UK vs 
Canada · 2026
UK vs Canada: salary after tax and cost of living
The UK beats Canada on take-home at almost every salary, yet the lead is thin and it vanishes at the very top. On $80,000 a Briton keeps 74.9% of gross against a Canadian's 73.7%, a little over a point. Push the salary to $150,000 and Canada moves in front, 65.2% to 64.0%.
Updated 6 September 2026. Data: World Bank PPP 2011 to 2025, GOV.UK 2026/27, Canada Revenue Agency 2026. Download the data (CSV)
Do you take home more in the UK or Canada?
The same salary, shown in US dollars and converted to each country at market exchange rates, so take-home is compared on the same real money.
| Salary (US$) | UK net (keep) | Canada net (keep) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $40,000 | £26,053 | 83% | CA$43,703 | 80% |
| $60,000 | £37,319 | 79% | CA$61,764 | 75% |
| $80,000 | £46,861 | 75% | CA$80,736 | 74% |
| $100,000 | £55,937 | 71% | CA$96,929 | 71% |
| $150,000 | £75,154 | 64% | CA$133,927 | 65% |
How much tax do you pay on $80,000 in the UK vs Canada?
UK
- Gross
- £62,592
- Income tax
- -£12,469
- Social contributions
- -£3,262
- Take-home
- £46,861
- Effective rate
- 25.1%
Canada
- Gross
- CA$109,552
- Income tax
- -CA$23,047
- Social contributions
- -CA$5,770
- Take-home
- CA$80,736
- Effective rate
- 26.3%
Is Canada cheaper than the UK, and what is your pay really worth?
On World Bank price levels (United States = 100), the UK sits at 87.3 and Canada at 90.6, so Canada costs about 3.8% more to live in. Adjusted for those prices, a £62,592 salary in the UK has the same buying power as about CA$113,769 in Canada. After both tax and cost of living, take-home on an $80,000 salary is worth more in the UK.
Two similar systems, one narrow margin
The overall burden is close enough that the choice rarely turns on tax alone. On the mid salary the Briton keeps £46,861 of £62,592, a 25.1% effective rate. The Canadian keeps CA$80,736 of CA$109,552, a 26.3% effective rate. Just over a percentage point separates them.
The internal split differs a little. Canada leans harder on income tax, CA$23,047, and adds CA$5,770 through CPP and EI. The UK charges less income tax relative to gross, £12,469, plus £3,262 of National Insurance. Canada's provincial layer, which varies by where you settle, is the main reason its mid-range deduction sits slightly heavier than Britain's.
Why Canada catches up at the top
Down the ladder the UK holds a steady but shrinking lead. At $40,000 it keeps 83.2% to Canada's 79.8%, a 3.4-point edge. At $60,000 it is 79.5% to 75.2%, at $80,000 74.9% to 73.7%, and at $100,000 71.5% to 70.8%. The margin narrows at every step.
By $150,000 it has gone into reverse: Canada keeps 65.2% against the UK's 64.0%. The cause is the UK's personal-allowance withdrawal between £100,000 and £125,140, which taxes income in that band at an effective 60% and drags high-earner retention down sharply. Canada's top brackets are high too, but they contain no comparable spike, so its curve falls more evenly and slips past the UK at the upper end.
Living costs: a near tie that leans British
On prices the two are barely distinguishable. Canada's price level is 90.6 against the UK's 87.3, a gap of only 3.8%. Matching what £62,592 buys in Britain would take about CA$113,769 in Canada, a touch above the CA$109,552 that $80,000 converts to there.
Combine the slightly lighter UK tax with its slightly lower prices and Britain finishes marginally ahead in real terms, about $68,607 of purchasing power against Canada's $65,074. It is not a wide gap, and a high earner or a mover to a low-tax province could tilt it the other way, but on a matched mid salary the UK worker keeps a little more real money.
Frequently asked questions
Do you keep more pay in the UK or Canada?+
The UK at most salaries. On $80,000 the Briton keeps 74.9% (£46,861) against the Canadian's 73.7% (CA$80,736). The exception is the top end: at $150,000 Canada edges ahead, 65.2% to 64.0%.
Is Canada more expensive than the UK?+
Slightly. Canada's price level is 90.6 against the UK's 87.3, about 3.8% higher. It is one of the closest cost matches among these corridors.
What Canadian salary matches £62,592 in the UK?+
Around CA$113,769 in living-standard terms, a little more than the CA$109,552 that an $80,000 salary actually converts to, because Canada is marginally pricier.
Why does the UK lose its edge at high income?+
The personal-allowance taper above £100,000. It removes the tax-free allowance across a narrow band, producing an effective 60% marginal rate that Canada does not match, so UK retention falls faster near the top.
Sources
- Income Tax rates and Personal Allowances · GOV.UK, UK tax rules 2026/27
- Indexation adjustment for personal income tax and benefit amounts · Canada Revenue Agency, Canada tax rules 2026
- World Bank PPP conversion factors (2011 to 2025) · price levels and equivalence, CC BY 4.0
- Download this comparison as CSV · or JSON
- Take-home figures use each country's official 2026 income tax and social-contribution rules, factchecked against worked examples.
Estimates for general comparison, not financial, tax or relocation advice. Individual tax depends on allowances, residency and local rules; confirm with an official source before deciding.