National Minimum Wage and National Living Wage: rates and pay checks

What NMW and NLW mean

The National Minimum Wage (NMW) is the legal minimum hourly rate for most workers who are at least school-leaving age. The National Living Wage (NLW) is the highest statutory rate. From 1 April 2024 it applies to workers aged 21 and over. The lower youth rates still apply to younger workers, and an apprentice rate applies only when the apprenticeship rules allow it.

The Living Wage Foundation’s “real Living Wage” is a voluntary rate. It is separate from the statutory National Living Wage and does not replace the legal minimum.

Current hourly rates from 1 April 2026

The apprentice rate applies to apprentices under 19, or apprentices aged 19 or over in the first year of their apprenticeship. After the first year, an apprentice aged 19 or over moves to the rate for their age. The worker must meet the statutory apprenticeship conditions. The contract title alone does not decide eligibility.

Rates in recent years

Rates are hourly and usually change on 1 April. The age bands have changed over time: the NLW covered people aged 25 and over before April 2021, 23 and over from April 2021 to March 2024, and 21 and over from April 2024. The 21 to 22 band therefore appears only in some years.

Use the rate that applied to the first day of the worker’s pay reference period. A birthday or annual increase changes the rate from the first pay reference period beginning on or after the relevant date.

What full-time pay looks like

There is no single statutory definition of full-time hours. The examples below use 35, 37.5 or 40 hours each week, 52 paid weeks and the 2026 to 2027 rates. They are gross minimum pay before tax, National Insurance and pension deductions. Monthly figures divide annual pay by 12. They assume regular hours and ordinary paid annual leave included in the annual salary.

These are salary illustrations, not a check for every payroll arrangement. A zero-hours worker has no guaranteed full-time salary. Divide the pay that counts for minimum wage by the actual hours worked in the pay reference period, then compare it with the worker’s rate.

How to check a payroll period

1. Identify the worker’s pay reference period. It is normally the period the pay covers and can be no longer than one calendar month.
2. Check the worker’s age and any qualifying apprenticeship status at the start of that period.
3. Work out the minimum-wage pay for the period under the statutory rules. Tax, National Insurance and ordinary pension deductions do not reduce it. Tips, benefits and some employer-required costs or deductions are treated differently.
4. Calculate the hours that count for the worker’s type of work. Contracted weekly hours are a useful starting point, but records may require a different figure.
5. Divide the minimum-wage pay by the hours that count. The average must meet or exceed the applicable hourly rate.

For a straightforward zero-hours worker, the basic check is eligible pay for the period divided by actual hours worked. A full compliance calculation can be more complex where there is overtime, commission, salaried-hours work, unpaid breaks, travel, training, absence, accommodation or deductions. Use HMRC’s official calculator and guidance for those cases. Employers must keep accurate payroll and working-time records.

Holiday pay and the 12.07% rule

Workers are normally entitled to 5.6 weeks of paid annual leave each year, subject to a statutory cap of 28 days. Regular-hours workers with fixed pay should receive their normal pay when they take holiday. Their payroll should continue to pay leave under the usual rules. Do not add 12.07% to every regular employee’s hourly rate as a substitute for paid leave.

From leave years beginning on or after 1 April 2024, eligible irregular-hours and part-year workers accrue statutory leave at 12.07% of hours worked in each pay period. Round the accrued hours to the nearest whole hour. An amount of half an hour or more rounds up; a smaller fraction rounds down. An irregular-hours worker has hours that are wholly or mostly variable under the contract. A part-year worker is contracted to work only part of the year and has at least a week during the contract when they are not required to work and are not paid.

The employer can pay holiday when leave is taken using the required reference-period method. For eligible workers, the employer may instead use rolled-up holiday pay. In that case, add 12.07% of the worker’s total pay for the pay period, pay it at the same time as wages, and show it as a separate payslip item. This is additional holiday pay. The ordinary wages for hours worked must still meet the minimum wage before rolled-up holiday pay is added. Rolled-up holiday pay cannot replace the worker’s right to take annual leave.

Use the Swift National Minimum Wage calculator to check a month, age, hours and pay, then review the holiday-pay note. It estimates holiday accrual for irregular-hours and part-year workers and separates rolled-up pay from minimum-wage wages.

Employer checks before payroll is final

• Keep each worker’s date of birth and apprenticeship start and end dates current.
• Review rates when they change each April and when an employee reaches a higher age band.
• Use the worker’s actual pay reference period and the work category that matches their arrangements.
• Check whether work-related deductions, required clothing or accommodation affect minimum-wage pay.
• Keep timesheets, contracts, payslips and records of any corrections.
• Review holiday entitlement and pay separately from the NMW calculation.

Underpayment can require arrears and may lead to enforcement action. Correct a confirmed error promptly and update payroll records.

Related guides

Rates and deadlines can change. Use the official links below to check what applies to you.