Student Loan Repayment Calculator
Check how much of your pay goes to your student loan in 2026/27. Choose your plan, enter your salary and see your monthly, weekly and annual repayments — and the salary below which you pay nothing.
Last updated 2 July 2026 · Written and reviewed by Mustafa Bilgic
Student loan repayment calculator
All five UK plans, 2026/27 thresholds.
Estimate only — figures use the latest published UK rates. Always confirm on GOV.UK.
How student loan repayments work
UK student loans are not repaid like a normal debt. You repay 9% of your income above your plan's threshold — 6% for Postgraduate Loans — and nothing at all on income below it. The size of the loan makes no difference to the monthly amount; only your salary and your plan matter. For employees, repayments are deducted through PAYE alongside income tax and National Insurance, so they appear on your payslip automatically. If your pay drops below the threshold, deductions simply stop. To see the deduction in the context of your whole payslip, try our take-home pay calculator.
On a salary of £32,000 on Plan 2, you repay 9% of the £2,615 above the £29,385 threshold — £235.35 a year, roughly £19 a month after payroll rounding, or about £4.53 a week.
2026/27 repayment thresholds
| Plan | Annual threshold | Rate above threshold |
|---|---|---|
| Plan 1 | £26,900 | 9% |
| Plan 2 | £29,385 | 9% |
| Plan 4 (Scotland) | £33,795 | 9% |
| Plan 5 | £25,000 | 9% |
| Postgraduate Loan | £21,000 | 6% |
The Plan 2 threshold rose from £28,470 to £29,385 this April, and is due to be frozen at £29,385 for three years from April 2027. Plan 5 has the lowest undergraduate threshold at £25,000, so English students who started courses from August 2023 begin repaying at a lower salary than their Plan 2 predecessors did.
Which plan are you on?
Plan 5 applies to English students who started courses from August 2023. Plan 2 covers English and Welsh students who started between September 2012 and July 2023. Plan 4 is the Scottish plan, and Plan 1 covers older loans. If you are unsure, your online repayment account with the Student Loans Company confirms it, and the rules are set out on GOV.UK. Choosing the wrong plan in a calculator is the most common reason an estimate does not match a payslip — the thresholds differ by thousands of pounds.
What it means for your take-home pay
A student loan works like an extra 9p-in-the-pound deduction on income above the threshold. A Plan 2 graduate paying basic-rate income tax (20%) and National Insurance (8%) keeps roughly 63p of each extra £1 earned above the threshold once the 9% loan deduction is added. In practice payroll rounds each deduction down to the nearest whole pound, which is why twelve monthly deductions can add up to slightly less than the annual figure shown above — a small quirk that works in your favour.
Repayments are also collected on earnings, not just salary: overtime, bonuses and commission all count in the pay period they are paid. The self-employed settle their student loan through Self Assessment instead, based on annual income.
Frequently asked questions
How are student loan repayments calculated?
You repay 9% of your income above your plan's threshold — 6% for Postgraduate Loans. On Plan 2, with a £29,385 threshold, someone earning £32,000 repays 9% of £2,615: £235.35 a year, or roughly £19 a month taken through PAYE alongside tax and National Insurance.
Which student loan plan am I on?
Plan 5 covers English students who started courses from August 2023. Plan 2 covers English and Welsh students who started between September 2012 and July 2023. Plan 4 is the Scottish plan, and Plan 1 covers older loans. You can confirm your plan in your online repayment account with the Student Loans Company.
When do repayments stop?
Repayments stop when the loan is paid off or written off. Plan 2 loans are written off 30 years after the April you were first due to repay, and Plan 5 loans after 40 years. You also pay nothing in any period your income sits below your plan's threshold.
Do overtime and bonuses affect my repayments?
Yes. Deductions are worked out each pay period, not once a year, so a month with overtime or a bonus can push more of that month's pay above the threshold and increase that month's deduction — even if your annual salary is below the yearly threshold.
Can I repay an undergraduate and a Postgraduate Loan at the same time?
Yes. If you have both, you repay 9% of income above your undergraduate plan's threshold plus 6% of income above the £21,000 Postgraduate Loan threshold — a combined 15% on income above both thresholds. Tick the box in the calculator to see the combined figure.