Inputs
Your age
Planning to work until
Contributions stop at this age, pot keeps compounding
Target retirement age
When you start drawing the pension
Current pension pot
Total value of your existing pension(s)
£
Annual salary (gross)
£
Your contribution
% of gross salary — £1,750/yr (£146/mo)
%
Employer contribution
% of gross salary — £1,050/yr (£88/mo)
%
Annual salary growth
Expected pay rises per year
%
Investment growth rate
Expected annual return (nominal)
%
State Pension qualifying years
NI years on your record (check GOV.UK)
Results
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🏦Total pension pot
£544,106
After 37 years
💰25% lump sum
£136,026
Available from age 55 (57 from 2028)
📊Remaining pot
£408,080
After lump sum withdrawal
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→🇬🇧State Pension (annual)
£11,502
Based on 35 qualifying years
📅State Pension (monthly)
£959
From State Pension age (currently 67)
Pension pot growth over time
Projected pension pot
Guide
Pension Questions
How much should I contribute to my pension?
A common rule of thumb is to contribute half your age as a percentage of salary. The minimum auto-enrolment total is 8% (5% employee + 3% employer). Contributing more early on has a disproportionate impact thanks to compound growth.
What is the 25% tax-free lump sum?
When you access your defined contribution pension (from age 55, rising to 57 in 2028), you can take up to 25% of your pot tax-free. The rest is taxed as income when drawn down.
How much is the UK State Pension?
The full new State Pension is £221.20/week (£11,502/year) in 2025/26. You need 35 qualifying NI years for the full amount and at least 10 years to get anything.
What growth rate should I assume?
A typical assumption for a diversified pension fund is 5% nominal. Conservative estimates use 3–4%, optimistic projections 6–7%. Subtract 2–3% for inflation to get a real-terms figure.
How does salary sacrifice affect my pension?
With salary sacrifice, contributions come from gross pay before tax and NI. Both you and your employer save NI contributions. Many employers pass on their NI saving as an extra pension contribution.
How We Calculate
- Employee contribution = salary × employee rate
- Employer contribution = salary × employer rate
- Both contributions are added at the start of the year
- Investment growth is applied to the full pot: pot × (1 + growth rate)
- Salary grows each year by the salary growth rate
All figures are nominal — no inflation adjustment. Investment growth is applied as a flat annual rate with no volatility modelling. This is an illustrative model, not financial advice.
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