The Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association (PLSA) has established a set of Retirement Living Standards, as a useful guide to help you determine the annual income that may be required to live the lifestyle you want during retirement.
The Retirement Living Standards illustrate what your lifestyle in retirement might look like using three example annual expenditure levels: Minimum, Moderate and Comfortable.
Minimum
Single: £10,200
Couple: £15,700
This level of income is expected to cover all your essential needs, with some left over for fun and social occasions. For example, this may include a holiday in the UK, eating out once a month and doing some affordable leisure activities a couple of times a week.
Moderate
Single: £20,200
Couple: £29,100
This level of income provides more financial security and flexibility. For example, this may include a foreign holiday once a year, eating out a few times a month and more opportunities to do the things you would like.
Comfortable
Single: £33,000
Couple: £47,500
This level of income provides more financial freedom and some luxuries. For example, this may include two foreign holidays a year, regular beauty treatments and a subscription to a streaming service.
These standards aim to help you think practically about the income you may need during retirement taking into account the costs associated with a number of different categories including household costs, food & drink, transport, holidays & leisure, clothing & personal and helping others.
Full details on the income levels and associated living standards can be found by visiting the Retirement Living Standards website: www.retirementlivingstandards.org.uk.
This website also includes a series of case studies to show the kind of living standards different people could have during retirement based on their income, household expenditure and savings.
Please note that:
- The income levels quoted include the full state pension and therefore assume that you will retire at State Pension Age.To find out when you’ll be eligible for the State Pension and how much you’ll receive, you can use the State Pension calculator at www.gov.uk/check-state-pension.
- The income levels are also quoted after deduction of Income tax.
These standards have been prepared by the PLSA to provide guidance on what income you might need in retirement. They provide a rule of thumb guide based on common costs you might incur and are based on a number of assumptions. Your circumstances may be different, and you should consider seeking financial advice in relation to your own retirement planning.
Further information
As a reminder, to monitor the performance of your Experian retirement savings, you can log on by clicking the Login button at the top of the page and using your individual login details.
Alternatively, you can email the Experian team at Capita experianpensions@capita.co.uk or the Experian Group Pensions Team grouppensions@experian.com.
If you feel you still need to speak to someone, you can contact the Experian pensions team at Capita on 0114 229 8273. Please note neither Capita, Experian Group Pensions nor the Trustees can give you any financial advice, but they can help with your retirement planning.
As well as Capita, you can also find out more about your pension and what you can expect in retirement from the following sources: