NHS Agenda for Change Pay Bands
Agenda for Change is the pay system used by most NHS staff in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Staff are placed into one of nine pay bands, each with a set of pay points that form the national NHS pay scales. Rates are updated every April through the annual pay award process.
Your actual take-home pay depends on more than the headline salary. Scotland applies different income tax rates to the rest of the UK, and London staff receive a High Cost Area Supplement (HCAS). Use the band selector below to see how these factors affect your pay.
AfC Pay Bands at a Glance
Salary range for each band with pension and estimated take-home. Click any band for the full breakdown.
NHS Agenda for Change pay bands 2026/27. Grey bars show gross salary range (entry to top of band). Teal bars show salary after NHS Pension contributions. Gold bars show estimated take-home after pension, tax and NI.
Natl Living Wage: £23,810/yr — £12.21/hr × 37.5 hrs/wk
Sources: NHS Employers pay scales 2026/27 · NHS Pension Scheme contribution rates · HMRC income tax rates · National Living Wage rates
| Band | Entry salary | Top salary | Take-home (entry) | Take-home (top) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Band 2 | £25,272 | £25,272 | £20,401 | £20,401 |
| Band 3 | £25,760 | £27,476 | £20,728 | £21,874 |
| Band 4 | £28,392 | £31,157 | £22,486 | £23,884 |
| Band 5 | £32,073 | £39,043 | £24,483 | £28,570 |
| Band 6 | £39,959 | £48,117 | £29,157 | £34,392 |
| Band 7 | £49,387 | £56,515 | £35,206 | £39,708 |
| Band 8a | £57,528 | £64,750 | £40,231 | £43,956 |
| Band 8b | £66,582 | £77,368 | £44,901 | £49,628 |
| Band 8c | £79,504 | £91,609 | £50,707 | £56,820 |
| Band 8d | £94,356 | £108,814 | £58,207 | £65,508 |
| Band 9 | £112,782 | £129,783 | £67,512 | £73,386 |
Pay progression
Each AfC band has a set of pay points. You move up to the next point at your annual pay step date — but progression is not automatic on time served alone. Your employer must confirm at a pay step review that you’ve met the national pay progression standards set out in Annex 23 of the AfC handbook. These include:
- A satisfactory appraisal in the last 12 months
- Completion of all required statutory and mandatory training
- No live formal disciplinary sanction
- Not subject to a formal capability process
- For line managers: completion of appraisals for all staff they manage
Trusts implement these through local pay progression policies, but the criteria above are nationally defined. If you don’t meet the standards at your pay step date, your progression can be deferred until the next review.
Pay on promotion
When you move to a higher band, your pay is set at the minimum of the new band. Since the 2018 AfC reform, adjacent bands no longer overlap, so this always gives a pay rise for standard moves.
Basic pay on promotion will be set at the minimum pay step point of the new pay band. The pay step date will reset to the date the employee starts in the new pay band.
On promotion the new starting salary (made up of basic pay and any unsocial hours payment and/or any long-term recruitment and retention premium) should produce an increase in earnings. If it does not, the previous salary will be maintained until the combination in the new band does produce a higher salary.
Source: NHS Terms and Conditions of Service Handbook, Section 1.17–1.18 (England)
Scotland (Section 1.12–1.13) and Wales/Northern Ireland (Section 6.21) use different section numbers but follow the same principle: promotion should always result in a pay increase. For worked examples see the NHS Employers pay on promotion scenarios.