The short answer
For a single person outside London, the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association (PLSA) 2025/26 Retirement Living Standards suggest three target incomes:
| Lifestyle | Target net income | Approx. pension pot at 67* |
|---|
| Minimum |
£13,400/year |
£0 – £60,000 |
| Moderate |
£31,700/year |
£340,000 |
| Comfortable |
£43,900/year |
£555,000 |
*Approximate pot size needed in addition to a full new State Pension (£12,548/year), assuming retirement at 67, a 30-year horizon, 5% nominal growth, and 3% inflation. Your own numbers will vary — use the calculator below to model your own scenario.
Why the State Pension does most of the heavy lifting for "minimum"
The full new State Pension for 2026/27 is £241.30 per week (£12,548/year). That's already close to the PLSA minimum income of £13,400/year.
If you qualify for the full new State Pension, you only need a small private pot — or part-time work — to reach the minimum standard of living in retirement. For most people, the real question is how to fund a moderate or comfortable retirement, both of which require material private savings.
The rough rules of thumb
- The 4% rule: draw 4% of your pot in year one and inflation-adjust thereafter. A £340k pot yields roughly £13,600/year at that rate — add the State Pension and you land near PLSA moderate.
- The "25x" rule: a pot 25× your desired annual private-pension income should last ~30 years at 4% withdrawal.
- Retiring early costs more: retiring at 55 instead of 67 means 12 more years of drawdown and no State Pension to help, so the required pot is 50–80% larger.
These rules are rough. UK income tax, the 25% tax-free lump sum, ISA withdrawals (tax-free), and the Personal Allowance all affect how much gross withdrawal you need for a given net income.
What affects the answer most
- Retirement age: every extra year of work both grows the pot and shortens the drawdown window — double impact.
- Growth rate assumed: 5% nominal vs 7% nominal changes the required pot by 25–40%.
- How long you need it to last: planning to age 95 vs age 85 adds roughly 20% to the required pot.
- Other assets: an ISA and cash savings can fill gaps and manage tax bands efficiently.
Calculate your own number
Rules of thumb are a starting point — the real answer depends on your numbers. Our free UK pension calculator runs a year-by-year projection through retirement, applies current UK income tax, uses the full new State Pension of £12,548/year by default, and tells you the highest sustainable net income your pot can support.
Try the free pension calculator →
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