South Africa Tax Calculators

Working out what you actually take home in South Africa shouldn't need a spreadsheet or an accountant. This page brings together every calculator on SA Tax Guide so you can find the right one in a few seconds, whether you're checking a payslip, comparing a job offer or planning for the new tax year. All figures below come from the same official SARS data that powers the individual tools, so a number you see here will always match the result you get from the calculator itself.

If you're new here, think of this as the map. Below you'll find free tax calculators South Africa workers actually search for, grouped by what they're used for, plus short explanations of how each one works and when to reach for it.

Popular Calculators

These five get the most use because they answer the most common payday question: what am I actually going to be paid?

Salary & Payroll Calculators

This group covers the everyday payroll questions: what a salary is worth once tax and UIF are removed. The salary tax calculator South Africa employees rely on most is our PAYE tool, since it doubles as a full take-home pay calculator South Africa workers can trust for budgeting. Enter a monthly gross figure and it returns your PAYE, your UIF deduction and a clean net salary calculator style breakdown, line by line rather than as a single blended number.

If you need to go the other way and work out a gross to net salary figure from an hourly or annual rate first, run it through the salary converter before feeding the monthly amount into the PAYE calculator. Together the two tools cover almost every payroll scenario a South African employee runs into.

Income Tax Calculators

Every payroll tool on this site is built on the same underlying income tax calculator South Africa logic: South Africa's progressive tax brackets applied to an annualised salary. If you want the raw numbers behind that logic rather than a calculated result, our SARS tax calculator tables page lists every tax bracket for the current and upcoming tax years, including thresholds and rebates by age group. For a deeper explanation of the current year's rates alone, see our dedicated SARS Tax Brackets 2026/2027 guide.

For 2026/2027, the first R245,100 of annual taxable income is taxed at 18%, rising in stages to 45% above R1,878,600. A primary rebate of R17,820.00 is then subtracted from that calculated amount, which is why two people on the same salary but different ages can end up with slightly different PAYE.

Deductions Calculators

PAYE and UIF are rarely the only lines on a payslip. Retirement annuity contributions, medical scheme membership and other tax deductions South Africa employees claim can all lower the tax actually owed. If you belong to a medical scheme, the medical aid tax credit calculator shows the fixed monthly medical tax credit SARS allows and how much it reduces your PAYE. For the rebate side of the equation, our guide on understanding tax rebates explains how age-based rebates interact with a retirement tax deduction and other allowances to bring your final liability down.

Property Tax Calculators

Buying, selling or inheriting property in South Africa brings its own tax questions. A transfer duty calculator South Africa buyers use estimates the once-off duty SARS charges on a property purchase above the exempt threshold, while a capital gains tax calculator South Africa sellers use works out tax on the profit made when a property or other asset is sold. These calculations sit outside standard payroll tax and use their own SARS tables, so we're building dedicated property tools to sit alongside the calculators above. Until then, our FAQ page covers the most common property tax questions in plain language.

Business Tax Calculators

Freelancers, sole proprietors and company owners face a different tax path from salaried employees. A business tax calculator South Africa owner would use needs to account for provisional payments rather than monthly PAYE, which is exactly what our provisional tax calculator handles: it estimates your annual liability and splits it into the two SARS provisional payments due during the year. A full company tax calculator for registered entities and a standalone VAT calculator South Africa tool are on our roadmap as this hub grows, since both use flat rates rather than the progressive brackets that drive personal income tax.

How Is Tax Calculated in South Africa?

Every calculator on this page follows the same four-step method SARS itself uses for individuals. Understanding how is tax calculated in South Africa makes every number on this site easier to trust, because you can see exactly where it comes from rather than treating the result as a black box.

