Three in four UK adults don’t know their take home pay when accepting a job

•  Surprising new figures show most workers are in the dark about how much money they will earn.
• MoneyHelper has launched a free salary calculator to help people see their take-home pay and compare salaries.
• Thousands have benefitted from new tool since its launch, with majority earning under £30,000 a year.

The surprising statistic has been laid bare as part of a new survey of more than 2,000 adults, which found that although almost half of employees (44%) said salary is the only or main thing they consider when choosing a job, just a quarter (24%) knew exactly how much money they would actually receive in their bank account.

To help people make more informed decisions, MoneyHelper, a free and impartial money and pensions guidance service operated by MaPS, has launched a free salary calculatorOpens in a new window that shows what you’ll typically earn after tax, National Insurance and other deductions.

The new tool also lets you compare two different salaries side-by-side, which can be useful if you’re weighing up a job offer, a promotion, or a change in hours. Additionally, it signposts users to further financial guidance through MoneyHelper, including budgeting tools, savings tips and help with benefits.

Anna Sharkey, Head of Money and Pensions Policy and Propositions at the Money and Pensions Service, says:

“People’s salaries can change; whether it’s starting a new job, getting a promotion or reducing your hours. This new tool will help people in all stages of their working life to understand how much they’ll take home after a hard-day's work.

“It’s so important that people know how much money they’re actually making, rather than what their salary looks like on paper. It’s only after knowing what you’ll be taking home that you can start budgeting effectively and save.”

The calculator is free, impartial and quick to use, with advanced options to explore the impact on your take home-pay of starting pension contributions, making student loan repayments or crossing state pension age.

Since launching last month, the tool has been used over 70,000 times, with more than half of users earning under £30,000 a year and a third under £10,000, demonstrating its value to those on the lowest incomes.

To use the free tool and for more impartial money and pensions guidance, visit the MoneyHelper websiteOpens in a new window.

– ENDS –

• All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc.  
• The total sample size was 2,130 adults. Of these, 1,157 were employees, and 652 started their job within the past five years. 
• Fieldwork was undertaken between 2 and 8 April 2026.  
• The survey was carried out online.  
• The figures have been weighted and are representative of all UK adults (aged 18+). 
• * Take home pay refers to the amount of salary that gets paid into your bank account each month after tax, National Insurance and other deductions have been made by your employer. Of those surveyed just 24% knew the exact figure. 51% of respondents had a rough idea of their take home pay, 21% of those surveyed did not know, while 4% could not remember.
• Of those surveyed, over a quarter (27%) had been in their current job for between 3 and 5 years. 
• Of those people who are employed, more than half (54%) said they were very or quite likely to use a salary calculator if they were considering a new job. 

• MoneyHelper was launched in June 2021 as a consumer-facing service to offer free and impartial money and pensions guidance.
• It brings together the support and services of three former government-backed financial guidance providers: Money Advice Service, The Pensions Advisory Service and Pension Wise.
• MoneyHelper offers free, impartial help for money and pensions that’s quick to find, easy to use and backed by government.
• The service offers clear guidance online, over the phone and face-to-face and also points users to trusted services, if they need more support.