Stamp Duty Calculator (SDLT) 2025/26
Work out how much stamp duty land tax (SDLT) you will pay on a property purchase in England or Northern Ireland with our free calculator. Enter the property price and select whether you are a first-time buyer, standard purchaser or buying an additional property. The calculator applies the correct SDLT bands and rates for 2025/26 and shows a full breakdown of the tax owed.
Stamp duty is one of the largest upfront costs of buying a property and catches many buyers off guard. On a £350,000 home, a standard buyer pays £7,500 in stamp duty, while a first-time buyer pays just £2,500 thanks to enhanced relief. Additional property purchasers face a 3% surcharge on every band, pushing the bill to £18,000. Understanding these figures before you start house hunting helps you budget accurately and avoid nasty surprises on completion day.
How Stamp Duty Works in England and Northern Ireland
Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) is a tax on property purchases in England and Northern Ireland. It is calculated on a tiered system, meaning you only pay the higher rate on the portion of the property price that falls within each band, not on the entire purchase price. For a standard purchase in 2025/26, the bands are: 0% on the first £250,000, 5% on the portion from £250,001 to £925,000, 10% from £925,001 to £1,500,000, and 12% on anything above £1,500,000.
Scotland uses Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT) and Wales uses Land Transaction Tax (LTT), each with different rates and bands. This calculator covers England and Northern Ireland only. For full details on SDLT, including relief schemes and exemptions, visit the GOV.UK stamp duty page.
Stamp Duty Relief for First-Time Buyers
First-time buyers benefit from enhanced SDLT relief. No stamp duty is payable on the first £425,000 of the purchase price, and only 5% is charged on the portion between £425,001 and £625,000. If the property costs more than £625,000, the first-time buyer relief is lost entirely and standard rates apply. This relief was originally introduced in 2017 and has been adjusted several times to keep pace with rising house prices.
To qualify, neither you nor anyone you are buying with can have previously owned a residential property anywhere in the world. The property must also be your main residence. For a complete picture of buying costs, use our mortgage repayment calculator to work out your monthly payments, or try the rent vs buy calculator to compare the total cost of purchasing against renting over time.
The Additional Property Surcharge Explained
If you already own a residential property and buy another, a 3% surcharge is added to every SDLT band. This applies whether you are buying a second home, a holiday let or a buy-to-let investment property. The surcharge pushes the effective rate on the first £250,000 from 0% to 3%, meaning even a £200,000 second property incurs £6,000 in stamp duty where a primary residence would pay nothing. You may be able to reclaim the surcharge if you sell your previous main home within 36 months of the new purchase.