First, a monthly salary is annualised by multiplying by 12. Second, South Africa's progressive brackets are applied to that annual figure, with only the income inside each band taxed at that band's rate. Third, an age-based rebate is subtracted from the result. Fourth, the annual tax is divided by 12 to get a monthly PAYE figure. The same question, phrased as how is PAYE calculated, gets a full worked walkthrough with real numbers on our How PAYE Works guide and an audit-friendly breakdown on the methodology page. Once you've worked out what you owe, our SARS eFiling guide walks through registering, logging in and actually submitting that figure on your ITR12.

PAYE vs UIF

People often assume PAYE and UIF are the same deduction because they both come off a payslip in the same month. They aren't. Comparing PAYE vs UIF comes down to purpose: PAYE is income tax paid to SARS and funds general government spending, while UIF is a capped 1% contribution that builds a fund paying out unemployment, maternity and illness benefits. The difference between PAYE and UIF also shows up in how each is calculated. PAYE scales with your full progressive tax bracket, while UIF is a flat percentage capped at a fixed monthly ceiling regardless of how much you earn above it. Our UIF explained guide covers eligibility and payout amounts in more depth.

Gross Salary vs Net Salary

The gap between gross salary vs net salary South Africa employees see on a contract versus a payslip can be substantial once PAYE and UIF are removed. Your salary after tax South Africa figure, also called take-home pay South Africa workers actually receive, depends on your gross amount, your age group and the tax year that applies. The fastest way to see the exact gap for your own salary is to run it through the PAYE calculator, which shows gross, PAYE, UIF and net side by side.

South Africa Tax Rates for 2026/2027

SARS updates brackets, rebates and the UIF ceiling almost every year, usually after the annual Budget Speech in February. Here's a quick snapshot of the South Africa tax rates 2026/2027 currently used across every calculator on this site.

Annual Taxable Income	Rate
R0 – R245,100	18%
R245,101 – R383,100	26%
R383,101 – R530,200	31%
R530,201 – R695,800	36%
R695,801 – R887,000	39%
R887,001 – R1,878,600	41%
R1,878,601 and above	45%

The full SARS tax tables 2026/2027 set, including every tax year covered on this site plus rebates and UIF figures, lives on our dedicated tax tables page.

Worked Examples

Numbers are easier to trust with a real example attached. On a R25,000.00 gross monthly salary for someone under 65 in 2026/2027, monthly PAYE comes to approximately R3,380.98 and UIF to R177.12, leaving a salary after tax South Africa figure of roughly R21,441.90. That's an effective tax rate of about 13.52%.

Every payslip is different, so treat this as a reference point rather than your own number. For a take-home salary South Africa figure that matches your actual gross amount and age group, run it through the PAYE calculator directly, or see three more worked salaries on our FAQ page.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which South Africa tax calculator should I use?

Start with the PAYE calculator if you want your monthly take-home pay. Use the UIF calculator to check your unemployment insurance contribution on its own. Reach for the bonus tax calculator for a 13th cheque and the salary converter when you need to move between hourly, weekly, monthly and annual figures.

Are these South Africa tax calculators free to use?

Yes. Every calculator on this page is free and requires no sign-up. Each one runs using the official SARS tax tables for whichever year you select, and nothing you enter is stored or sent to a server.

Are the calculators updated for the 2026/27 tax year?

Yes. All calculators default to the 2026/2027 SARS tax brackets, rebates and UIF ceiling, and most also let you switch back to 2025/2026 or forward to the provisional 2027/2028 figures once needed.

What is the difference between gross and net salary in South Africa?

Gross salary is the amount on your offer letter before any deductions. Net salary, also called take-home pay, is what actually reaches your bank account once PAYE and UIF have been subtracted. See the full breakdown on the PAYE calculator.

Do these calculators cover VAT and property tax?

Not yet as dedicated calculators. This hub currently focuses on payroll and income tax tools. VAT, transfer duty and capital gains tax are covered as written guidance for now, with calculators planned as the toolkit expands.

Have a question that isn't answered above? Visit our full PAYE & Income Tax FAQ page for more worked examples and long-tail answers.