F2 Resident Doctor Salary 2026/27
F2 is the second and final foundation year, the point at which a doctor gains full GMC registration. Basic pay in England is £47,610 at nodal point 2 for 2026 to 2027. That is a 7.1% rise on the £44,439 paid in 2025 to 2026, the largest increase anywhere on the resident doctor scale, because the negotiated nodal point reform loaded extra investment into the foundation years on top of the accepted 3.5% DDRB award.
Typical pay & take-home
- Median gross
- £47,610
- Typical range
- £47,610–£47,610
- Take-home at median
- £37,799 England, no pension applied — use the salary calculator for your scheme.
At the median for this profession, you earn about 22% above the UK full-time median (£39,039), placing you in the top 36% of UK earners.
See exact take-home for £47,610 →
Nodal points, SAS scales, the five consultant thresholds and the salaried GP range, each with take-home after the banded NHS pension: Doctors' pay scales 2026/27, every grade →
What influences junior doctor (f2) pay
Basic pay at F2 is a single national figure, £47,610, not a range. It does not vary by trust, region or specialty. What differs between posts is the rota: weekend frequency, night work and on-call availability are paid as separate supplements on top of basic, and two F2s on the same nodal point can take home materially different amounts because of them.
The 7.1% rise at F2 is the biggest on the scale. Every resident doctor received at least the accepted 3.5% DDRB award, but the nodal point reform directed more of the money at the foundation years, so FY1 rose 6.2% and FY2 7.1% while ST3 rose 3.5%. Applying a single percentage to last year’s figure gives the wrong answer at almost every point.
The NHS pension contribution at F2 basic is 9.8%, the 2026/27 tier covering pensionable pay from £35,156 to £52,778 - the same tier as F1, so the contribution rate does not jump on promotion. It is a net pay arrangement: the contribution comes off before Income Tax, but National Insurance is charged on the full gross, so the relief is worth less than it looks.
Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland negotiate resident doctor pay separately, so the England nodal points do not apply there.
Career progression
- FY1: £41,226 basic.
- FY2: £47,610.
- ST1 and ST2 (nodal points 3a and 3b): £55,355.
- ST3 £67,325, ST4 and ST5 £67,998.
- ST6 £76,582, ST7 and ST8 £77,348.
- Consultant (2003 contract): £113,565 rising to £150,569 across five thresholds, since 2a and 2b are separate steps.
Frequently asked questions
- What does an F2 take home 2026/27?
- On £47,610 basic with the 9.8% NHS pension tier, take-home is about £34,066 a year or £2,839 a month, after £4,666 pension, £6,075 Income Tax and £2,803 National Insurance. Rota supplements are paid on top and taxed at the marginal rate.
- How much more does F2 pay than F1?
- Basic pay rises from £41,226 to £47,610, so £6,384 more before tax. After the 9.8% pension contribution, Income Tax at 20% and National Insurance, roughly £4,096 of that reaches the bank account - about £341 a month.
- Why did F2 pay rise 7.1% when the pay award was 3.5%?
- Two things were applied. The DDRB recommended 3.5% and the Health and Social Care Secretary accepted it, and a separately negotiated reform of the nodal points added further investment weighted toward the foundation years. The published 2026 to 2027 figure already includes both.