UK Car Tax Calculator
Work out the annual vehicle tax (VED) on any UK car. The year it was first registered matters more than anything else — it decides which of the three tax systems applies, and the gap between them can be hundreds of pounds.
Your car
Not the year you bought it — the year it first hit the road.
On the V5C logbook, or on the DVLA vehicle enquiry service.
The price when it was new, including options — not what you are paying now. Above £40,000 this adds £440 a year in years 2–6.
Why the registration year decides everything
The UK runs three different car tax systems at the same time. Two cars with identical emissions can pay wildly different amounts purely because of when they were registered.
Engine size only
Two flat rates — £230 up to 1549cc, £375 above it. CO2 is irrelevant.
Graduated CO2 bands A–M
The same amount every year, from £20 to £790. Low-emission cars in this window are the cheapest cars to tax in Britain.
First-year rate, then a flat standard rate
CO2 only sets the one-off first-year charge. After that everything pays a flat rate regardless of emissions — £200 for petrol, diesel and electric, £200 for hybrids and other alternative fuels. The two figures matched on 1 April 2025, when the £10 hybrid discount was abolished.
Annual vehicle tax
Registered on or after 1 April 2017
Charged once, at first registration. This is the 2026/27 figure — what a new car with this CO2 would pay today, not what your car's first owner actually paid. As a used buyer you never see it either way.
Cars registered from April 2017 pay a one-off first-year rate based on CO2, then a flat standard rate every year after. As a used buyer you pay the standard rate — the first-year rate was settled by the original buyer.
Cheapest cars to tax
A car registered between March 2001 and March 2017 emitting 110 g/km or less sits in Band A or B and pays just £20 a year. An identical car registered after 1 April 2017 pays £200, for exactly the same emissions.
Band rates are set each April, so this is not a promise for life — Band A itself used to be £0.
Annual bands — registered 2001 to 2017
Paid every year, unchanged.
| Band | CO2 (g/km) | Per year |
|---|---|---|
| A | 0–100 | £20 |
| B | 101–110 | £20 |
| C | 111–120 | £35 |
| D | 121–130 | £170 |
| E | 131–140 | £200 |
| F | 141–150 | £225 |
| G | 151–165 | £275 |
| H | 166–175 | £325 |
| I | 176–185 | £360 |
| J | 186–200 | £410 |
| K | 201–225 | £445 |
| L | 226–255 | £760 |
| M | Over 255 | £790 |
First-year rates — registered from 2017
Charged once, on first registration. Non-RDE2 diesels pay one band higher.
| CO2 (g/km) | Petrol / RDE2 | Other diesel |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | £10 | £10 |
| 1–50 | £115 | £135 |
| 51–75 | £135 | £280 |
| 76–90 | £280 | £365 |
| 91–100 | £365 | £405 |
| 101–110 | £405 | £455 |
| 111–130 | £455 | £560 |
| 131–150 | £560 | £1,410 |
| 151–170 | £1,410 | £2,270 |
| 171–190 | £2,270 | £3,420 |
| 191–225 | £3,420 | £4,850 |
| 226–255 | £4,850 | £5,690 |
| Over 255 | £5,690 | £5,690 |
Checking car tax by registration number
To see what a specific car is taxed at right now, including whether it is currently taxed and when it is due, use the DVLA vehicle enquiry service — it is free and takes the registration alone.
Check a registration on GOV.UK →Use the calculator above when you want to know what a car would cost you before you buy it — comparing two cars, or working out whether a car you have seen advertised carries the 2026/27 Expensive Car Supplement.
Common mistakes
- Assuming electric cars are still exempt. They are not. Electric cars lost their exemption on 1 April 2025 and now pay the same £200 standard rate as petrol and diesel.
- Using what you paid instead of the original list price. The £440 Expensive Car Supplement is triggered by the price when the car was new — over £40,000 for petrol and diesel, over £50,000 for electric. A £45,000 car bought second-hand for £18,000 still pays it.
- Missing that the supplement runs for 5 years. It applies in years 2–6 — roughly £2,200 on top across the period, which is easy to overlook on a three-year-old car.
- Expecting the tax to come with the car. Vehicle tax has not transferred with a sale since October 2014. The seller gets a refund for full months remaining and the buyer must tax it before driving away.
- Mixing up the two systems. Cars registered 2001–2017 sit in CO2 bands for life, so two similar cars can differ by hundreds a year. Cars from April 2017 pay a one-off CO2-based first-year rate, then a flat standard rate regardless of emissions.
For guidance only. Rates are the 2026/27 figures published by the DVLA and were checked against GOV.UK on 28 July 2026. Always confirm the exact amount for a specific vehicle on the DVLA vehicle enquiry service before you buy.