Stamp duty calculator

Work out the tax on a property purchase anywhere in the UK — Stamp Duty Land Tax in England and Northern Ireland, LBTT in Scotland or LTT in Wales — with every band shown.

Quick answer. In England and Northern Ireland, stamp duty on a £280,000 home is £4,000 for a home mover (0% to £125,000, 2% to £250,000, 5% above) and £0 for a first-time buyer, who pays nothing up to £300,000.

The rates, in full

Stamp Duty Land Tax applies in England and Northern Ireland. Scotland has Land and Buildings Transaction Tax, Wales has Land Transaction Tax, and both use different bands.

First-time buyers pay nothing up to £300,000 and 5% from £300,001 to £500,000. Buying an additional property adds 5% to every band. Non-UK residents add a further 2%.

The thing people get wrong

Stamp duty is charged in slices, not on the whole price at one rate. A £295,000 house does not attract 5% of £295,000. It attracts 0% on the first £125,000, 2% on the next £125,000 and 5% on the last £45,000 — £4,750 in total, an effective rate of 1.6%.

Until December 2014 it genuinely did work the other way, and crossing a threshold by a single pound could add thousands. That system is long gone, but the fear of it survives and still shapes how people price offers.

Where a cliff edge does still exist

One remains, and it is expensive: first-time buyer relief disappears completely above £500,000. It is not tapered. A first-time buyer paying £500,000 owes £10,000; paying £500,001 they owe £15,000 — five thousand pounds for one pound of price. If you are a first-time buyer negotiating near that line, it is worth knowing precisely where it is.

Common questions

Is stamp duty charged on the whole price or in bands?

In bands. Each rate applies only to the portion of the price inside that band. A £295,000 purchase costs £4,750, not 5% of £295,000. The old slab system, where crossing a threshold repriced the entire purchase, ended in December 2014.

What is the first-time buyer threshold?

First-time buyers pay no stamp duty up to £300,000 and 5% on the portion from £300,001 to £500,000. Above £500,000 the relief is lost entirely rather than tapered, so a £500,001 purchase costs about £5,000 more than a £500,000 one.

How much extra is stamp duty on a second home?

An additional 5% is added to every band when the purchase means you will own more than one residential property. You do not pay it if you are replacing your main residence and sold the previous one within 36 months.

Does this apply in Scotland or Wales?

Not stamp duty itself. Scotland charges Land and Buildings Transaction Tax and Wales charges Land Transaction Tax, with different bands. Choose the nation above and the calculator uses the right one. In Scotland: 0% to £145,000 (£175,000 for first-time buyers), 2% to £250,000, 5% to £325,000, 10% to £750,000, 12% above, plus an 8% Additional Dwelling Supplement on the whole price of a second home. In Wales: 0% to £225,000, 6% to £400,000, 7.5% to £750,000, 10% to £1.5 million, 12% above, a separate higher-rate table for additional properties, and no first-time buyer relief. Sources: gov.scot, gov.wales.

When do I have to pay it?

An SDLT return and payment are due within 14 days of completion. In practice a conveyancer usually handles both, and the money is collected from you before completion.

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