Day rate to salary calculator
Multiplying a day rate by 260 working days flatters every contract. Contractors are unpaid for holiday, bank holidays, sick days and the gaps between contracts, 44-46 chargeable weeks is the honest year, and this calculator uses it.
Calculator
Day rate to salary calculator
44-46 is realistic for contractors
£400.00/day × 5 days × 46 weeks
£92,000 a year
The naive ×52 figure of £104,000 overstates it by £12,000, contractors are not paid for holiday, sick days or gaps between contracts.
Why a day rate must beat the salaried equivalent
A £92,000 contract is not equivalent to a £92,000 salary. The employee also gets employer pension contributions (3%+ of pay), paid holiday and sick leave, notice periods, and, inside IR35 or through an umbrella, the employer's National Insurance comes out of your rate rather than on top of it. The usual rule of thumb is that a fair inside-IR35 day rate is roughly the target salary ÷ 200 working days × 1.25 or more. Run the umbrella deduction chain on the umbrella company calculator, then take the resulting gross to the main calculator for your net.
Quick equivalences at 46 weeks
At 5 days a week and 46 weeks: £300/day grosses £69,000, £400/day £92,000, £500/day £115,000, £600/day £138,000. Remember these are turnover, not salary, inside IR35 or through an umbrella, employer National Insurance and fees come out before your own tax does.
Going the other way
To match a salary, divide it by around 200 realistic working days and add at least 25% for the lost pension, holiday and security, a £60,000 job is roughly a £375-£400/day inside-IR35 contract, not £230. The umbrella calculator runs the full deduction chain from an assignment rate.
Checked 2026-08-28 by Hadi. Method on the about page.
How to use the day rate to salary calculator
- 1
Enter your day rate.
- 2
Set the billable days you expect in the year, allowing for holiday, illness and gaps between contracts.
- 3
Read the annual equivalent, and the salary a permanent role would need to match it.
- 4
Check the take-home, which depends on whether you work inside or outside IR35.
When should you use the day rate to salary calculator?
Use it when a rate is quoted by the day and you need to compare it with a salary, allowing for the days you will not bill.
An agency quotes a day rate
A rate only becomes comparable to a salary once you decide how many days you will actually bill.
Leaving a permanent job
The rate has to cover holiday, sick pay, pension and the gaps a salary covers for you.
Setting your own rate
Working back from the salary you want gives you a floor to negotiate from.
Two contracts, different rates
A higher rate with fewer billable days can pay less over a year.
Where to go next
- Contract vs permanent calculatorTo the full comparison including benefits.Open
- Outside IR35 calculatorTo take-home through a limited company.Open
- Umbrella company calculatorTo take-home through an umbrella.Open
All 51 calculators share one tested engine, so a figure from the day rate to salary calculator agrees with every other page here. See the full calculator index or the pay and tax guides.