What is take-home for an employed bookkeeper?

On the £31,560 group median with a 5% salary-sacrifice workplace pension and no student loan, take-home is about £25,107 a year after Income Tax at 20%, National Insurance and the pension. With no pension it is about £26,243.

Self-employed vs employed bookkeeper - which earns more net?

On the same pre-tax figure the self-employed side pays less National Insurance: Class 4 at 6% rather than Class 1 at 8%, worth about £380 a year at £31,560. Against that, an employee gets an employer pension contribution, at least 3% of qualifying earnings under auto-enrolment, plus paid holiday and sick pay, which a sole trader funds from fees.

AAT vs ICB qualifications - which matters more?

AAT is awarded by the Association of Accounting Technicians and ICB by the Institute of Certified Bookkeepers. ONS does not split bookkeeper pay by qualification, so there is no published figure for the pay effect of either; employer requirements vary by role.

Bookkeeper Salary 2026/27: Employed vs Self-Employed Take-Home

Bookkeepers keep the day-to-day financial records of businesses. ONS measures them in "Book-keepers, payroll managers and wages clerks" (SOC 2020 4122), whose full-time median was £31,560 in ASHE 2025, from £23,000 at the 10th percentile to £50,845 at the 90th. ASHE counts employees only, so self-employed bookkeepers are not in these figures.

Typical pay & take-home

Median gross: £31,560
ASHE 2025, 10th to 90th percentile: £23,000–£50,845
Take-home at median: £26,243 England, no pension applied — use the salary calculator for your scheme.

At the median for this profession, you earn 19% below the UK full-time median (£39,039), placing you between the 25th percentile (£29,262) and the 50th percentile (£39,039) of UK full-time earnings.

See exact take-home for £31,560 →

What influences bookkeeper pay

Employed bookkeeper pay sits inside the 20% basic-rate band across nearly the whole group: only the top decile, £50,845, clears the £50,270 higher-rate threshold, by £575.

A self-employed bookkeeper pays Class 4 National Insurance at 6% on profits between £12,570 and £50,270, against 8% Class 1 for an employee on the same band. On £31,560 that is about £380 a year less, before the self-employed side pays for its own pension, holidays and sick pay.

ONS does not split the group by qualification, so no published figure measures what AAT or ICB membership adds to pay. The group also mixes wages clerks and payroll managers with bookkeepers, so its percentiles describe all three.

Career progression

Bottom decile of the group: £23,000.
Lower quartile: £26,802.
Median: £31,560.
Upper quartile: £40,123.
Top decile: £50,845.
Self-employed bookkeepers: not measured by ASHE, which covers employees only.

Frequently asked questions

What is take-home for an employed bookkeeper?: On the £31,560 group median with a 5% salary-sacrifice workplace pension and no student loan, take-home is about £25,107 a year after Income Tax at 20%, National Insurance and the pension. With no pension it is about £26,243.
Self-employed vs employed bookkeeper - which earns more net?: On the same pre-tax figure the self-employed side pays less National Insurance: Class 4 at 6% rather than Class 1 at 8%, worth about £380 a year at £31,560. Against that, an employee gets an employer pension contribution, at least 3% of qualifying earnings under auto-enrolment, plus paid holiday and sick pay, which a sole trader funds from fees.
AAT vs ICB qualifications - which matters more?: AAT is awarded by the Association of Accounting Technicians and ICB by the Institute of Certified Bookkeepers. ONS does not split bookkeeper pay by qualification, so there is no published figure for the pay effect of either; employer requirements vary by role.

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Typical pay & take-home

What influences bookkeeper pay

Career progression

Frequently asked questions

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Sources