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UK Car Tax Calculator

A car first registered from 1 April 2017 pays a flat £200 a year in car tax (2026/27 rates) from its second year, whatever its fuel or CO2, plus £440 a year in years 2 to 6 if its list price new was over £40,000 (over £50,000 for an electric car first registered from 1 April 2025). A car from 1 March 2001 to 31 March 2017 pays £20 to £790 by CO2 band, and an older one pays £230 or £375 by engine size. Enter the year it was first registered to work out any UK car.

2026/27 rates
Rates from GOV.UK

Your car

Not the year you bought it — the year it first hit the road.

Know the registration? Get the car's tax band from its registration

Free. It reads the CO2 figure DVLA holds for the registration, where DVLA holds one, and works out the annual rate from it.

On the V5C logbook, or on the DVLA vehicle enquiry service.

For a car registered from April 2017, CO2 and fuel type do not change the annual figure — every car pays the same standard rate. They set the one-off first-year charge only, shown beneath the annual total.

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.

Annual vehicle tax

£200/ year

Registered on or after 1 April 2017

First-year rate on a car like this£455

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.

Worked out at 120 g/km, the box's starting value — enter the car's own CO2 in the CO2 box.

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 £20 a year in the 2026/27 rates, the lowest rate in the CO2 bands. 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. A car built before 1 January 1986 can pay £0 once its keeper applies to DVLA for the historic vehicle tax class.

Search used cars on Autoza

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.

Built before 1 January 1986

Historic vehicle tax class

£0 from 1 April 2026 — but only once the keeper applies to DVLA, and not for a vehicle used commercially. The cut-off moves on a year every April.

Before 1 March 2001

Engine size only

Two flat rates — £230 up to 1549cc, £375 above it. CO2 is irrelevant.

1 March 2001 – 31 March 2017

Graduated CO2 bands A–M

The same amount every year, from £20 to £790. Cars at 110 g/km or less (Bands A and B) pay the lowest rate in the CO2 bands. Bands L and M only start on 23 March 2006 — an earlier car over 225 g/km stays in Band K.

From 1 April 2017
Your car

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 bands — registered 2001 to 2017

Paid every year, unchanged.

BandCO2 (g/km)Per year
A0–100£20
B101–110£20
C111–120£35
D121–130£170
E131–140£200
F141–150£225
G151–165£275
H166–175£325
I176–185£360
J186–200£410
K*201–225£445
L226–255£760
MOver 255£790

* Band K also covers cars with CO2 over 225 g/km registered before 23 March 2006. Bands L and M apply only from that date.

First-year rates — registered from 2017

Charged once, on first registration. Non-RDE2 diesels pay one band higher.

CO2 (g/km)Petrol / RDE2Other 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, enter its registration in Autoza's free registration check. It shows DVLA's tax status and due date for that car, and works out the annual tax rate from the CO2 figure DVLA holds for it. The DVLA vehicle enquiry service on GOV.UK is the official source for the same record.

Check a registration, free →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.

Annual vehicle tax

£200

Registered on or after 1 April 2017

Frequently Asked Questions

How much is car tax in the UK in 2026?
It depends on when the car was first registered. A car first registered from 1 April 2017 pays a flat standard rate of £200 a year whatever its emissions and whatever its fuel: hybrids and other alternative fuels pay the same £200 since the £10 discount was abolished on 1 April 2025. On top of that it pays an extra £440 a year in years 2 to 6 if its list price new was over £40,000 (over £50,000 for an electric car first registered from 1 April 2025). A car registered between 1 March 2001 and 31 March 2017 pays a graduated CO2 band rate from £20 to £790 a year. A car registered before 1 March 2001 pays £230 a year up to 1549cc, or £375 above that.
Why do two cars with the same emissions pay different car tax?
Because the UK runs three VED systems side by side, split by first registration date. A 2015 car emitting 120 g/km sits in Band C and pays £35 a year. An otherwise identical car registered in 2018 pays the flat £200 standard rate. The registration date, not the emissions, is what decides the bill.
What is the Expensive Car Supplement?
A car pays an extra £440 a year in years 2 to 6 if its list price new was over £40,000 (over £50,000 for an electric car first registered from 1 April 2025), on top of the standard rate. That is £2,200 in total over the 5 years, counted from the second time the car is taxed. The critical detail for used buyers is that it is based on the list price when the car was NEW, not what you pay for it — a three-year-old car you buy for £28,000 can still owe the supplement if it listed at £55,000. One exception matters a lot on the used market: zero-emission cars first registered before 1 April 2025 are exempt from the supplement entirely, at any list price.
Do electric cars pay road tax in the UK?
Yes. Electric cars lost their VED exemption on 1 April 2025. They now pay £10 in the first year and then the same £200 standard rate as petrol and diesel cars. Electric cars also became subject to the Expensive Car Supplement, with a higher £50,000 threshold than the £40,000 that applies to petrol and diesel — but only if they were first registered on or after 1 April 2025. An electric car registered before that date pays the £200 standard rate and nothing more, however expensive it was new.
Which cars are cheapest to tax in the UK?
Cars first registered between 1 March 2001 and 31 March 2017 with CO2 emissions of 110 g/km or less. They sit in Band A or B and pay £20 a year in the 2026/27 rates, the lowest rate in the CO2 bands. That covers a lot of ordinary used hatchbacks and small diesels. It is not a promise for life: rates are set each April, and Band A itself used to be £0. A car built before 1 January 1986 can pay £0 once its keeper applies to DVLA for the historic vehicle tax class.
Where do I find my car’s CO2 figure?
It is printed on the V5C registration certificate (the logbook). If you know the registration instead, Autoza’s free registration check reads the CO2 figure DVLA holds for it, where DVLA holds one, and works out the annual tax rate from that; the DVLA vehicle enquiry service on GOV.UK shows the same record. For cars registered before March 2001 you do not need CO2 at all — only the engine size in cc.

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