A constable in England and Wales starts on £31,164 and takes home about £1,896 a month. At the top of the constable scale, £50,256 becomes about £2,844 a month. The difference between the published salary and the money in your account is the police pension contribution - 12.88% or 13.88% depending on the pay point - then income tax and National Insurance.
Police salaries are not negotiated personally. They are set by Annex F of the Police Regulations 2003, reviewed each year by the Police Remuneration Review Body and applied force by force. This guide gives the determination in force for officers from Constable to Superintendent, and what each published pay point is worth after deductions.
The figures below are the 1 September 2025 determination, because that is still the determination in force. The PRRB Twelfth Report on England and Wales 2026 recommends a consolidated 3.9% increase from 1 September 2026, but Home Office circular 011/2026, issued on 31 July 2026, still carries the 1 September 2025 Annexes. We publish determined rates, not arithmetic applied to a recommendation, so the 2026/27 per-rank tables will go up here when the amended determination appears.
To check whether the tax, NI and PAYE lines look right on your own slip, see How do I check my payslip is correct?.
Every figure below is a published 1 September 2025 rate from the Home Office determination.
Want to check if your own payslip adds up?
What each rank takes home
Every figure in the tables below is computed, not typed: the salary comes from the Home Office determination, the pension rate from the published Police Pension Scheme 2015 contribution tiers, and the income tax and National Insurance from the same 2026/27 constants the site's calculators use. The pension contribution comes off before income tax but not before National Insurance, which is the part most take-home estimates get wrong.
Constable: take-home at each published pay point
Salaries as determined, in force from 1 September 2025. Deductions on the 2026/27 tax year: Police Pension Scheme 2015 contribution, income tax on the standard 1257L code with rest-of-UK bands, and Class 1 National Insurance on category A. No student loan and no overtime, allowances or enhancements.
| Pay point | Salary / year | Pension / year | Income tax / year | NI / year | Take-home / year | Take-home / month |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pay point 1 | £31,164 | £4,014 (12.88%) | £2,916 | £1,488 | £22,747 | £1,896 |
| Pay point 2 | £32,472 | £4,182 (12.88%) | £3,144 | £1,592 | £23,554 | £1,963 |
| Pay point 3 | £33,789 | £4,352 (12.88%) | £3,373 | £1,698 | £24,366 | £2,031 |
| Pay point 4 | £35,106 | £4,522 (12.88%) | £3,603 | £1,803 | £25,179 | £2,098 |
| Pay point 5 | £37,737 | £5,238 (13.88%) | £3,986 | £2,013 | £26,500 | £2,208 |
| Pay point 6 | £43,038 | £5,974 (13.88%) | £4,899 | £2,437 | £29,728 | £2,477 |
| Pay point 7 | £50,256 | £6,976 (13.88%) | £6,142 | £3,015 | £34,124 | £2,844 |
- From £31,164 to £50,256 is £19,092 of gross progression and £11,377 after deductions, which is £948 a month, or 60p in the pound.
- The top of the grade is £50,256, but the 13.88% pension contribution comes off before tax, so income tax is charged on £43,280. That is £6,990 short of £50,270, so no part of this grade is taxed at 40% on basic pay alone.
- Sergeant (pay point 2) starts at £53,568, £3,312 above the top of this grade and about £185 a month more in the hand.
Salary source: Home Office circular 011/2026, Annex F (Police Regulations 2003). Forces other than the Metropolitan and City of London, which have their own tables from inspector upwards, and before London weighting of £3,150 or a South East allowance. Pension tiers: Home Office, report to Parliament on the member contribution structure. The contribution comes off before income tax but not before National Insurance, so the figure tax is charged on is lower than the salary and the figure NI is charged on is not. Work out your own figures on the take-home calculator.
