How much should a UK creator save for tax?

A simple rule is to move 30% of every payout into a separate savings account the day it lands. At the time of writing (2026 to 2027 tax year, England, Wales and Northern Ireland), a basic rate taxpayer pays 20% income tax and 6% Class 4 National Insurance on profit above £12,570, and 30% leaves room for payments on account in your first year. Above £50,270 of profit, save 45% of anything over that line.

Why is my first Self Assessment bill so big?

If you owed £1,000 or more and most of it was not already taken through PAYE, HMRC also asks for a payment on account towards next year, which is half of this year's bill, due on the same 31 January. So the first January can be about one and a half times the tax for the year.

Where should I keep the money I save for tax?

In an easy access savings account, ideally with a different bank from your everyday account, so you cannot see it or spend it by accident. Check the bank is covered by the FSCS. Do not invest it, because it needs to be there in full in January. HMRC's Budget Payment Plan, which lets you pay towards your next bill by weekly or monthly Direct Debit, is another option.

How much to save for tax as a UK creator

The money that lands from OnlyFans or Fansly looks like yours. It is not all yours. Some of it belongs to HMRC, and they will ask for it in one go, in January, when you have just paid for Christmas. Working out how much to save for tax before you spend anything is the most boring habit in this job, and it is the one that stops a good year turning into a bad one.

This is how I do it, with the real figures for this tax year. None of it is tax advice. If your income is growing, an accountant who knows creators is worth every penny, and they can tell you things about your own situation that a blog post cannot.

What you actually pay tax on

You pay tax on profit, not on what fans spend. The platform has already taken its cut before the money reaches you, so start from what lands in your bank. Then take off the things you spend purely for the work: props, outfits you only wear on camera, lighting, editing apps, the takedown service, a share of your phone bill. What is left is roughly your profit.

On that profit, a creator who is self employed pays two things:

Income tax. The first £12,570 is your personal allowance and is tax free. Profit from £12,571 to £50,270 is taxed at 20%. Above that it is 40%, and 45% over £125,140.
Class 4 National Insurance. 6% on profit between £12,570 and £50,270, then 2% above that.

Class 2 National Insurance still exists on paper, but if your profit is over £7,105 it is now treated as paid, so there is nothing to send for it.

basic rate income tax on profit from £12,571 to £50,270

Class 4 National Insurance on the same slice of profit

of last year's bill, due again as each payment on account

So on most of your profit, if you are a basic rate taxpayer, 26p of every pound goes to HMRC. That is the number to keep in your head when you work out how much to save for tax.

The first January is the one that catches people out

Here is the bit that surprises almost everyone in their first proper year.

If your tax bill is £1,000 or more, and you did not already pay most of it through a job’s PAYE, HMRC asks for payments on account. These are advance payments towards next year’s bill. Each one is half of this year’s bill. The first is due on 31 January, the same day as the bill you already owe. The second is due on 31 July.

Worked through with real numbers, say you made £30,000 profit in the 2026 to 2027 tax year and it is your first year owing a proper amount:

Income tax: £30,000 minus £12,570 is £17,430, and 20% of that is £3,486.
Class 4: 6% of the same £17,430 is £1,045.80.
Your bill for the year is £4,531.80.
Your first payment on account is half of that, £2,265.90.
So on 31 January 2028 you pay £6,797.70, and another £2,265.90 on 31 July 2028.

That is nearly a quarter of the year’s profit leaving your account in one day. After the first year it settles down, because the payments on account you already made come off each new bill, but that first January is the one to plan for, and it is why the first year needs you to save much more tax money than the sums suggest. If your income drops, you can ask HMRC to reduce your payments on account, though you will owe interest if you cut them by too much.

You made £30,000 profit and this is your first year owing over £1,000 in tax. Roughly how much do you need ready for 31 January?

How much to save for tax from each payout

When people ask how much to save for tax, my answer is dull on purpose so I actually follow it: 30% of every payout goes into the tax pot the day it lands. Before rent, before anything.

At £30,000 profit, 30% is £9,000. The year’s tax is about £4,500, and the scary first January is about £6,800, so 30% covers it with room to spare. Anything left over after January is the start of next year’s pot, or a small reward if you really want one.

If your profit goes above £50,270, the rate on that top slice jumps to 40% income tax plus 2% National Insurance. For anything above that line I save 45% for tax, which is a bit much, but I would rather have spare. And if you are heading towards £100,000, read up on the personal allowance taper before you get there, because between £100,000 and £125,140 you lose £1 of tax free allowance for every £2 you earn, which makes that band far more expensive than it looks.

Where to keep the money you save for tax

The aim is boring and safe. You want the money to be there, in full, in January, and you want it to be slightly annoying to reach.

A separate easy access savings account. Ideally at a different bank from your everyday one, so it does not sit on your banking app’s home screen looking spendable. It earns a bit of interest while it waits.
Check it is FSCS protected. At the time of writing, the FSCS protects up to £120,000 per person per banking licence. Some banks share a licence, so check the FSCS site if you are spreading money around.
Not invested. Shares can fall in exactly the month you need the money. This pot only has one job, and that is to be there in full on 31 January.
Or pay HMRC as you go. HMRC has a Budget Payment Plan that lets you pay towards your next bill by weekly or monthly Direct Debit. You need to be up to date with past payments to use it, and you can pause it for up to six months. Some people like that the money has gone and cannot be borrowed back. I prefer my own savings account, because I like being able to see the number, but both work.

What does not work is “I’ll sort it out in December”. That is how people end up asking HMRC for time to pay, and the interest keeps running while you pay it off.

The dates to put in your calendar

5 October: the deadline to register for Self Assessment for the year before, if you have not done it before. You need to register once your trading income goes over £1,000 a year. If you missed this one, register now rather than waiting.
31 January: online tax return deadline, and the date the bill plus your first payment on account is due.
31 July: second payment on account.

One more change to have on your radar. Making Tax Digital for Income Tax means sending HMRC updates every quarter using compatible software, instead of one return a year. It started in April 2026 for people with income over £50,000, and from April 2027 it covers anyone whose income from self employment and property was over £30,000 in the 2025 to 2026 tax year. That figure is turnover before expenses, not profit, so a creator can be caught by it sooner than they would guess. You can check whether it applies to you on gov.uk.

Keep records so you know how much tax to save

A tax pot only works if you know roughly what you owe. I keep the same spreadsheet I use for running two platforms: one row per payout with the date, platform, amount, and a column for what went into the tax pot. Receipts for anything I claim go in one folder, photographed the day I get them.

Once a quarter I add up profit so far and check how much tax I should have saved by now. If the pot is behind, I know in June instead of January. That ten minutes every three months is the difference between a calm January and a frightening one.

The short version

Pay tax on profit, not on what fans spend. At the time of writing, a basic rate creator pays 26p in every pound of profit above £12,570. Your first proper January also includes a payment on account, so it can be about one and a half times the year’s tax. As for how much to save for tax, move 30% of every payout into a separate, FSCS protected savings account the day it lands, and more on anything above £50,270. Put 31 January and 31 July in your calendar. And if the numbers start getting big, pay an accountant to check them.

How much to save for tax as a UK creator, and where to keep it