Vehicle Tax Calculator
Estimate the first-year and standard rate of vehicle tax from CO₂ emissions and list price.
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Understanding vehicle tax
What this calculator covers and how the numbers are worked out
How it works
Vehicle Tax, officially Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) and often still called 'road tax', is paid annually on most vehicles used on the road. This calculator is for cars registered after 1 April 2017, which are taxed under a two-tier system that changes depending on how old the car is.
In the first year after registration, the rate you pay is based on the car's CO₂ emissions figure - the higher the emissions, the higher the first-year rate. You can find this figure on the car's V5C registration certificate, or on the original listing if you're researching a car before buying it.
From the second year of registration onwards, the emissions-based rate no longer applies, and most cars move to a flat standard rate of £200 a year, regardless of how efficient or polluting the car is.
If the car had a list price - the manufacturer's price when new, before any discounts - of more than £50,000, an additional 'expensive car supplement' of £440 a year applies on top of the standard rate. This supplement runs for 5 years, starting from the second year of registration.
As a worked example, a car registered new with a list price of £55,000 would pay the standard £200 a year plus the £440 supplement - £640 a year in total - for years two through six of its life (5 years of the supplement). From year seven onwards, once the supplement period ends, it drops back down to just the standard £200 a year.
Electric cars no longer get any exemption from vehicle tax. Since April 2025, electric cars pay VED in the same way as petrol and diesel cars, including the expensive car supplement if their list price was over £50,000. Their first-year rate is typically lower than an equivalent petrol or diesel car's, though, because it's still based on the (very low) CO₂ emissions figure.
A common source of confusion is the list price itself - it means the price of the car when it was brand new, not what you paid for it second-hand, and not any discount you negotiated off the showroom price. A used car bought for £30,000 could still attract the expensive car supplement if its original list price when new was above £50,000.
When budgeting for a newer, more expensive car, it's worth factoring in the expensive car supplement for the full 5 years it applies, not just the year it starts. Many buyers only think about the first-year, emissions-based rate and forget the extra £440 a year that follows for years two to six if the car's list price was over £50,000, which adds up to an extra £2,200 over that period on top of the standard rate.
What this calculator covers
- First-year rate based on CO₂ emissions
- Standard rate from year two
- Expensive car supplement over £50,000
- Electric vehicle rates
Common questions
Most cars pay a flat standard rate of £200 a year from the second year of registration, regardless of emissions.
You'll pay an extra £440 a year - the expensive car supplement - on top of the standard £200 rate, for 5 years starting from the second year of registration.
It applies for 5 years, covering roughly years two to six of the car's registration. After that, the car drops back to paying just the standard rate.
Yes. Since April 2025, electric cars pay VED like any other car, including the expensive car supplement where it applies, though their first-year rate is usually lower because it's based on their low CO₂ emissions figure.
It's shown on the V5C registration certificate, and it's usually listed on the original sales or manufacturer's specification for the car too.
No - it means the manufacturer's list price when the car was new, not any discount you negotiated, and not the price if you bought it second-hand.
No, it's tiered by the car's CO₂ emissions figure - the higher the emissions, the higher the first-year rate, so two cars of a similar price can have very different first-year VED costs.
The car simply pays the standard flat rate, currently £200 a year, from then on, with no further supplement.
Yes. Since April 2025 electric cars are taxed the same way as petrol and diesel cars, so if an electric car's list price when new was over £50,000, the £440 a year expensive car supplement applies to it too, on top of the standard rate.
£640 for that year - the £200 standard rate plus the £440 expensive car supplement - because it falls within the 5 years the supplement applies to any car with a list price over £50,000.
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These results are estimates for general guidance and are not financial advice. Always confirm important figures with an official source.
Rates last reviewed: 2 October 2026 · Built around the 2026/27 UK tax year
Based on 2026/27 UK tax rates. Results are estimates and not financial advice.
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