Police pay scales 2026

Police officer pay in England and Wales is set nationally by the Police Remuneration Review Body (PRRB) and applies to all 43 forces. The figures below are the scales in force from 1 September 2026, including the 3.5% award confirmed by the Government on 15 July 2026. Until the Police Federation publishes its official 2026 tables, each point is the 2025 figure plus 3.5%, rounded to the nearest £3 as published points are — so an individual point may differ from your payslip by a few pounds. You can also see what the 3.5% added to your take-home.

What the gross figures don't show is what actually lands in your account. A constable at PP1 earns £32,256 gross — but after a 12.88% pension contribution (deducted before income tax), income tax, and National Insurance, take-home is roughly £1,952/month. That's around 73p in the pound. At PP7 the gross is £52,014 and take-home is around £2,942/month.

New from 1 September 2026: the 3.5% award takes PP7 to £52,014, above £50,270 on basic pay for the first time. That is the National Insurance upper earnings limit, so NI on any extra pay drops from 8% to 2%. It does not make a top-of-scale constable a higher-rate taxpayer: the 13.88% pension contribution comes off before income tax, leaving taxable pay of £44,794, so roughly the first £5,476 of overtime is still taxed at 20%.

The tables below show estimated net monthly pay at standard assumptions (PPS 2015 pension, tax code 1257L, no student loan, no regional allowance). Use the take-home calculator to personalise for your specific circumstances — including London Weighting, overtime, part-time hours, and student loan deductions.

How pension tiers affect every rank

Under PPS 2015, pension contributions are charged on your entire pensionable pay at a single rate — whichever tier your pay falls into. The three tiers (effective 1 April 2026) are: 12.88% up to £37,035; 13.88% up to £79,587; and 14.22% above that. The rate isn't marginal — crossing a boundary moves your whole salary into the new tier.

This matters at two specific points: a constable crossing from PP4 (£36,336) to PP5 (£39,057) enters the 13.88% tier, adding roughly £391/year in pension deductions on top of the gross pay increase. And superintendents at all pay points (£87,123 and above) are in the 14.22% tier from day one of the rank. The full-rank editorial pages below each explain how this interacts with take-home at that specific level.

London Weighting and regional allowances

Metropolitan Police and City of London officers receive a combined London Weighting and London Allowance of £10,079/year from 1 September 2026 — but only part of it is pensionable. The £3,260 London Weighting is pay under the Police Regulations, so pension contributions apply to it and it builds CARE accrual. The £6,819 London Allowance is non-pensionable, though most mortgage lenders still count the full £10,079 as contractual income. Use the calculator for the exact net figure at your rank and pay point; it is worth several hundred pounds a month, and less for officers in the 40% band. South East forces set their own allowance, up to a £3,105 maximum (non-pensionable).