Tools · Wellbeing & finance
Cost of absence calculator (UK)
Show your finance director the annual cost of sickness absence — direct salary cost plus the presenteeism cost most companies forget — and what the Health & Wellbeing add-on (virtual GP + EAP) could save at a conservative 12% absence reduction. Defaults sourced from the CIPD Health and Wellbeing at Work 2025 survey.
Result — your team's absence cost
- Annual direct cost
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- Annual presenteeism cost
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- Total absence-related cost
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- Saving at 12% reduction
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- Saving per employee per year
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- Cost of Employee Benefits + Health & Wellbeing add-on
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Show the formula
The sources behind the defaults
- 9.4 sick days per year — CIPD Health and Wellbeing at Work 2025. Highest absence rate the survey has recorded.
- Presenteeism 2× absence — CIPD wellbeing research is the most cited UK source on the relative scale of presenteeism vs absence. The exact multiplier varies by sector.
- EAP / GP service absence-reduction range — published case studies from EAPA UK and the wider EAP industry typically report 8–18% absence improvement. The 12% default in this calculator is the conservative midpoint.
- Aggregate cost-of-absence anchor — IPPR's 2024 Going Under: The Crisis Facing UK SMEs work estimated around £3,029 per employee per year in lost productivity from poor health. This calculator is a salary-cost-led method and will typically come out lower than that figure — both are valid framings.
- Cost comparison — the Health & Wellbeing add-on is +£2 per employee per month and requires the Employee Benefits plan (£4.50 per employee per month), so the calculator compares the saving with £6.50 per employee per month × 12 (£78 per employee per year), exc. VAT.
- Sources verified 2026-09-21. We re-verify quarterly.