Sergeant: take-home at each published pay point
Salaries as determined, in force from 1 September 2025. Deductions on the 2026/27 tax year: Police Pension Scheme 2015 contribution, income tax on the standard 1257L code with rest-of-UK bands, and Class 1 National Insurance on category A. No student loan and no overtime, allowances or enhancements.
| Pay point | Salary / year | Pension / year | Income tax / year | NI / year | Take-home / year | Take-home / month |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pay point 2 (entry) | £53,568 | £7,435 (13.88%) | £6,713 | £3,082 | £36,338 | £3,028 |
| Pay point 3 | £54,660 | £7,587 (13.88%) | £6,901 | £3,104 | £37,069 | £3,089 |
| Pay point 4 (top) | £56,208 | £7,802 (13.88%) | £7,167 | £3,135 | £38,104 | £3,175 |
- From £53,568 to £56,208 is £2,640 of gross progression and £1,766 after deductions, which is £147 a month, or 67p in the pound.
- The top of the grade is £56,208, but the 13.88% pension contribution comes off before tax, so income tax is charged on £48,406. That is £1,864 short of £50,270, so no part of this grade is taxed at 40% on basic pay alone.
- Inspector (pay point 0) starts at £63,768, £7,560 above the top of this grade and about £344 a month more in the hand.
Salary source: Home Office circular 011/2026, Annex F (Police Regulations 2003). Forces other than the Metropolitan and City of London, which have their own tables from inspector upwards, and before London weighting of £3,150 or a South East allowance. Pension tiers: Home Office, report to Parliament on the member contribution structure. The contribution comes off before income tax but not before National Insurance, so the figure tax is charged on is lower than the salary and the figure NI is charged on is not. Work out your own figures on the take-home calculator.
Two things in those tables are worth saying in words, because they are the opposite of what most officers expect.
No point on the constable or sergeant scale is taxed at 40% on basic pay. The top of the sergeant scale is £56,208, which is £5,938 above the £50,270 higher-rate threshold - but the 13.88% pension contribution comes off before income tax is worked out, so the figure tax is charged on is £48,406. Overtime, allowances and unsocial-hours payments can still push a month into the 40% band; basic pay on its own does not.
Promotion is worth less in the hand than the headline gap suggests. Sergeant entry is £3,312 above the top of the constable scale, which is about £185 a month more after deductions - 67p of every extra pound. Chief inspector to superintendent is £11,028 gross and about £442 a month, which is 48p in the pound, because that step sits wholly inside the 40% band.
How police pay is structured
Police officer pay in England and Wales is governed by the Police Regulations 2003 and reviewed annually by the Police Remuneration Review Body (PRRB), an independent panel that recommends pay awards to the Home Secretary. For 2025/26 the Government accepted a 4.2% consolidated increase, applied from 1 September 2025 to all ranks up to and including Chief Superintendent.
A few principles shape every officer's pay:
- Rank sets the scale. Each rank (Constable, Sergeant, Inspector, and so on) has its own pay scale with a fixed set of pay points.
- Pay points set the position on the scale. New entrants start at the bottom point and move up one point a year, subject to meeting the Pay Progression Standard.
- Allowances sit on top. London weighting, the London allowance, regional South East allowances and role-specific payments (for example, the dog handler's allowance) are added to basic pay where they apply.
- The award is dated, not calendar-year. Pay rises take effect from 1 September each year, so the "2025/26" scale is the one running from 1 September 2025.
The tables below show the 1 September 2025 scales, which remain the determined rates (see the note on 2026/27 near the end of this guide).
Constable pay scale (pay points 0 to 7)
There are two Constable scales: one for officers appointed on or after 1 April 2013, and a separate, slightly higher legacy scale for those appointed before that date. Most serving and new officers are on the post-2013 scale.
New constables join at pay point 1 and move up one point each year. On completion of two years' service, an officer moves to the salary shown at the equivalent progression point.
Constable - appointed on or after 1 April 2013 (2025/26)
| Pay point | From 1 Sep 2025 |
|---|---|
| 1 (entry) | £31,164 |
| 2 | £32,472 |
| 3 | £33,789 |
| 4 | £35,106 |
| 5 | £37,737 |
| 6 | £43,038 |
| 7 (top) | £50,256 |
Source: Home Office circular 011/2026, Annex F, the determination in force. These are the rates that apply until a 2026 determination is published.
