NHS Consultant Salary
The short answer
An NHS consultant in England takes home £67,908 to £81,237 a year — £5,659.02 to £6,769.74 a month — after income tax, National Insurance and pension contributions.
Consultant Pay Thresholds (England)
| Pay Point | Annual | Monthly |
|---|---|---|
| Threshold 1 | £113,565 | £9,463.75 |
| Threshold 2a (3yr) | £120,249 | £10,020.75 |
| Threshold 2b (4yr) | £123,672 | £10,306.00 |
| Threshold 3 (8yr) | £135,645 | £11,303.75 |
| Threshold 4 (14yr) | £150,569 | £12,547.42 |
Consultant Pay Thresholds (England)
| Pay Point | Gross | Pension | Tax | NI | Net | Monthly |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Threshold 1 | £113,565 | £14,196 | £27,180 | £4,281 | £67,908 | £5,659.02 |
| Threshold 2a (3yr) | £120,249 | £15,031 | £30,563 | £4,415 | £70,240 | £5,853.34 |
| Threshold 2b (4yr) | £123,672 | £15,459 | £32,360 | £4,483 | £71,370 | £5,947.48 |
| Threshold 3 (8yr) | £135,645 | £16,956 | £38,646 | £4,723 | £75,321 | £6,276.73 |
| Threshold 4 (14yr) | £150,569 | £18,821 | £45,490 | £5,021 | £81,237 | £6,769.74 |
Basic pay by threshold. Consultants may additionally receive pay for additional programmed activities, on-call availability and clinical excellence awards, none of which are included. Every threshold is in the 12.5% NHS Pension tier.
Check your own figure
The consultant scale runs from £113,565 on appointment to £150,569 at the top, progressing through thresholds rather than annual increments. Movement between thresholds is at defined intervals subject to meeting the relevant criteria.
Consultant pay is where the Personal Allowance taper starts to matter. Above £100,000 of adjusted net income the allowance is withdrawn by £1 for every £2 earned, producing an effective 60% marginal rate until it is gone at £125,140. Because pension contributions reduce adjusted net income, a consultant on the first threshold sits just below the trigger once the 12.5% contribution is taken — which is exactly the kind of boundary a generic salary calculator gets wrong.
Basic pay also understates consultant earnings. Additional programmed activities, on-call availability supplements and clinical excellence awards are all common and none appear on the scale. The calculator lets you add them.