supplement), chosen by your actual yearly pensionable pay. It comes off before income tax; National Insurance and student loan are worked out on full pay.
- Not included: overtime, unsocial hours payments, on-call payments, recruitment and retention premiums, salary sacrifice schemes and employer pension contributions.
- The same pay every month, rounded to the nearest pound. Your payslip works out tax and NI each month, so it can differ by a few pounds.
Sources
- Pay scales for 2026/27 (NHS Employers)
- Cost of being in the NHS Pension Scheme (NHSBSA)
- NHS terms and conditions of service handbook (NHS Employers)
- NHS pay award announcement 2026 (NHS Employers)
- Agenda for Change pay rates (NHS Health Careers)
- Income Tax rates and Personal Allowances (GOV.UK)
- National Insurance: how much you pay (GOV.UK)
- Repaying your student loan: what you pay (GOV.UK)
Checked against NHS Employers, NHSBSA and GOV.UK on 12 October 2026. Read how we calculate or tell us about a mistake.
Frequently asked questions
Full time and outside London, with NHS Pension contributions and no student loan, a Band 5 takes home about £2,040 a month at the entry step and £2,381 at the top step in 2026/27.
NHS Employers' 2026/27 pay scales show 2 years at the entry step and 2 years at the intermediate step before you are eligible to move up, so the top step is usually reached after about 4 years. Your employer will tell you what you need to do to progress.
NHS Health Careers lists newly qualified nurses among the roles at Band 5, along with other newly qualified clinical professionals such as operating department practitioners, podiatrists and therapeutic radiographers. A full-time Band 5 starts on £32,073 in 2026/27.
Full time at the entry step, the high cost area supplement is £6,414.60 a year in Inner London and £4,870 in Outer London (£7,808.60 and £5,856.45 at the top step). It is pensionable, so NHS Pension contributions are taken on it too. With it, Inner London take-home is about £2,351 a month.