From 1 April 2025, a chief officer may, where necessary to meet local recruitment needs, assign new constables to pay point 2 on appointment rather than pay point 1.
Constable - appointed before 1 April 2013 (legacy scale)
| Pay point | From 1 Sep 2025 |
|---|---|
| 0 | £32,820 |
| 1 | £36,375 |
| 2 | £38,346 |
| 3 | £40,557 |
| 4 | £41,766 |
| 5 | £43,038 |
| 6 | £46,626 |
| 7 (top) | £50,256 |
Source: Home Office circular 011/2026, Annex F, the determination in force. These are the rates that apply until a 2026 determination is published.
Sergeant, Inspector, Chief Inspector and Superintendent pay
Above Constable, each rank has its own short scale. Officers are promoted onto the relevant entry point and progress annually. The Inspector and Chief Inspector ranks have separate, higher London pay points; the figures below are the national (non-London) scales unless stated.
Annex F numbers the Inspector scale from 0, not from 1, so an inspector's first point is pay point 0 and the top of the scale is pay point 3. Sergeant, Chief Inspector and Superintendent are numbered from 1 (the sergeant scale from 2, since point 1 was removed in September 2020). Getting the Inspector numbering wrong shifts every point by one rung.
| Rank | Pay point | From 1 Sep 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| Sergeant | 2 (entry) | £53,568 |
| Sergeant | 3 | £54,660 |
| Sergeant | 4 (top) | £56,208 |
| Inspector | 0 (entry) | £63,768 |
| Inspector | 1 | £65,505 |
| Inspector | 2 | £67,236 |
| Inspector | 3 (top) | £68,982 |
| Chief Inspector | 1 (entry) | £70,344 |
| Chief Inspector | 2 | £71,715 |
| Chief Inspector | 3 (top) | £73,149 |
| Superintendent | 1 (entry) | £84,177 |
| Superintendent | 2 | £88,449 |
| Superintendent | 3 | £92,955 |
| Superintendent | 4 (top) | £99,015 |
Source: Home Office circular 011/2026, Annex F, the determination in force. These are the rates that apply until a 2026 determination is published.
Inspector: take-home at each published pay point
Salaries as determined, in force from 1 September 2025. Deductions on the 2026/27 tax year: Police Pension Scheme 2015 contribution, income tax on the standard 1257L code with rest-of-UK bands, and Class 1 National Insurance on category A. No student loan and no overtime, allowances or enhancements.
| Pay point | Salary / year | Pension / year | Income tax / year | NI / year | Take-home / year | Take-home / month |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pay point 0 | £63,768 | £8,851 (13.88%) | £9,399 | £3,286 | £42,232 | £3,519 |
| Pay point 1 | £65,505 | £9,092 (13.88%) | £9,997 | £3,321 | £43,095 | £3,591 |
| Pay point 2 | £67,236 | £9,332 (13.88%) | £10,593 | £3,355 | £43,955 | £3,663 |
| Pay point 3 (top) | £68,982 | £9,575 (13.88%) | £11,195 | £3,390 | £44,822 | £3,735 |
- From £63,768 to £68,982 is £5,214 of gross progression and £2,590 after deductions, which is £216 a month, or 50p in the pound.
- Pension comes off before tax and every step still clears £50,270: £63,768 at Pay point 0 is taxed on £54,917, £4,647 above the threshold. At the top, £68,982 is taxed on £59,407, of which £9,137 falls in the 40% band.
- Chief inspector (pay point 1) starts at £70,344, £1,362 above the top of this grade and about £56 a month more in the hand.
