NHS Band 4 Salary Calculator

The NHS Band 4 Salary Calculator estimates earnings for Agenda for Change employees in England using the pay point, contracted hours and workplace location entered. It shows how basic salary and HCAS combine before estimating pension, Income Tax and employee National Insurance.

The output is intended for planning rather than payroll confirmation. Tax codes, student loans, salary sacrifice, overtime, arrears and other individual deductions can make an actual payslip different.

Which Band 4 Figures Can You Estimate?

The calculator converts the selected Band 4 salary into a personalised gross and take-home estimate. Its results cover:

• Full-time or part-time basic salary
• Inner London, Outer London or Fringe HCAS
• Annual, monthly and weekly gross earnings
• Gross hourly pay
• NHS Pension contribution tier and estimated payment
• Estimated Income Tax and employee National Insurance
• Annual and monthly take-home pay

For England in 2026/27, Band 4 has an entry salary of £28,392 and a top salary of £31,157. The NHS Pay Bands Overview places these amounts alongside the other Agenda for Change bands.

Using the Calculator and Reading the Result

Begin by selecting the pay point confirmed in your employment or payroll information:

• Entry — £28,392
• Top — £31,157

Enter your normal contracted hours per week. A full-time Agenda for Change working week is normally 37.5 hours. When a lower figure is entered, the calculator reduces basic salary and HCAS to the corresponding FTE proportion.

Select the HCAS area assigned to your workplace. Choose from Outside HCAS, Inner London, Outer London or Fringe. HCAS is linked to the location of the NHS workplace rather than the employee’s home address.

Finally, choose whether to include NHS Pension contributions and press Calculate. Basic salary, HCAS, gross earnings and estimated deductions will appear as separate figures.

Entry Salary with Inner London HCAS

This worked example follows the values used for the calculator test:

• Pay point: Entry
• Full-time salary: £28,392
• Weekly hours: 37.5
• Workplace area: Inner London
• NHS Pension: Included

The employee’s FTE proportion is:

37.5 ÷ 37.5 = 1.00

Because the employee is full-time, no reduction is made to basic salary:

£28,392 × 1.00 = £28,392

Inner London HCAS is calculated at 20%, subject to its full-time annual minimum and maximum:

£28,392 × 20% = £5,678.40

The percentage result is lower than the £5,794 Inner London minimum for 2026/27. The minimum therefore replaces the percentage amount:

£28,392 + £5,794 = £34,186 annual gross pay

The gross-pay results are:

• Annual gross pay: £34,186.00
• Monthly gross pay: £2,848.83
• Weekly gross pay: £655.62
• Gross hourly rate: £17.48

Annual pensionable earnings of £34,186 fall within the 8.3% NHS Pension tier:

£34,186 × 8.3% = £2,837.438

Displayed annual pension contribution:

£2,837.44

For the Income Tax estimate, the unrounded pension contribution is deducted first:

£34,186 − £2,837.438 = £31,348.562

The standard £12,570 Personal Allowance is then applied:

£31,348.562 − £12,570 = £18,778.562

Estimated Income Tax:

£18,778.562 × 20% = £3,755.7124

Displayed Income Tax:

£3,755.71

Employee National Insurance is estimated from gross earnings:

£34,186 − £12,570 = £21,616

£21,616 × 8% = £1,729.28

Estimated annual take-home pay:

£34,186 − £2,837.438 − £3,755.7124 − £1,729.28 = £25,863.5696

Displayed annual take-home pay:

£25,863.57

Estimated monthly take-home pay:

£25,863.5696 ÷ 12 = £2,155.30

The calculation retains full decimal values until the results are displayed. Manually combining already-rounded figures may therefore produce a one-penny difference.

How Pay Point, Hours and HCAS Change Band 4 Pay

The £28,392 entry point and £31,157 top point apply in England from 1 April 2026. The published structure shows three years until eligibility for progression to the top point, but movement is subject to the relevant pay-step requirements. The calculator does not assume that an employee has qualified for progression automatically.

Employees comparing a Band 4 role with the preceding support level can review the NHS Band 3 Salary Calculator. Where a job carries registered professional or greater clinical responsibility, the NHS Band 5 Salary Calculator provides the next relevant salary comparison.

Part-time basic salary follows this formula:

Selected full-time salary × contracted weekly hours ÷ 37.5

HCAS requires a separate two-stage calculation. The appropriate percentage, minimum and maximum are first applied to full-time salary. That full-time supplement is then multiplied by the employee’s FTE proportion.

The pension tier is selected from estimated actual annual pensionable pay, including HCAS. This means changing the pay point, contracted hours or HCAS area may also change the contribution tier. Selecting No — exclude pension removes the pension deduction from the estimate.

Income Tax uses the standard £12,570 Personal Allowance for England. National Insurance uses the 2026/27 employee Class 1 annual thresholds. NHS salary values apply from 1 April 2026, while the tax assumptions relate to the tax year beginning on 6 April 2026.

Employees who need to explore additional deductions can compare the result with the NHS Take-Home Pay Calculator.

The Band 4 figures and progression period can be checked against the official NHS Employers 2026/27 pay scales. Other pay and deduction tools are available from the NHS salary calculators homepage.

FAQs

Q1: What is the NHS Band 4 salary in England for 2026/27?
A: The entry salary is £28,392 and the top salary is £31,157 from 1 April 2026.

Q2: How long does Band 4 pay progression take?
A: The published pay structure shows three years until eligibility for the top point. Progression remains subject to the applicable pay-step requirements.

Q3: Can the calculator estimate part-time Band 4 earnings?
A: Yes. Enter the contracted weekly hours and the calculator will apply the resulting FTE proportion to basic salary and HCAS.

Q4: How is London HCAS calculated for part-time staff?
A: The full-time percentage, minimum or maximum is established first. That full-time HCAS value is then reduced according to the employee’s FTE proportion.

Q5: Does HCAS affect the pension contribution tier?
A: HCAS is included in the estimated pensionable pay used by this calculator. The resulting annual amount determines which contribution tier is applied.

Q6: Does the calculator show Band 4 take-home pay?
A: Yes. It estimates annual and monthly take-home pay after NHS Pension contributions, Income Tax and employee National Insurance.

Q7: What deductions are not covered?
A: Student-loan repayments, salary sacrifice, overtime adjustments, tax-code changes and other individual payroll deductions are not included.

Q8: Can these results be used outside England?
A: No. The calculator uses England’s Band 4 salary, HCAS and tax assumptions. NHS pay arrangements in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland should be checked separately.