Cycle to Work Savings Calculator
See the real saving from buying a bike through your employer's Cycle to Work scheme — Income Tax and National Insurance relief on the sacrificed salary, the end-of-scheme ownership fee, and any extra saving from replacing car commute miles.
Estimate only. These are estimates based on the figures you enter — actual scheme terms, tax treatment and ownership fees depend on your employer and provider. This is not tax advice; check your own scheme documents or HMRC guidance.
A one-off fee if you choose to keep the bike at the end of the hire period — not paid via salary sacrifice.
Tax + NI saving, plus any fuel saving, minus the ownership fee.
- Scheme spending caps vary by employer — many cap at £1,000 (the standard Consumer Credit licence threshold), but FCA-regulated providers let some employers offer higher caps for e-bikes or cargo bikes.
- E-bikes and cargo bikes are eligible under most schemes, not just standard bikes — useful if hills, distance or carrying kids/shopping would otherwise put you off cycling to work.
- Your employer saves too: they avoid employer Class 1 NI (currently 15%) on the sacrificed amount, which is one reason most employers are keen to offer the scheme.
- The saving arrives as lower salary deductions spread over the hire period (commonly 12 months), not as a lump sum refund — budget for the monthly reduction in take-home pay.
How Cycle to Work salary sacrifice works
Your employer buys the bike and kit, then you "hire" it by sacrificing part of your gross salary each month, usually over 12 months. Because the sacrifice comes out of pay before Income Tax and National Insurance are calculated, you never pay tax or NI on that portion of your salary — effectively discounting the bike by your marginal tax + NI rate. At the end of the hire period, most schemes let you keep the bike for a small "ownership fee", based on HMRC's fair-market-value guidance (typically 3-7% of the original price for a bike over 12 months old). If you're also replacing car commute miles with cycling, the fuel you're no longer buying is extra savings on top.