Salary source: Home Office circular 011/2026, Annex F (Police Regulations 2003). Forces other than the Metropolitan and City of London, which have their own tables from inspector upwards, and before London weighting of £3,150 or a South East allowance. Pension tiers: Home Office, report to Parliament on the member contribution structure. The contribution comes off before income tax but not before National Insurance, so the figure tax is charged on is lower than the salary and the figure NI is charged on is not. Work out your own figures on the take-home calculator.
Chief inspector: take-home at each published pay point
Salaries as determined, in force from 1 September 2025. Deductions on the 2026/27 tax year: Police Pension Scheme 2015 contribution, income tax on the standard 1257L code with rest-of-UK bands, and Class 1 National Insurance on category A. No student loan and no overtime, allowances or enhancements.
| Pay point | Salary / year | Pension / year | Income tax / year | NI / year | Take-home / year | Take-home / month |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pay point 1 (entry) | £70,344 | £9,764 (13.88%) | £11,664 | £3,417 | £45,499 | £3,792 |
| Pay point 2 | £71,715 | £9,954 (13.88%) | £12,136 | £3,445 | £46,180 | £3,848 |
| Pay point 3 (top) | £73,149 | £10,153 (13.88%) | £12,630 | £3,474 | £46,892 | £3,908 |
- From £70,344 to £73,149 is £2,805 of gross progression and £1,393 after deductions, which is £116 a month, or 50p in the pound.
- Pension comes off before tax and every step still clears £50,270: £70,344 at Pay point 1 (entry) is taxed on £60,580, £10,310 above the threshold. At the top, £73,149 is taxed on £62,996, of which £12,726 falls in the 40% band.
- Superintendent (pay point 1) starts at £84,177, £11,028 above the top of this grade and about £442 a month more in the hand.
Salary source: Home Office circular 011/2026, Annex F (Police Regulations 2003). Forces other than the Metropolitan and City of London, which have their own tables from inspector upwards, and before London weighting of £3,150 or a South East allowance. Pension tiers: Home Office, report to Parliament on the member contribution structure. The contribution comes off before income tax but not before National Insurance, so the figure tax is charged on is lower than the salary and the figure NI is charged on is not. Work out your own figures on the take-home calculator.
Superintendent: take-home at each published pay point
Salaries as determined, in force from 1 September 2025. Deductions on the 2026/27 tax year: Police Pension Scheme 2015 contribution, income tax on the standard 1257L code with rest-of-UK bands, and Class 1 National Insurance on category A. No student loan and no overtime, allowances or enhancements.
| Pay point | Salary / year | Pension / year | Income tax / year | NI / year | Take-home / year | Take-home / month |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pay point 1 (entry) | £84,177 | £11,970 (14.22%) | £16,315 | £3,694 | £52,198 | £4,350 |
| Pay point 2 | £88,449 | £12,577 (14.22%) | £17,781 | £3,780 | £54,311 | £4,526 |
| Pay point 3 | £92,955 | £13,218 (14.22%) | £19,327 | £3,870 | £56,540 | £4,712 |
| Pay point 4 (top) | £99,015 | £14,080 (14.22%) | £21,406 | £3,991 | £59,538 | £4,962 |
- From £84,177 to £99,015 is £14,838 of gross progression and £7,340 after deductions, which is £612 a month, or 49p in the pound.
- Pension comes off before tax and every step still clears £50,270: £84,177 at Pay point 1 (entry) is taxed on £72,207, £21,937 above the threshold. At the top, £99,015 is taxed on £84,935, of which £34,665 falls in the 40% band.
- Chief superintendent (pay point 1) starts at £103,797, £4,782 above the top of this grade and about £197 a month more in the hand.
Salary source: Home Office circular 011/2026, Annex F (Police Regulations 2003). Forces other than the Metropolitan and City of London, which have their own tables from inspector upwards, and before London weighting of £3,150 or a South East allowance. Pension tiers: Home Office, report to Parliament on the member contribution structure. The contribution comes off before income tax but not before National Insurance, so the figure tax is charged on is lower than the salary and the figure NI is charged on is not. Work out your own figures on the take-home calculator.
