The border tax · UK study
Two identical £100k jobs, one in England, one in Scotland. One keeps £3,300 more.
Same salary, same role, a few miles apart across the border. We calculated exactly what the Scottish income tax bands cost — and save — at every salary.
Scotland sets its own income tax bands. For lower earners the difference is small — sometimes Scotland is slightly cheaper — but as salary rises, the gap widens sharply. On £100,000, an identical job pays £5,931 less take-home north of the border. We calculated the exact figure at every salary.
Same salary, England vs Scotland take-home
| Salary | England | Scotland | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| £30,000 | £25,120 | £25,155 | +£35 in Scotland |
| £40,000 | £32,320 | £32,255 | -£65 in Scotland |
| £50,000 | £39,520 | £38,024 | -£1,496 in Scotland |
| £60,000 | £45,357 | £43,607 | -£1,750 in Scotland |
| £75,000 | £54,057 | £52,007 | -£2,050 in Scotland |
| £100,000 | £68,557 | £65,257 | -£3,300 in Scotland |
| £125,000 | £78,057 | £72,882 | -£5,175 in Scotland |
| £150,000 | £91,286 | £85,355 | -£5,931 in Scotland |
The gap is a feature of Scotland's additional tax bands on higher incomes. Compare your own salary by region.
All figures computed from published HMRC tax rules for the 2026/27 tax year, using the same engine behind our calculators, and verified 12 August 2026. Reproducible and free to cite — contact us for the underlying data.