Sole trader or limited company?
The honest comparison on this year's real rates: corporation tax with marginal relief, the new dividend rates, employer NI, and the director salary points accountants actually use. Your number decides, not the folklore.
Income less expenses, before any tax. The same number either way: what changes is how it is taxed.
The company side assumes the standard setup: a small director salary (the best of £12,570, £6,708 or £5,000 for your number), the rest as dividends, everything taken out. Money left in the company only strengthens the company case.
The dividend rates rose two points in April 2026 and the maths moved for everyone. Landlords have their own version of this question: companies deduct mortgage interest in full and skip the new 2027 property rates. Lekhio runs your real numbers all year and Rakha tells you when the answer flips for you, not for the average person in a blog post.
Get the answer on your numbers →A general comparison assuming a single director taking all profit as a small salary plus dividends, 2026/27 rates. It is not advice: pensions, student loans, CIS, IR35, and money left in the company all change the answer, and incorporation has real costs. Lekhio prepares your figures and you always approve them.