Inspector and Chief Inspector ranks have separate London pay points (for example, Inspector London runs £66,462 to £71,697; Chief Inspector London £73,062 to £75,855). Officers in post on or before 31 August 1994 may sit on different top points. Check your force's published scale for your exact figure.
For reference, the Chief Superintendent scale - the highest superintending rank covered by the PRRB - runs from £103,797 to £115,785 under the 1 September 2025 determination.
London weighting and allowances
Where an officer is based affects total pay significantly. The main allowances are:
| Allowance | From 1 Sep 2025 |
|---|---|
| London weighting | £3,150 per annum |
| London allowance (maximum) | £6,588 per annum |
| South East allowance (Beds, Hants, Sussex) | £2,000 per annum |
| South East allowance (Essex, Herts, Kent, Surrey, Thames Valley) | £3,000 per annum |
| Dog handler's allowance | £2,946 per annum |
| On-call allowance | £35 per day |
The PRRB has recommended that London weighting be uprated by 3.9% from 1 September 2026, and that the maxima of the London Allowance and South East Allowance rise by the same amount (PRRB Twelfth Report on England and Wales 2026, recommendations 11 and 12). Those uplifts take effect only once the Home Office publishes the amended Annex U.
Note that the London Allowance and South East Allowance figures are maxima. Each chief constable sets the actual amount for their force based on recruitment and retention need, so your force may pay less.
Source: Home Office circular 011/2026, Annex U for the London Allowance maximum of £6,588 and the two South East Allowance bands, in force from 1 September 2025. The London weighting, dog handler's and on-call figures are the rates forces publish for 2025/26; check your own force's determination if the exact figure matters to you.
The frequently quoted "£2,000 London-type allowance" refers to the lower South East allowance band; the London allowance itself can reach £6,588 and the London weighting adds a further £3,150. A Metropolitan Police constable therefore earns meaningfully more in cash terms than the same pay point outside London once these are stacked on basic pay.
Shift, overtime and unsocial hours
Basic pay is only part of the picture for most operational officers.
- Overtime is paid to constables and sergeants at time-and-a-third for most additional hours worked, with higher rates for short-notice or rest-day working as set out in the Police Regulations.
- Unsocial hours: officers receive an enhancement for hours worked between 8pm and 6am.
- Rest day and public holiday working attract higher multipliers and, in some cases, time off in lieu.
- Inspecting ranks and above are generally not eligible for overtime and instead receive a flat-rate allowance in recognition of additional hours.
These payments appear on the payslip as separate lines on top of basic pay, and they are taxable and pensionable only where the regulations specify.
Police Pension Scheme 2015 (CARE)
Almost all serving officers are now members of the Police Pension Scheme 2015, a career average revalued earnings (CARE) scheme. Each year you build up a slice of pension based on that year's pensionable pay, rather than your final salary.
- Accrual rate: 1/55.3 of pensionable earnings each year.
- Revaluation: active members' accrued pension is revalued annually in line with CPI plus a set addition.
- Member contribution rate (2026/27): tiered on actual pensionable pay - 12.88% up to £37,035, 13.88% above £37,035 and under £79,588, and 14.22% at £79,588 or more. The structure changed on 1 April 2026, and the tiers are now set against actual pay rather than full-time equivalent.
- Employer contribution: 35.3% of pensionable pay, set by the scheme actuary's valuation. Source: GOV.UK / scheme valuation.
A constable on around £37,700 falls in the middle tier and pays 13.88% of pensionable pay into the scheme.
