Kalkulo

State Pension calculator

Work out your UK new State Pension from your National Insurance qualifying years and date of birth, with 2026/27 rates and your State Pension age.

The full new State Pension is £241.30 a week in 2026/27 (£12,547.60 over 52 weeks), paid to people reaching State Pension age from 6 April 2016 with 35 qualifying National Insurance years; you need at least 10 years to get anything. Sources: State Pension Regulations 2015, reg 1A, Pensions Act 2014, s.2.

Paid, treated as paid or credited — see “What counts as a qualifying year” below. If you worked or got credits before April 2016, answer Yes.

From 2016/17 to 2025/26 — at most 10 for your date of birth.

Prefilled with the most you can add from 2026/27 (or the tax year you turn 16) up to the tax year before you reach State Pension age: 42.

Result

Your State Pension age: age 68 — 15 June 2068 (Pensions Act 1995 Sch. 4; under review)

£241.30 a week
£12,547.60 a year (52 weeks) · about £1,045.63 a month — a monthly average calculated by Kalkulo (52 weeks ÷ 12), not an official figure: the State Pension is paid every 4 weeks.
In 2026/27 money — future uprating is not guessed.

52 qualifying years counted (10 since 2016/17 + 42 still to add). 35 years or more gives the full rate (Pensions Act 2014 s.2(1)).

Parameters used (2026/27)

ParameterValueSource
Full rate of the new State Pension£241.30 a weekSPR 2015 reg 1A; Up-rating Order 2026 art 6; NI: S.R. 2026/59 art 6
Years for the full rate35Pensions Act 2014 s.2
Minimum qualifying years10SPR 2015 reg 13
Each qualifying year (1/35 of the full rate)£6.89 a weekPensions Act 2014 s.3(2)
Lower Earnings Limit / Primary Threshold£129 / £242 a weekHMRC rates 2026 to 2027
Earnings for a qualifying year (52 × LEL)£6,708SSCBA 1992 s.122
Self-employed profits (Class 2 treated as paid)£7,105gov.uk
Deferring (not calculated)1/9 of 1% for each full week deferred, at least 9 weeks (about 5.78% a year)Pensions Act 2014 s.17; SPR 2015 reg 10
Claiming late (not calculated)A claim can be backdated up to 12 months; backdated weeks are paid as arrears rather than counting towards a deferral increaseSSAA 1992 s.1(2), (4)(zb); PA 2014 s.17(8)(a)
State Pension age66, rising to 67 (2026–28) and 68 (2044–46), by date of birthPensions Act 1995 Sch. 4

Great Britain and Northern Ireland use separate but identical rules. Last verified 25 September 2026 · next uprating April 2027.

What counts as a qualifying year

Your salary does not change the amount — it only decides whether a year counts. A tax year counts if you: earn at least £6,708 a year (£129 a week) from one job in 2026/27 — between £129 and £242 a week you pay nothing but are treated as having paid (SSCBA 1992 s.6A); make self-employed profits of at least £7,105; get National Insurance credits (for example Child Benefit for a child under 12, Carer's Credit, some benefits — gov.uk); or pay voluntary contributions. The tax year in which you reach State Pension age never counts (SSCBA 1992 Sch. 3 para 5(8)).

What this calculator does not cover
  • National Insurance years before April 2016 without your forecast amount: no estimate is possible — use Check your State Pension forecast.
  • Being contracted out before 2016, which lowers your starting amount — it is already reflected in your forecast (gov.uk).
  • Living abroad: the State Pension is not increased each year in some countries, so it stays frozen at its first rate (gov.uk).
  • Several jobs each paying under £129 a week: earnings are tested job by job, not added together, so the year may not count (SSCBA 1992 s.6A).
  • National Insurance credits are not detected: count those years yourself in the years you enter (gov.uk).
  • Born on 29 February: no State Pension age date is calculated — use the official checker.
  • Pension Credit, a separate means-tested top-up (gov.uk).
  • Tax: amounts are before Income Tax — the State Pension is taxable income (gov.uk).
  • State Pension age is under review and could change (third review).

Related: plan the gap before State Pension age with our FIRE calculator, build savings with the savings calculator, check your exact age with the age calculator, or see the same National Insurance thresholds in the take-home pay calculator. Filling gaps with voluntary Class 3 contributions: gov.uk guidance.

About this tool

Why use this tool

The new State Pension does not depend on your salary: it is a flat weekly amount set by the number of qualifying years on your National Insurance record. This calculator works out your State Pension age from your date of birth, counts the qualifying years you can still add before it, and gives the amount in 2026/27 money when it can be worked out exactly — and says so plainly when it cannot.

