Studies · UK & US
Original research on where your money really goes
We ran real salaries through the same verified tax engines that power our calculators, to answer questions most people never see the true numbers on. Every figure below is reproducible — no estimates, no rounding for effect. Updated for the 2026/27 UK and 2026 US tax years.
🇺🇸 US The $100,000 experiment $8,441 gap in take-home on an identical $100k salary, best state vs worst We gave 51 states the exact same $100,000 salary. The take-home gap was $8,441. 🇺🇸 US The calendar of work April 7 the day a $100k Californian stops working for the government (Texans: March 17) How many days a year you work purely to pay tax — and the exact date you finally start earning for yourself. 🇬🇧 UK The invisible cliff 38p kept from each extra £1 earned between £100k and £125,140 The £25,000 stretch of salary where a British worker keeps just 38p of every extra pound. 🇬🇧 UK The border tax £3,300 less take-home in Scotland than England on the same £100k salary Two identical £100k jobs, one in England, one in Scotland. One keeps £3,300 more. 🇬🇧 UK The £1 that costs £500 £499 lost from a £1 pay rise at the worst NHS pension tier boundary The NHS pay rise that leaves you worse off: how a single pound can cost a nurse £500. 🇬🇧 UK The price of nights £10,900 a year in enhancements on top of basic for a nights-heavy Band 5 rota What a nurse on permanent nights really earns: £10,900 a year, just for the hours the rest of us are asleep. 🇬🇧 UK The pay you never see £275,000 employer NHS pension contributions over a 30-year Band 6 career The £275,000 an NHS nurse never sees on a payslip — the employer pension nobody talks about. 🇬🇧 UK Fourteen pounds from the cliff £14 how far a top-scale police constable sits below the 40% tax threshold The police constable who sits £14 below the 40% tax band — so every hour of overtime is taxed like a high earner. 🇬🇧 UK The half-million you never see £527,000 employer pension contributions over a 30-year police career The £527,000 a police officer never sees on a payslip — the employer pension nobody counts. 🇬🇧 UK Same pay, different pocket £2,700 more take-home for armed forces vs police on an identical £40,000 Same £40,000 salary, three uniforms: the soldier keeps £2,700 more than the police officer. 🇬🇧 UK When more is less 561% effective marginal tax rate for a parent of three crossing £100,000 We calculated the £100k childcare cliff for every family size. A parent of three faces a 561% tax rate. 🇺🇸 US Where your bonus goes 41% withheld from a $10,000 bonus in New York before it reaches you Why your bonus felt gutted: a $10,000 bonus loses 41% before you see it in New York. 🇺🇸 US An interest-free loan $1,000 over-withheld on a $10,000 bonus for a typical 12%-bracket worker The bonus tax that isn’t: how the 22% rule makes millions lend the government money for free.
Methodology: every figure is computed from published HMRC, IRS and state tax rules for the current tax year, using the same engines behind our calculators. Journalists and researchers are welcome to cite these findings — get in touch for the underlying data. How we calculate.