📊 THE BASE RATE · UK money, explained
RETIREMENT · 2026/27

The Retirement Number Calculator

How much do you actually need to retire in the UK? Drag the sliders, the real number updates live.

Single
Couple
Yes, include it
No
Full new State Pension 2026/27 ≈ £12,548/yr each (£241.30/wk). Edit if yours differs.
The pot you need to build:
£503,800
State Pension
Your savings
State Pension provides Your pot provides
To build that by 67, save roughly
£740/mo

How this works (the maths)

The pot you need ≈ (your target income − the State Pension) × 25. The "× 25" is the 4% rule: withdraw about 4% of a pot in year one, rising with inflation, and it has a good chance of lasting ~30 years (1 ÷ 0.04 = 25).

In 2026/27 the full new State Pension is about £12,548 a year (£241.30 a week), paid for life so it covers a big share of your income and cuts the pot you must build yourself. For a single person on a "moderate" £32,700 income, the pot needed is roughly £500,000, not £1 million.

Sources: gov.uk (State Pension, 2026/27), PLSA Retirement Living Standards 2025, the 4% rule (Bengen / Trinity study). Figures are illustrative.

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Illustrative only, not financial advice. This uses the "rule of 25" (4% guideline): pot ≈ (target income − State Pension) × 25. Real outcomes depend on tax, your home, inflation and market returns, which this doesn't model precisely, it gets the right ballpark fast. Your capital is at risk. Always do your own research or speak to a qualified adviser.

Sources: gov.uk (State Pension), PLSA Retirement Living Standards 2025.