What actually goes on top of salary

  • Employer National Insurance — 15% of earnings above the £5,000 secondary threshold. For a £30,000 salary that's £3,750 before any allowance.
  • Auto-enrolment pension — you must contribute at least 3% of qualifying earnings (£6,240–£50,270) for eligible staff.
  • The Employment Allowance — most small employers can claim up to £10,500 to offset employer NI, which frequently makes the first few hires NI-free in practice.
Don't forget the one-off and hidden costs Recruitment, a laptop and software seats, added insurance, training and the founder-hours to manage someone all sit outside this calculator. Model the loaded cost with a start date in your cashflow before you make the offer.

Making the first hire

Before payday you'll need to register as an employer for PAYE, set up auto-enrolment, check right-to-work and issue a written statement of employment. We run payroll from £8 per employee per month and handle all of it — see get started.