How a police payslip reads - worked Constable example
Take a post-2013 constable at pay point 5 on £37,737, based outside London, with no overtime in the month. Two different years meet in this example and it is worth being explicit about why: the salary is the determination in force from 1 September 2025, because no 2026/27 police pay determination has been published yet, while the pension tier and the tax and NI thresholds are 2026/27. Pension contributions fall in the middle tier at 13.88%.
| Line | Monthly amount |
|---|---|
| Gross basic pay (£37,737 ÷ 12) | £3,144.75 |
| Pension contribution (13.88%) | −£436.49 |
| Income tax (1257L) | −£332.15 |
| National Insurance (category A) | −£167.78 |
| Net pay (approx.) | £2,208.33 |
Illustrative. Income tax and National Insurance are computed on the 2026/27 thresholds and the standard 1257L tax code; your own deductions vary with your code, region and allowances.
Pension contributions are deducted before income tax is calculated, so the pension reduces your taxable pay - a point worth understanding when you read your own payslip.
Tax code notes
- Most officers have the standard 1257L tax code, giving a £12,570 tax-free personal allowance for 2026/27.
- A K code can appear where deductions exceed the allowance (for example, a taxable benefit), increasing tax.
- An emergency code (such as 1257L W1/M1) may apply when you first join or transfer force, taxing each month in isolation until HMRC issues a cumulative code.
- Overtime and allowances are taxable, so a month with significant overtime will show more income tax than a quiet one - this is normal, not an error.
If your code looks wrong, contact HMRC directly; your force payroll team applies the code HMRC issues but cannot change it themselves.
Pay progression example
Here is how earnings build over a career on the post-2013 scale, outside London (2025/26 figures):
- PC pay point 1 (entry): £31,164
- PC pay point 7 (top of scale): £50,256
- Promotion to Sergeant, entry point: £53,568
- Sergeant top of scale: £56,208
Moving from the bottom of the Constable scale to the top of the Sergeant scale represents an increase of just over £25,000 in basic pay, before any London weighting, allowances or overtime.
Action checklist
- Confirm which Constable scale applies to you (appointed before or on/after 1 April 2013).
- Check your current pay point and your next increment date.
- Identify which allowances apply to your force and posting (London weighting, London allowance, South East allowance, role allowances).
- Confirm your pension contribution tier for 2026/27 - the structure changed on 1 April 2026 and the tiers are now set against actual pensionable pay rather than full-time equivalent.
- Check your tax code against your payslip and query anything unexpected with HMRC.
- Watch for the 2026/27 determination. The PRRB has recommended 3.9% from 1 September 2026; until the Home Office publishes the amended Annexes, your force is paying the 1 September 2025 rates and any award will be backdated.
Scotland and Northern Ireland
This guide covers England and Wales. Officers in Scotland are paid under scales negotiated through the Police Negotiating Board for Scotland and represented by the Scottish Police Federation (SPF), and officers in Northern Ireland serve under separate PSNI arrangements. The pay points and progression rules differ, so Scottish and Northern Irish officers should refer to their own federation's published scales rather than the figures above.
A note on 2026/27
The PRRB Twelfth Report on England and Wales 2026 recommends a consolidated 3.9% increase to all police officer pay points for all ranks up to and including chief superintendent, from 1 September 2026, with London Weighting and the maxima of the London and South East Allowances uprated by the same 3.9%.
A recommendation is not a determination. Police pay takes legal effect through amendments to Annexes F and U of the Police Regulations 2003, and as at 24 September 2026 the most recent circular - Home Office circular 011/2026, issued 31 July 2026 - still sets out the 1 September 2025 figures. Reports circulating elsewhere put the accepted award at 3.5% rather than 3.9%, which we have not been able to confirm against a Home Office source.
Rather than publish tables built on an unconfirmed percentage, we show the determined rates and will replace them when the amended Annexes are issued. Whatever the final figure, an award effective 1 September 2026 will be backdated, so nothing is lost by waiting for the confirmed number.
Disclaimer
This guide is for general educational purposes only and does not constitute financial, tax, pension or employment advice. Pay scales, allowances and contribution rates change and vary by force, posting and individual circumstances. For advice specific to your situation, contact your Police Federation representative, your force payroll team, or your police pension administrator. PayslipIQ is not affiliated with the Police Federation, the Home Office or any police force, and is not a regulated financial adviser.
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