The Short Answer
Mental health PIP awards pay exactly the same rates as any other award. Daily living pays £76.70 a week at the standard rate and £114.60 at the enhanced rate; mobility pays £30.30 and £80.00. Nothing in the regulations sets a different rate, ceiling or threshold for a mental health condition. What differs is which descriptors a claim reaches, and both components can reach the enhanced rate on mental health grounds alone.
What Mental Health Awards Pay
Four combinations, and any of them is reachable on mental health grounds. The table shows what each pays across the payment cycle.
| Award | Weekly | Every 4 weeks | A year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Daily living standard | £76.70 | £306.80 | £3,988.40 |
| Daily living enhanced | £114.60 | £458.40 | £5,959.20 |
| Daily living standard + mobility standard | £107.00 | £428.00 | £5,564.00 |
| Daily living enhanced + mobility enhanced | £194.60 | £778.40 | £10,119.20 |
Last checked: 6 August 2026
The full rate table for both components, including every historical year, is on the PIP Rates 2026/27 hub.
There Is No Mental Health Rate
The regulations name no condition anywhere, so no condition has a rate. Schedule 1 describes twelve activities and their descriptors; regulations 5 and 6 convert points into rates. A diagnosis appears at no point in that chain.
This matters because the opposite belief causes claims to be under-described. A person who assumes a mental health claim tops out at the standard rate stops describing difficulties once they think they have reached it, and the descriptors above are never considered.
Which Descriptors Reach Which Rate
The mental-health-relevant descriptors span the whole range, up to 12 points. The table shows the ones that carry most claims, with what each is worth.
| Descriptor | Points | Component |
|---|---|---|
| Needs prompting to engage with other people | 2 | Daily living |
| Needs prompting to take nutrition | 4 | Daily living |
| Needs social support to engage with other people | 4 | Daily living |
| Cannot engage with other people at all | 8 | Daily living |
| Needs prompting to undertake any journey to avoid overwhelming psychological distress | 4 | Mobility |
| Cannot plan the route of a journey | 8 | Mobility |
| Cannot undertake any journey because it would cause overwhelming psychological distress | 10 | Mobility |
| Cannot follow the route of a familiar journey without another person, an assistance dog or an orientation aid | 12 | Mobility |
Last checked: 7 August 2026
Two of those reach a threshold on their own. Being unable to engage with other people at all is 8 daily living points, which is the standard rate. The familiar-journey descriptor is 12 mobility points, which is the enhanced rate.
Reaching the Enhanced Daily Living Rate
Twelve points, normally assembled rather than scored in one place. Social support to engage (4), prompting to take nutrition (4), an aid or prompting to wash (2) and prompting to dress (2) is 12 points and the enhanced rate.
That arithmetic is why the descriptors outside the two obvious activities matter. Engaging with other people and planning journeys are where mental health claims are usually described; preparing food, taking nutrition, washing, dressing, medication and budgeting are where the remaining points are.
What the Rates Do Not Depend On
Income, savings, work, and the length of time since diagnosis. GOV.UK states that PIP "is tax free" and that "the amount you get is not affected by your income or savings", and that you "can get PIP even if you're working".
Nor does the rate depend on treatment. A person managing a condition without medication receives the same rate as a person on several, where the functional difficulty is the same. The assessment scores what you can do, not what you have tried.
Work Out What You Could Score
The rate follows the points, and the points come from descriptors rather than diagnosis. The full guidance on claiming, evidence and awards is on the PIP for Mental Health page, and the mental health calculator scores the nine activities involved.