Side Hustle Tax Calculator UK
Work out the Income Tax and National Insurance due on your side hustle earnings, taking your main job income, the £1,000 trading allowance, and any business expenses into account.
Side Hustle Tax Projection
Enter your income details to estimate what you’ll owe HMRC
Your gross salary from PAYE employment, before tax. Enter 0 if the side hustle is your only income.
Gross income from your side hustle before any deductions.
Choose the £1,000 tax-free trading allowance, or deduct your real expenses instead.
Your Side Hustle Tax Estimate
Income Tax and National Insurance breakdown
Enter your income details above and click Calculate Tax Due to reveal your side hustle tax projection.
UK Income Tax & NI Thresholds 2025/26
Quickly reference the Income Tax bands and self-employed National Insurance thresholds used to estimate side hustle tax (England, Wales & Northern Ireland rates).
| Band / Allowance | Threshold | Rate |
|---|---|---|
| Trading Allowance | Up to £1,000 | 0% (Tax-Free) |
| Personal Allowance | Up to £12,570 | 0% |
| Basic Rate | £12,571 – £50,270 | 20% |
| Higher Rate | £50,271 – £125,140 | 40% |
| Additional Rate | Over £125,140 | 45% |
| Class 4 NI (Self-Employed Profit) | £12,570 – £50,270 | 6% |
| Class 4 NI (Self-Employed Profit) | Over £50,270 | 2% |
Side Hustle Tax FAQ
Everything you need to know about paying tax on side income, the trading allowance, and when you need to register with HMRC.
Generally yes. Income from a side hustle, whether it’s freelancing, reselling, content creation, or another trade, is treated the same as any other self-employment income by HMRC. It is added to your other income and taxed accordingly once it exceeds the tax-free trading allowance.
The trading allowance lets you earn up to £1,000 in gross side hustle income each tax year completely tax-free, with no need to register for Self Assessment or report it to HMRC. If your income is above £1,000, you can either deduct the £1,000 allowance from your income instead of your actual expenses, or deduct your real allowable expenses, whichever works out better for you.
If your side hustle income before expenses is more than £1,000 in a tax year, you generally need to register for Self Assessment with HMRC and file a return, even if you also have a full-time job. This applies regardless of whether the activity feels like a ‘proper business’ or just something you do casually alongside employment.
Side hustle profits are added on top of your other taxable income, such as employment earnings, and taxed at your marginal rate. If your main job already uses up your Personal Allowance and pushes you into the basic rate band, your side hustle profit is likely to be taxed at the next applicable rate, which could be the basic, higher, or additional rate depending on your total income.
If your side hustle counts as self-employment and your profits exceed the relevant threshold, you may need to pay Class 4 National Insurance on those profits, in addition to any Class 1 National Insurance already deducted from your main employment. Class 2 National Insurance was abolished for most self-employed people from April 2024, though voluntary payments can still protect your state pension record.
If you don’t use the trading allowance, you can instead deduct legitimate business expenses that were incurred wholly and exclusively for the side hustle, such as materials, a proportion of home office costs, equipment, software subscriptions, or travel between business locations. You cannot deduct both the trading allowance and actual expenses for the same income in the same tax year.