SSP Calculator: Work Out Your Statutory Sick Pay

Last updated 7 April 2026 • By Tom Street, Solicitor

From 6 April 2026, statutory sick pay is paid at the lower of £123.25 a week or 80% of your average weekly earnings, with no waiting days and no minimum earnings threshold. Use the calculator below to work out roughly what you should be receiving for a period of sickness absence.

This calculator gives you an estimate based on the rules in force from 6 April 2026. It isn’t a substitute for legal advice or a payroll calculation, but it should give you a clear idea of whether what your employer has paid you looks right.

How the calculation works

From 6 April 2026, SSP is paid at whichever is lower of two figures:

• The flat statutory rate of £123.25 per week, or
• 80% of your average weekly earnings over the eight weeks before your sickness began.

For most workers earning above about £155 a week, the flat rate will be the figure they receive. For lower earners, especially part-time workers and those on zero-hours contracts, the 80% calculation produces a lower number, and that’s what gets paid.

SSP is paid only on your “qualifying days”, which are the days you would normally have worked. So if you’re contracted to work Monday to Friday, your qualifying days are Monday to Friday. The weekly SSP rate is divided across your qualifying days to produce a daily rate, with any fraction of a penny rounded up to the next whole penny. If you work three qualifying days a week and the weekly rate is £123.25, your daily rate is £41.09 (£123.25 ÷ 3, rounded up).

Worked example

Sarah works four days a week (Tuesday to Friday) and earns £400 a week. She’s off sick for ten qualifying days.

• 80% of her average weekly earnings: £400 × 0.80 = £320
• Compared to the flat rate: £123.25
• The lower figure is £123.25, so this is her weekly SSP rate.
• Daily rate: £123.25 ÷ 4 qualifying days = £30.82 (rounded up from £30.8125)
• Total SSP for ten qualifying days: £30.82 × 10 = £308.20

Now compare a part-time cleaner earning £140 a week, working three days a week, off sick for six qualifying days:

• 80% of average weekly earnings: £140 × 0.80 = £112
• Compared to the flat rate: £123.25
• The lower figure is £112, so this is her weekly SSP rate.
• Daily rate: £112 ÷ 3 qualifying days = £37.34 (rounded up from £37.3333)
• Total SSP for six qualifying days: £37.34 × 6 = £224.04

The cleaner’s daily rate is actually higher than Sarah’s, even though her overall pay is lower, because she has fewer qualifying days to spread the weekly figure across.

What this calculator doesn’t include

SSP is the legal minimum your employer must pay. Many employers offer enhanced contractual sick pay above this, sometimes at full pay for a set period. Check your contract or staff handbook. If your employer offers enhanced sick pay, you should receive that instead of (or in addition to) SSP.

The calculator also doesn’t account for:

• Transitional protection. If you were already off sick before 6 April 2026 and your earnings put you between the old lower earnings limit (£125) and £154.05 a week, you may be protected from a reduction in your SSP rate during your continuous absence. Your employer should still pay the £123.25 flat rate rather than a lower 80% figure.
• Linked periods of sickness. If you have two periods of sickness within eight weeks of each other, they’re treated as one continuous period for SSP purposes. Your maximum entitlement is still 28 weeks across the linked periods.
• Tax and National Insurance. SSP is taxable and NI-able, paid through PAYE in the same way as your wages. The figures shown are gross.
• Other benefits. If you’re entitled to Universal Credit, Employment and Support Allowance, or other benefits, those are calculated separately.

How long can you receive SSP?

You can receive SSP for up to 28 weeks of qualifying days in any single period of incapacity (or any linked periods within eight weeks of each other). Once you’ve used your 28-week entitlement, SSP ends and you’ll need to look at other forms of income protection or benefits. Your employer should give you an SSP1 form when your SSP entitlement is ending or has ended.

What to do if your SSP looks wrong

If the figure your employer is paying you is lower than the calculator’s estimate, that’s worth raising. Common reasons employers get SSP wrong from 6 April 2026 include:

• Still applying the three-day waiting period that no longer exists
• Telling low earners they don’t qualify (the lower earnings limit no longer applies to SSP)
• Defaulting to the flat £123.25 rate for everyone, including those who should get the 80% figure
• Calculating average weekly earnings incorrectly, especially for variable-hours workers

Raise the issue in writing first with your line manager or HR. Refer to the SSP changes from 6 April 2026 and ask them to recalculate. If they refuse, contact HMRC’s statutory payment dispute team, which can issue a binding decision and recover what you’re owed.

For more on what’s changed, why the rate isn’t enough, and what to do if you’re being managed out for sickness, read Day-One Sick Pay Is Finally Here. It’s Still Not Enough.