In this section: Every tax
What frozen thresholds cost a household
Last updated . Figures refresh every night. How each figure is worked out.
In 2026–27, someone earning £35,000 pays about £979 more in income tax and National Insurance than they would if the thresholds had risen with inflation since 2021; at £50,000 it is £979, and at £70,000 £2,968. Spread across all 28.6 million households, the OBR's estimate for the income tax freezes alone comes to about £1,190 a household. The method and every assumption are below.
Figure as of 1 March 2026. Source: Office for Budget Responsibility, Office for Budget Responsibility.
Key figures
- £979Extra income tax and National Insurance a year at £35,000 Against thresholds that had risen with inflation
- £2,968Extra income tax and National Insurance a year at £70,000 Against thresholds that had risen with inflation
- £42.3bnRaised by the threshold freezes in 2026–27 (OBR estimate) up on a year earlier: +£8.9bn (+26.6%) vs 2025–26
- £1,480Per household, all freezes (28.6 million households) up on a year earlier: +£310 (+26.6%) vs 2025–26
Source: Office for Budget Responsibility.
What does it cost at each salary?
The numbers behind this chart
| Year | Income tax | National Insurance |
|---|---|---|
£25,000Details for £25,000 | £700 | £279 |
| ||
£35,000Details for £35,000 | £700 | £279 |
| ||
£50,000Details for £50,000 | £700 | £279 |
| ||
£70,000Details for £70,000 | £3,540 | £-572 |
| ||
Figure as of 1 March 2026. Source: Office for Budget Responsibility, Office for Budget Responsibility.
Between the frozen higher-rate threshold and where it would have been, the cost is the same at every salary, because it all comes from the Personal Allowance; above that, the higher-rate threshold adds to it. National Insurance can be negative: the upper earnings limit is frozen too, and because pay above it is charged at 2% rather than 8%, a frozen limit keeps some higher earners' pay in the cheaper band. For most salaries the income tax effect is far larger.
What is the national total, per household?
Figure as of 1 March 2026. Source: Office for Budget Responsibility.
Figure as of 1 March 2026. Source: Office for Budget Responsibility.
Figure as of 1 March 2026. Source: Office for Budget Responsibility.
A per-household average is a way of sizing the total, not a bill anyone receives: households that pay no income tax pay none of it, and higher earners pay far more than the average. Household count: 28.6 million UK households, from the ONS Families and households in the UK: 2024.
How is it worked out, and what does it assume?
- Income tax and employee National Insurance are worked out for one employee at each salary, at 2026–27 rates, with the thresholds actually in force.
- The same is worked out with the Personal Allowance at £16,070 and the higher-rate threshold at £64,470: the OBR's estimate of where each would be had it risen with inflation since the freeze began (table 3.19 of the March 2026 outlook).
- The National Insurance primary threshold and upper earnings limit are aligned to those two by law, so they move with them in the counterfactual.
- The difference is the cost of the freeze. Rates are held at today's levels in both, so the comparison isolates the thresholds.
- No pension contributions, no other income, England, Wales or Northern Ireland rates. Scotland's bands differ.
- Allowance cuts on savings, dividends and gains are not included, because what they cost depends entirely on how much someone holds outside an ISA. The allowance cuts page works two examples.
Work out your take-home pay after income tax and National Insurance
Is this the right comparison?
Why inflation-linked uprating is the benchmark
- It is the default in law: the statute uprates by CPI unless Parliament decides otherwise.
- It is the benchmark the OBR uses to cost the freezes.
- It keeps the real value of each threshold constant, which is what "no change" means in real terms.
Why it overstates or understates
- In the 2010s allowances rose faster than inflation, so a longer view would show a smaller gap.
- Wages rather than prices could be the benchmark, which would make the gap larger.
- Governments facing the same deficit would have raised the money some other way.
Common questions
- How much do frozen thresholds cost me?
- Roughly £979 at £25,000, £979 at £35,000, £979 at £50,000, £2,968 at £70,000 a year in 2026–27, against thresholds that had risen with inflation.
Sources for this page
| Source | Publisher | Figures as of | Updated | Licence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Economic and fiscal outlook, March 2026: detailed receipts tables | Office for Budget Responsibility | 1 March 2026 | semiannual | Open Government Licence v3.0 |
| Office for Budget Responsibility, Economic and fiscal outlook, November 2025, Box 3.3 | Office for Budget Responsibility | 22 September 2026 | semiannual | Open Government Licence v3.0 |
Each source's figures are used under the licence shown. Our own words, analysis, charts and derived calculations are ours, under CC BY 4.0.