How Much Will I Repay on My UK Student Loan? Plan 1, 2, 4, 5 & Postgraduate (2026–27)

The most important thing about a UK student loan is that it does not behave like a debt: you repay 9% of income above a threshold, and whatever is left after 25–40 years is wiped. Your monthly cost depends only on salary — not on how much you borrowed. On £35,000 a Plan 2 graduate pays about £42/month in 2026–27; someone earning below the threshold pays nothing at all. This guide walks through each plan, how to tell whether you will ever finish repaying, and the one big decision (overpay or not).

Want your own figure first? The UK student loan repayment calculator covers Plan 1, Plan 2, Plan 4, Plan 5 and postgraduate loan repayments — including an undergraduate and postgraduate loan together — using the same 2026–27 thresholds as the tables below.

It works like a tax, not a loan

Repayments are taken through payroll alongside income tax and National Insurance: 9% of everything above your plan's threshold (6% for postgraduate loans). Earn less than the threshold — from a career break, part-time work or unemployment — and repayments stop automatically. There is no minimum payment, missing months does not hurt your credit score, and the balance does not appear on your credit file. The "loan" framing causes most of the anxiety; economically it is a time-limited graduate tax.

The plans: thresholds and write-off dates

Plan	Who	Repay 9% above (2026–27)	Written off after
Plan 1	England/Wales pre-2012, Northern Ireland	£26,900	25 years
Plan 2	England 2012–2023, Wales since 2012	£29,385	30 years
Plan 4	Scotland	£33,795	30 years
Plan 5	England from Aug 2023	£25,000	40 years
Postgraduate	Master's/PhD loans	£21,000 (at 6%)	30 years

These are the 2026–27 thresholds published on GOV.UK; they change most Aprils. Two plans can run at once — a Plan 2 undergraduate loan plus a postgraduate loan means 9% + 6% above the respective thresholds. The Plan 1 vs Plan 2 comparison shows how the same salary produces different deductions.

What you repay at £30k, £40k and £60k

Monthly repayment on each plan at the 2026–27 thresholds:

Salary	Plan 1	Plan 2	Plan 4	Plan 5
£30,000	£23	£5	£0	£38
£40,000	£98	£80	£47	£113
£60,000	£248	£230	£197	£263

Notice the pattern: the plan sets when repayments start and stop; salary sets the amount. A pay rise of £1,000 always costs you £90 a year in extra repayments (9%) — on top of tax and NI. See the combined take-home effect in the salary after tax calculator.

If you also have a postgraduate loan

A Postgraduate Loan is repaid as well as your undergraduate plan, not instead of it: 6% of everything above £21,000. On £40,000 that is £95 a month on its own, so a Plan 2 graduate with a master's loan repays about £80 + £95 = £175 a month. The threshold has been frozen at £21,000 for years, which is why postgraduate loan repayments start on quite modest salaries. Tick the postgraduate box in the postgraduate loan repayment calculator to combine the two.

When will I finish repaying?

There are only two endings: you clear the balance, or it is written off. A quick test tells you which one you are heading for. Take last year's statement and compare two numbers:

• What you repaid in the year — 9% of your salary above the threshold. On Plan 2 at £40,000 that is about £955.
• The interest added in the year — your balance multiplied by your plan's interest rate (shown on your Student Loans Company statement).

If your repayments are smaller than the interest, the balance is still growing and, unless your salary rises a lot, you are on course for the write-off — 25 years after you became due to repay on Plan 1, 30 on Plans 2 and 4, 40 on Plan 5. If your repayments comfortably exceed the interest, you are on course to clear it, and the date depends mostly on how fast your pay grows. That single comparison matters more than the size of the balance, and it is also what decides the overpayment question below.

Why the balance grows and why that can be fine

Interest (linked to RPI, plus up to 3% on Plan 2 for higher earners) is added to the balance, so many graduates watch the number climb even while repaying. Here is the counterintuitive part: for anyone unlikely to clear the loan before write-off, the balance and the interest rate are irrelevant. You will pay 9% above threshold for 30–40 years regardless of whether the balance says £40,000 or £90,000 — then it vanishes. Interest only matters for high earners who will actually finish repaying, because it extends how long the 9% lasts.

Should you ever pay it off early?

• Usually no for middle earners. If you are unlikely to clear the balance before write-off, every voluntary £1,000 you throw at it is £1,000 given away that changes nothing — the 9% continues, and the write-off would have erased that balance anyway.
• Possibly yes for high earners. If your salary means you will repay in full well before write-off, clearing it early works like any debt payoff and saves the interest.
• Run the number, don't guess. The break-even depends on salary, salary growth, plan and remaining years — use the repayments-versus-interest test above, and get your exact annual repayment from the student loan calculator before deciding.

The genuinely comforting summary: nobody chases you, low earners pay nothing, the debt dies of old age, and the only people who need a strategy are the high earners who can afford one. Not financial advice — but the arithmetic is on the side of calm.

FAQ