Pay rise impact calculator

What the pay rise impact calculator does

A pay rise is shared with the taxman. Enter each employee's current and proposed gross pay and the calculator works out the NSSF, SHIF, Housing Levy and PAYE on both, the take-home pay before and after, the extra take-home and the share of the rise the employee actually keeps, so you can plan rises that people will feel.

Who it is for

Employers, HR officers and employees preparing a salary review, and anyone negotiating a raise who wants to know the real effect.

How to use the workbook

1. Check the Rates sheet against current KRA and NSSF figures.
2. Enter each employee's current and new gross pay.
3. Read the extra take-home and the share of the raise kept.
4. Adjust the new pay until the effect is what you want.
5. Save a copy under a new name for each month or year, so earlier records stay as they were.

What is inside

• Statutory deductions and PAYE on current and new pay
• Take-home pay before and after
• Extra take-home and share of the raise kept
• Uses the rates you can edit on the Rates sheet
• Room for 100 employees

The workbook has these sheets: Instructions, Rises, Rates. The main table has the columns Employee; Current gross; Current deductions; Current PAYE; Current take-home; New gross; New deductions; New PAYE. Yellow cells are for you to fill in and grey cells calculate by themselves, so leave the grey cells alone. The example rows show how it works; type over them with your own entries.

Tips for getting it right

• Work from gross pay, not take-home.
• Remember the employer's extra NSSF and Housing Levy cost on top.
• Compare the result with the PAYE calculator for a few people.
• Record the approved rise in a signed letter.

Why keep this record

Staff records go wrong in small, repeated ways: a figure typed twice, a deadline forgotten, a promise that nobody wrote down. A tidy workbook that everyone uses the same way removes most of those problems. It also gives you something to show an employee, an auditor or a labour officer when a question comes up months later, and it makes the next payroll quicker because the facts are already in one place.

Questions people ask

Do I need to know Excel formulas? No. Type into the yellow cells and the rest is worked out for you. The formulas are visible if you want to see how a figure is reached.

Can I add rows or change the layout? You can add your own columns to the right and your own notes. If you insert rows inside a table, copy the grey formula cells down so the new rows calculate too.

Will it work on my phone or in Google Sheets? Yes for viewing and typing, but dropdown lists and the charts look best in desktop Excel or LibreOffice.

Keeping it safe and up to date

Payroll records are personal data and tax records at once, so keep the file somewhere only the people who need it can open, and keep each month's copy for at least five years. Statutory rates such as NSSF limits and the Housing Levy change, so check the Rates sheet against the official source before you rely on a figure.

Read how to run payroll for a small business for the wider picture. Free calculators that go with it: Paye calculator, Net to gross salary calculator. See more payroll templates or ask us for a custom one.

The workbook works in Microsoft Excel, LibreOffice and Google Sheets. It is a tool to help you work out and record figures, not tax, legal or accounting advice, and it is not affiliated with the Kenya Revenue Authority. If something does not work as described, contact us and we will put it right.

Related guides, calculators and templates

• Free calculator: PAYE Calculator
• Free calculator: Net to Gross Salary Calculator
• Guide: How to prepare for a performance review and a salary talk
• Guide: Caretakers and property managers: roles, pay and oversight
• Guide: How KRA uses data matching and what it means for you
• Another template: Gross-to-net salary table
• Another template: Payroll budget vs actual tracker
• Another template: Your payslip explained: a guide for employees

Need something different? Request a custom template, browse all guides or see every Excel template.