Why start now?

The payments you make to your pension aren't set in stone and you should review them regularly to see if you're saving enough.

Finding extra money can be really tough. But paying in even just a little bit more now can have a big impact on your standard of living when you retire. When you take charge of your pension, you're taking control of your future.

Imagine you start at 25 years old and earn £25,000 a year. The chart below shows that starting with a  slightly larger payment percentage can have a large effect on the final pension pot you could potentially build up. Note this would be the total of employer and employee payments.

An illustration of what your pension pot could be worth after 40 years at different payment levels

Use the retirement planner to see how much you might get back when you retire

Find out more about changing how much you pay

 

Important information and assumptions

These figures are illustrations only to demonstrate the potential growth of your pension. What your pension will be worth depends on how much you pay in and how your investments perform. As with any investment, the value can go down as well as up and may be worth less than what was paid in. There are no guarantees.

You may get more or less than illustrated. The payment percentages and earnings may not represent your circumstances - for other payment or salary levels the figures can be adjusted proportionately.

Some types of investment or savings plans, for example a savings account or a cash ISA, do not take account of inflation, so may look more attractive than they actually are if you’re comparing them to this illustration.

These figures are shown in today’s prices. We’ve made some assumptions: that the tax and pension regulations don’t change (based on our understanding of these as at 6 April 2022) and that you’ll retire at age 65.

It also assumes that you make payments each month, that your earnings will increase by 3.5% each year, that your annual charges will be 1% and that your investments will grow at 3% a year (you may get more or less than that). In line with Financial Conduct Authority rules, the growth rate has been reduced by 2% to allow for inflation. The figures provided don't allow for any special terms that may apply.