Alongside other savings and investments, your State Pension could support the retirement lifestyle you want.
 
But do you know how much you might expect to receive? 50% of UK adults don’t. And 32% are in the dark about when they can start claiming payments [1].
 
If you’re unsure how the State Pension works or how much you might receive, keep reading.

How the State Pension works

If you’re eligible for some or all of the State Pension, you’ll receive a regular payment from the government when you reach State Pension Age.

The current State Pension Age is 66 for both men and women. It’s set to increase to 67 between 2026 and 2028 and to 68 between 2044 and 2046.

You can check your State Pension Age online.

2 types of UK State Pension

• The basic State Pension – for those who reached State Pension Age before 6 April 2016.
• The new State Pension – for those who reached State Pension Age on or after 6 April 2016.

The amount you’re eligible for depends on how many “qualifying years” of National Insurance contributions (NICs) you have. You’ll usually need:

• The full basic State Pension – Typically, 30 qualifying years. Men born before 1945 usually need 44 qualifying years, while women born before 1950 usually need 39 qualifying years.
• The full new State Pension – 35 qualifying years.

A qualifying year is one in which you were:

• Working and making NICs
• Receiving National Insurance (NI) credits, for example, if you were a parent or carer
• Paying voluntary NICs.

If you don’t have enough qualifying years, you may still be entitled to a reduced State Pension.

How much is the State Pension?

The amount you’ll receive depends on your NI record. In 2025/26, the full State Pension amounts are:

• £176.45 a week (£9,175 a year) for the basic State Pension
• £230.25 a week (£11,973 a year) for the new State Pension

Check the government website for your State Pension forecast.

The State Pension increases each year

Under the State Pension triple lock, payments increase each tax year by the highest of: 

• Average earnings growth
• Inflation, as measured by the Consumer Prices Index (CPI)
• 2.5%.

In April 2026, it’s set to rise 4.8% in line with the rise in average earnings, meaning payments will increase to:

• £241.30 a week (£12,457 a year) for the full new State Pension
• £184.90 a week (£9,615 a year) for the full basic State Pension 

Your State Pension doesn’t start paying out automatically – you have to claim it.

You should receive a letter a couple of months before you reach your State Pension Age, explaining what you must do.

If you defer claiming your State Pension, you might be entitled to receive more.
 
You may have “contracted out” at some point in your career

Before April 2016, you could choose to “contract out” of the Additional State Pension (also known as “State Second Pension” or “SERPS”) from the government.
 
Instead, part of your NICs – or an equivalent amount – was paid into a workplace or private pension.

The aim was to provide employees with a pension equal to or better than the State Pension they gave up, depending on investment performance.
 
However, contracting out may mean you’ll receive less from your State Pension. If this applies to you, you may be able to top up qualifying years with voluntary NICs.

Filling gaps in your National Insurance record 

If you were an unpaid carer or out of work due to illness, you might be eligible to claim free NI credits to plug any gaps in your record.
 
Alternatively, if you contracted out or don’t have enough qualifying years to receive the full State Pension, you could pay voluntary NICs to increase your entitlement.
 
You can usually only pay for gaps in the last six tax years. It’s also important to weigh up whether voluntary contributions are worth the cost, as it could take many years to recover the value.
 
Weighing up the pros and cons can be complex. If you’d like to discuss your options, please get in touch.

Get in touch

To discuss how we could help you make the most of your State Pension and other sources of income to create a single plan to provide a tax-efficient income when you retire, email [email protected] or call us on 0800 048 0150.

Please note
The information contained in this article is based on the opinion of Titan Wealth Planning and does not constitute financial advice or a recommendation for any investment or retirement strategy.
All information is correct at the time of writing and is subject to change in the future.

Please do not act based on anything you might read in this article. All contents are based on our understanding of HMRC legislation, which is subject to change.

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