£250 a day take-home pay
A £250/day contract is worth about £55,000 a year over 220 billable days. Here is roughly what you keep under each IR35 status for 2025/26 — and you can fine-tune every assumption below.
| Day rate | £250 |
| Billable days assumed | 220 |
| Gross annual contract value | £55,000 |
| Take-home — inside IR35 (umbrella) | £37,556 |
| Take-home — outside IR35 (limited) | £43,136 |
| Difference | £5,580 |
At £250/day, Outside IR35 (limited company) leaves you £5,580/year better off.
Adjust the numbers
Change days worked, salary, expenses or umbrella margin to match your situation.
Inside IR35 (umbrella)
£37,556/yr
You keep 68% of the contract value
Assignment rate£55,000
Umbrella margin-£1,150
Employer NI-£6,341
Apprenticeship levy-£236
Income tax (PAYE)-£6,941
Employee NI-£2,776
Take-home pay£37,556
Outside IR35 (limited company)
£43,136/yr
You keep 78% of the contract value
Company revenue£55,000
Director salary-£12,570
Employer NI on salary-£1,136
Corporation tax-£7,846
Dividend tax-£2,883
Income tax + NI on salary-£0
Take-home pay£43,136
Outside IR35 (limited company) leaves you £5,580/year better off at this rate.