How it works

The full rate is £241.30 a week in 2026/27. With 35 or more qualifying years you get the full rate; with fewer, you get one thirty-fifth of it for each year (Pensions Act 2014 s.3); under 10 qualifying years you get nothing. A year counts if you earn at least £6,708 from one job in 2026/27, make self-employed profits of at least £7,105, receive National Insurance credits or pay voluntary contributions — the tax year in which you reach State Pension age never counts.

That simple rule only applies if your record starts on or after 6 April 2016. With even one qualifying year before then, the law uses a transitional rate built from a “starting amount” that reflects your whole earnings history and any time contracted out. That figure is only on your official record, so the calculator asks for your current amount from Check your State Pension forecast and adds one thirty-fifth of the full rate for each further year, up to the full rate. Without it, no amount is shown.

State Pension age is 66, rising month by month for people born between 6 April 1960 and 5 March 1961, to 67 for people born from 6 March 1961; for people born between 6 April 1977 and 5 April 1978 it is a fixed date between May 2044 and March 2046, and 68 for anyone born after that. The rise to 68 is under a government review and could change.

Real example

Someone born on 15 June 2000 has no qualifying year before April 2016 (they turned 16 in the 2016/17 tax year). With 20 qualifying years in total they would get 20/35 of £241.30, about £137.89 a week; by carrying on working until State Pension age at 68, on 15 June 2068, they can reach 35 years and the full rate. Amounts are in 2026/27 money: the full rate is uprated every April.

Practical tips

Check your State Pension forecast and your National Insurance record before deciding anything: it shows your current amount, your State Pension age and any gaps. Gaps can sometimes be filled with voluntary contributions, usually for the past 6 years — it adds nothing if you will reach the full rate anyway. You can also defer claiming: the pension rises by one-ninth of 1% for each full week deferred, after at least 9 weeks.

Disclaimer

This calculator is indicative. It does not model contracted-out deductions, frozen pensions abroad, several jobs each under the Lower Earnings Limit, National Insurance credits you have not counted, Pension Credit or tax, and it does not calculate a State Pension age for people born on 29 February. For your personal figure, use the official Check your State Pension forecast service.

Frequently asked questions

How many qualifying years do I need for the full new State Pension?⌄
Usually 35 qualifying years of National Insurance contributions or credits for the full amount, and at least 10 to get any new State Pension at all. Each year between 10 and 35 is worth roughly one thirty-fifth of the full rate. Contracted-out employment before 2016 can change this, so a personalised forecast is the only reliable figure.Source: gov.uk — The new State Pension
I paid National Insurance before April 2016 — why is my amount not simply years ÷ 35?⌄
Because the law does not use the simple one-thirty-fifth rule for you. With at least one qualifying year before 6 April 2016, your new State Pension starts from a "starting amount" worked out from your record up to April 2016: the higher of what you would have got under the old rules and a new-system amount, both reduced if you were contracted out. Each later qualifying year then adds one thirty-fifth of the full rate, up to the full rate; a starting amount above the full rate is kept as a protected payment. That starting amount is only on your official record, so the calculator asks for the current amount shown by your State Pension forecast and shows no figure without it.Source: legislation.gov.uk — Pensions Act 2014, section 5 and Schedule 1, gov.uk — Check your State Pension forecast
How much is the State Pension and how do I check mine?⌄
The full new State Pension is set every April by the "triple lock" and changes each year, so rather than rely on a headline number, check your personalised forecast — it shows the amount you have built up so far, what you are on track for, and your State Pension age.Source: gov.uk — Check your State Pension forecast
What is my State Pension age?⌄
It is currently 66, rising to 67 between 2026 and 2028, and legislated to reach 68 between 2044 and 2046 — though the timetable is under periodic review and could move. You cannot claim the State Pension before that age, whatever your National Insurance record.Source: gov.uk — State Pension age
Can I fill gaps in my National Insurance record?⌄
Often yes, by paying voluntary Class 3 contributions for missing years, usually going back six years. It is not always worth it — if you will reach 35 years before State Pension age anyway, extra years add nothing — so check your forecast before paying.Source: gov.uk — Voluntary National Insurance
Is it worth deferring my State Pension?⌄
Deferring increases the eventual payment by about 1% for every nine weeks you put it off — a little under 5.8% a year. It only pays off if you do not need the income now and expect to live well beyond your late seventies, and the extra amount is taxable.Source: gov.uk — Deferring your State Pension

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