Find out if you're on track for retirement
Enter your UK pension details to project your pot size, monthly income, and how long your savings will last. Free, instant, no sign-up.
A common rule of thumb is that you need roughly two-thirds of your pre-retirement salary each year. So if you earn £40,000, aim for around £26,000–£28,000/year in retirement. For a 25-year retirement (age 65–90), that's a pot of approximately £400,000–£600,000, depending on your drawdown rate and state pension entitlement. For a more thorough approach to planning, see the r/UKPersonalFinance wiki guide on retirement planning.
When you access your defined contribution pension (from age 55, rising to 57 in 2028), you can take 25% of your pot completely tax-free. The rest is taxed as income when withdrawn. For example, a £400,000 pot gives you a £100,000 tax-free lump sum.
Maximise gives you the highest possible income — your pot reaches £0 at life expectancy. Balanced provides a moderate income while retaining around 50% of your pot (useful if you want a buffer or legacy). Preserve gives a lower income but keeps your pot largely intact, ideal if you want to pass wealth to heirs. Each strategy calculates a different sustainable monthly income using a solver that accounts for all your income sources and tax.
Couple mode lets you plan retirement together with a partner. Each person enters their own pension details, and the household solver finds the optimal way to draw from both pots to produce a stable combined income while minimising total tax. It works by equalising marginal tax rates across both people — drawing more from whoever pays less tax on the next pound withdrawn. The income strategy (maximise, balanced, or preserve) applies to the household as a whole.
A commonly cited sustainable withdrawal rate is 4% per year (the '4% rule'), though many UK financial planners suggest 3–3.5% to account for sequence-of-returns risk and longer life expectancy. This calculator lets you test different rates to see how long your pot lasts.
The full new State Pension is £241.30 per week (2026/27 tax year), which is approximately £12,548 per year. You need 35 qualifying years of National Insurance contributions. You can check your forecast at gov.uk/check-state-pension.
Salary sacrifice means your pension contributions are taken from your gross salary before income tax and National Insurance are calculated. This saves you tax and NI on your contributions, and your employer also saves employer NI — which some pass on to your pension. Use the % contribution mode in this calculator to see your effective cost. The r/UKPersonalFinance guide on tax efficiency covers more ways to optimise your tax position.
Currently you can access your defined contribution pension from age 55. This is rising to 57 in April 2028. State Pension age is currently 66, rising to 67 between 2026–2028, and to 68 after that (subject to government review).
Drawdown (also called 'flexi-access drawdown') lets you keep your pension pot invested and draw an income from it flexibly. Unlike an annuity, you're not guaranteed an income for life — your pot can run out if withdrawals are too high or returns are poor. This calculator models drawdown scenarios so you can find a sustainable rate.
A widely cited guideline is to halve the age at which you start saving and put that percentage of your salary into your pension each month. For example, if you start at 30, aim for 15%. Under auto-enrolment, the minimum total contribution is 8% of qualifying earnings (5% from you, 3% from your employer), but this is generally considered a minimum rather than an adequate amount. The r/UKPersonalFinance pensions guide has more detail on contribution strategies.
Pension tax relief means the government tops up your pension contributions from the tax you would have paid. Basic-rate taxpayers get 20% relief (e.g., a £100 contribution only costs you £80). Higher-rate taxpayers can claim an additional 20% through self-assessment, and additional-rate taxpayers can claim an extra 25%. The annual allowance for tax-relieved pension contributions is £60,000 for the 2024/25 tax year. For a deeper dive, see the UKPF wiki on income tax basics.
This tool uses standard UK pension rules for 2026/27, including correct income tax bands, NI rates, and the 25% tax-free lump sum. It's intended for planning and educational purposes only. Individual outcomes depend on investment returns, inflation, fees, and your personal tax position. For a comprehensive overview of where pensions fit into your financial plan, check out the UKPF Flowchart. Always verify your plans with an FCA-regulated financial adviser.
Planning for retirement is one of the most important financial decisions you'll make, yet it's also one of the most complex. Between workplace pensions, personal contributions, state pension entitlements, tax relief, and investment growth, there are dozens of variables that determine how comfortable your retirement will be. That's why we built PoundSense — a free, transparent pension calculator designed specifically for UK savers.
Most people have no clear idea whether they're saving enough for retirement. According to the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association (PLSA), a "moderate" retirement lifestyle for an individual costs around £23,300 per year, while a "comfortable" retirement requires roughly £37,300. These figures include housing costs, holidays, leisure, and day-to-day living expenses. By using a pension calculator, you can see exactly where you stand against these benchmarks and how much more you might need to save.
PoundSense uses a forward projection model that works in today's money. This means all figures you see are adjusted for inflation, giving you a realistic picture of your future purchasing power. Enter your age, current pension pot, monthly contributions, and expected retirement age, and the calculator projects your pension pot at retirement using your chosen growth rate.
From there, you choose one of three income strategies — Maximise (highest income, pot reaches £0 at life expectancy), Balanced (moderate income, retain around 50% of your pot), or Preserve (lower income, pot stays intact for inheritance). Each strategy uses a solver that calculates the exact sustainable monthly income after tax, including the full new State Pension (currently £241.30 per week in 2026/27), optional defined benefit pensions, and ISA savings.
Retirement planning doesn't happen in isolation. If you're planning with a partner, enable couple mode to model both pensions side by side. The household income solver finds the optimal way to draw from both people's pots, minimising total tax by equalising marginal rates across the household. You'll see a combined monthly income figure, per-person breakdowns, and a unified chart showing how both pots evolve over time. The income strategy (maximise, balanced, or preserve) applies to the household as a whole.
One of the biggest advantages of pension saving in the UK is tax relief. When you contribute to a pension, the government tops up your contribution based on your income tax band. Basic rate taxpayers receive 20% relief (effectively, for every £80 you contribute, £100 goes into your pension). Higher rate taxpayers can claim an additional 20% through self-assessment, and additional rate taxpayers can claim up to 45% relief. If your employer offers salary sacrifice, you also save on National Insurance contributions — our calculator shows you exactly how much.
Since pension freedoms were introduced in April 2015, most people with defined contribution pensions choose flexi-access drawdown rather than buying an annuity. Drawdown gives you flexibility — you keep your pot invested and withdraw income as needed. However, it comes with investment risk: if markets fall or you withdraw too much, your pot could run out. An annuity, by contrast, guarantees a fixed income for life but offers no flexibility and typically provides lower initial income. PoundSense lets you compare both options side by side, including blended strategies, so you can make an informed decision.
Compound growth is the single most powerful force in pension saving. A 25-year-old contributing £200 per month with 5% annual growth would accumulate roughly £320,000 by age 67 — but only £135,000 of that comes from their own contributions. The remaining £185,000 is investment growth. Starting just 10 years later at 35 with the same contributions would yield around £175,000 — nearly half as much. Our calculator lets you experiment with different starting ages and contribution levels to see this effect for yourself.
PoundSense runs entirely in your browser. We don't store your financial data on any server, don't require registration, and don't sell your information. Your pension calculations stay on your device. You can save scenarios locally, share them via URL, or export your projections as a CSV file — all without creating an account.
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PoundSense is for educational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. For personalised guidance, consult an FCA-regulated financial adviser. Pension rules and tax thresholds are subject to change. Figures shown are projections, not guarantees.