Locum GP Pay 2026/27: What the Published Figures Do and Do Not Cover
Locum GPs are self-employed, filling sessions at practices and PCNs ad hoc. No official statistic measures what they earn: NHS England publishes GP earnings for contractor and salaried GPs only, and ONS surveys employee jobs, so locums fall outside both. The nearest published anchor is the salaried GP contract range for 2026/27, £78,699 to £118,759, against which sessional rates are negotiated - there is no nationally fixed locum rate.
Typical pay & take-home
- Median gross
- £98,729
- Typical range
- £78,699–£118,759
- Take-home at median
- £67,820 England, no pension applied — use the salary calculator for your scheme.
At the median for this profession, you earn about 153% above the UK full-time median (£39,039), placing you in the top 5% of UK earners.
What influences locum gp pay
Rates are negotiated per session and vary with how hard a practice is finding cover, so geography moves them more than experience does. No body publishes the resulting distribution, which is why this page anchors on the salaried contract range rather than quoting rates it cannot evidence.
Pensionability matters for net take-home. Type 1 pensionable locum sessions allow contributions to NHS Pension Scheme via SOLO form (employee 9.8-12.5% banded contribution + employer 23.7%). Non-pensionable sessions pay higher headline rate but build no NHS DB pension - choice between higher cash today + DB build-up matters most for under-50 locums planning long-term NHS career.
Locum GPs are self-employed so pay Class 4 NI (6% on £12,570-£50,270, 2% above) plus Class 2 NI voluntarily above £7,105 Small Profits Threshold (for Maternity Allowance + State Pension qualifying years). Indemnity insurance (MDU/MPS/MDDUS) £4,000-£8,000/year; GMC + RCGP fees ~£900/year; CPD costs £1,500-£3,000/year. These are all allowable expenses against profits.
Career progression
- GP Registrar in specialty training: £67,325 at ST3 on the England resident doctor scale, plus the General Practice Registrar Enhancement.
- Salaried GP contract range: £78,699 at the floor to £118,759 at the ceiling for 2026/27.
- Salaried GPs in practice: £72,200 average income before tax, below the contract floor because most work part-time.
- Contractor GPs (partners): £158,700 average income before tax.
- Locum GPs: not separately measured in any published series.
Frequently asked questions
- Is there an official figure for what locum GPs earn?
- No. NHS England publishes GP earnings from HMRC records but splits them into contractor and salaried GPs only, and ASHE surveys employee jobs, so a self-employed locum appears in neither. The honest reference points are the salaried GP contract range of £78,699 to £118,759 and the published averages either side of it: £72,200 for salaried GPs and £158,700 for contractors.
- Should a locum GP incorporate as Limited company?
- Generally no for pure GP locum income because NHS Pension Scheme membership is only available to self-employed individuals (Type 1) or salaried/PAYE (Type 2) - Limited companies cannot contribute on behalf of directors. Some portfolio locums incorporate to ring-fence non-NHS income (private appraisals, occupational health) while staying self-employed for the NHS locum stream.
- How does the £100k personal-allowance taper interact with locum income?
- Above £100,000 adjusted net income, £1 of personal allowance is withdrawn for every £2 earned, fully tapered out at £125,140. Marginal rate in that band is 62% (40% IT + 2% NI + 20% PA loss). Pension contribution (NHS Type 1 or external SIPP) reduces adjusted net income £1-for-£1 - sacrificing into pension to drop adjusted net below £100,000 is the highest-yield tax move available, plus rebuilds the £12,570 personal allowance.