UK Dividend Tax Calculator (2026/27 and 2025/26)
Dividend tax for 2026/27 (10.75%, 35.75%, 39.35%) or 2025/26 after the £500 allowance, stacked on top of salary and savings: band-by-band breakdown, personal allowance taper, savings allowance, pension contributions, Scottish taxpayers, employee NI for directors and the tax at other dividend levels.
How it works
Order: other income → savings → dividends. Personal allowance £12,570 (cut by £1 for every £2 of income over £100,000) is used in that order. First £500 of dividends is tax-free but still uses up the band. 2026/27 dividend rates: 10.75% up to the £37,700 basic-rate band (£50,270 total income), 35.75% to £125,140, 39.35% above (2025/26: 8.75%, 33.75%, 39.35%). Gross pension contributions widen the bands.
Dividends are taxed last, after salary, pensions, rental profit and savings interest. Their rate depends on where they land in the UK tax bands once your other income is counted. Any unused personal allowance covers dividends first, then the £500 dividend allowance, then each slice is taxed at the dividend rate for its band. From 6 April 2026 the basic and higher dividend rates rose by 2 percentage points, to 10.75% and 35.75%; the additional rate stays at 39.35%. Switch the tax year to 2025/26 for last year’s return. The same UK rates apply in Scotland: Scottish rates change only the tax on your salary or pension. Under More options you can add savings interest (with the starting rate and personal savings allowance), personal pension or Gift Aid payments, which widen the basic-rate band, and employee NI if your other income is a salary, which shows a company director’s full take-home. The table at the bottom shows how the tax grows at other dividend levels.
Worked example
£12,570 salary plus £30,000 dividends in 2026/27: the salary uses the whole personal allowance, the first £500 of dividends is covered by the allowance, and the other £29,500 falls in the basic-rate band at 10.75% = £3,171 (an effective 10.6%). In 2025/26 the same dividends cost £2,581 at 8.75%. With £40,000 of dividends instead, £37,200 is taxed at 10.75% (£3,999) and £2,300 at 35.75% (£822.25), £4,821 in all.
Sources: GOV.UK — Tax on dividends · GOV.UK — Change to tax rates for property, savings and dividend income (technical note) · GOV.UK — Rates and thresholds for employers 2026 to 2027 · GOV.UK — Tax on savings interest
Frequently asked questions
Do dividends attract National Insurance?
No — neither employee nor employer NI, which is the main reason the salary-plus-dividends structure is cheaper.
Do I need to report them?
Over £10,000 of dividends requires a Self Assessment return; smaller amounts can be dealt with through your tax code.
What changed in April 2026?
The dividend ordinary rate went from 8.75% to 10.75% and the upper rate from 33.75% to 35.75% from 6 April 2026. The additional rate (39.35%) and the £500 allowance did not change. Use the tax year switch to compare.
Does the £500 dividend allowance push me into a higher band?
It can. The allowance makes the first £500 tax-free, but that £500 still counts as income and uses up part of your basic-rate band, so more of your other dividends can reach the higher rate.
Are Scottish taxpayers charged dividend tax differently?
No. Dividend and savings income is taxed at UK rates and bands everywhere in the UK. Scottish rates apply only to earnings, pensions and property income, so they change your total bill but not the dividend tax itself.
How do pension contributions reduce dividend tax?
Personal pension contributions and Gift Aid paid with relief at source widen your basic-rate band by the gross amount. Dividends that would have been taxed at 35.75% can then fall into the 10.75% band, and above £100,000 the contribution also restores personal allowance.
Related calculators
Uses UK dividend and savings rates and the 2026/27 or 2025/26 personal allowance and bands; Scottish rates for non-savings income where selected. Thresholds change every April — check GOV.UK. Educational estimate, not tax advice.