Child Benefit calculator
Child Benefit itself is simple. What families actually need calculated is the High Income Child Benefit Charge: once the higher earner's adjusted net income passes £60,000, 1% of the benefit is clawed back for every £200 above, until it is gone at £80,000. This tool shows the benefit, the charge, and the hidden marginal tax rate the clawback creates.
Child Benefit for 2 children: £2,337.40 a year
You keep £2,337.40
No charge, the higher earner is at or below £60,000.
Rates: £27.05/week for the eldest, £17.90 for each other child. Even at full clawback it is usually worth claiming and opting out of payment, the claim protects the stay-at-home parent's State Pension credits.
The details that cost families money
- It tests one income, not the household's. Two parents on £59,000 each keep every penny; one on £81,000 with a non-earning partner loses it all, a long-criticised quirk that survives every Budget.
- The test is adjusted net income, not salary, pension contributions and Gift Aid reduce it, so a salary sacrifice can legitimately rebuild the benefit. Check yours on the ANI calculator.
- Claim even if you'd repay 100%. Tick “claim without payment” instead of not claiming: the claim itself earns National Insurance credits towards the stay-at-home parent's State Pension and registers the child for an NI number at 16.
- The charge is collected via self-assessment or PAYE: many families only discover it with a backdated bill. If income crossed £60,000 this year, tell HMRC now.
Rates checked 2026-08-28 against gov.uk/child-benefit-rates.