What Is The Average Pension Pot In The UK? – Forbes Advisor UK

If you’re saving for retirement, it’s natural to question whether you’re on track to amass enough to make you financially comfortable, and to wonder how your pension savings compare to those of others.

But according to a Forbes Advisor poll, 22% of respondents had ‘no idea’ whether their pension savings were on track.

To help savers work out where they stand, we’ve gathered data from the UK government and from leading pension providers to determine the national average pensions kitty, along with how pot size varies by age, gender and region.

We’ve also sourced some tips that could help boost the value of your pension savings.

Overall average

According to data from PensionBee, the average UK pension pot was worth £20,077 as of May 2024.

However, some individuals hold multiple pension pots, so the combined value of their retirement savings will be higher.

In its latest study, which gathered data between April 2020 and March 2022, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) found that 70% of adults have one or more pension pots, and the median savings total was £57,500.

This median includes both workplace pensions and self-invested personal pensions (SIPPs).

The overall median – which factors in adults without a pension pot – was much lower, at £19,700.

Upward trajectory

Despite the fact that some UK adults don’t have any pension savings, the overall trend appears to be moving in a positive direction, ONS data suggests.

The percentage of working age adults contributing to a workplace or personal pension pot has increased in recent years, albeit gradually. As of March 2022, 44% of adults aged 16 and over actively contributed to a pension pot, compared with just 34% a decade earlier.

This upward trend could be due, in part, to the introduction of automatic enrollment in 2012. Under auto-enrollment rules, all full-time employees must be enrolled in a workplace pension scheme by their employer.

But it’s not all good news. According to the Scottish Widows 2025 Retirement Report, 39% of working age adults are not on track to achieve what the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association deems a ‘minimum lifestyle’ in retirement – a slight increase of 1% compared with 2024.

This lifestyle measure, equivalent to an annual income of at least £14,800, covers basic expenses such as food and bills, with enough left over for a week-long UK holiday each year, new clothing and footwear and a streaming service subscription.

In May 2025 a report by workplace pension provider, now:pensions, together with the Pensions Policy Institute (PPI) found that close to nine million people are significantly ‘underpensioned’ compared to the wider population.

The underpensioned groups have an annual private pension income ranging from just £3,650 up to £6,750, says now:pensions. This compares to an average retirement income of £8,500 for the wider population. 

Average pension savings by age

These averages conceal some significant differences in savings by age, however. As you might expect, pot values peak just before the typical age of retirement.

According to the latest ONS data, 70% of individuals aged 16 or over hold at least one pension pot.

Below is a breakdown of how these pension savings vary, on average, by age group:

Average pension pot size by income

According to the latest ONS Wealth and Assets Survey, the wealthiest 10% of UK households held £1.25 million in savings and assets on average, while the least wealthy 10% held £16,500, as of March 2022.

And this discrepancy bears out when it comes to pension savings.

In March 2022, the top 10% of UK households by income held a total of £1,234 billion in private pension savings, while the bottom 10% held just £170 billion.

Pension savings by region

Average pension pot value also varies between UK regions.

According to a survey of over 240,000 PensionBee customers, the following UK regions have the highest value pension pots on average:

• South East England: £25,734
• Greater London: £23,393
• South West: £19,557

At the other end of the spectrum, the following UK regions have the lowest average pension pot value:

• Northern Ireland: £13,844
• North West England: £15,651
• Wales: £15,767

In general, workers in regions that pay higher salaries have more in their pension pots.

Gender pension gap

According to PensionBee, men’s pension pots are 38% larger than women’s on average, and the gap widens as workers approach retirement age.

For workers under 30, men have 18% more in their pension pot than women, on average. But by the time they are 50 or older, the gender pension gap expands to 45%.

This gap is larger in some UK regions than others. In Northern Ireland, for example, the average man has £16,390 saved in a pension pot, while women in the same region have just £9,136 in their pot on average. The gender pension gap is lowest, at 29%, in Greater London.

Research by investment firm Fidelity International, published in March 2025, shows women retire, on average, with £96,633 less than men. To bridge the gap women would need to work an extra 3.3 years.

A study from December 2024 by Almond Financial, a pensions advisor, suggested that closing the gap could take 90 years. It puts the discrepancy in pension pot value down to two main reasons; firstly, women typically earn less than men so have less cash available for pension contributions on average and secondly women are also more likely than men to take a career break or reduce their working hours to raise children.

Sharing childcare duties more evenly with their partner could help some mothers increase the size of their pension pot according to Sam Robinson, principal financial advisor at Almond Financial: “By sharing parental leave and encouraging men to take their full entitlement, women can be supported in returning to work sooner with full pay, which boosts their ability to save for retirement.” 

A separate report by interactive investor found that, by age 45, the average man is on track to have a larger pension pot at retirement than the average woman – even if he made no additional monthly contributions. 

Alice Guy, head of pensions and savings at interactive investor, says: “It’s eye opening that men are already on track for a bigger retirement pot on average by their mid-40s even if they don’t pay a penny more into their pension.”

He adds: “It’s a double-whammy as the impact of investment compounding also works in favour of those who have bigger pots in mid-life. Men have almost twice as much saved by their mid-40s, and that gap will continue to grow as investment returns snowball over time.”

According to ONS figures, the UK gender pay gap stood at 7.7% as of April 2023.

What about the State Pension?

The current full state pension is £230.25 a week, that’s around £11,975 a year. The ‘old’ basic state pension, paid to pensioners who retired before April 2016, is £176.45 a week, or £9,154 a year.

Every April, state pensions increase by one of three measures, whichever is higher. These are:

• 2.5%
• the inflation figure recorded in the preceding September (1.7% in 2024)
• the rise in average earnings (including bonuses) in the preceding May-July period (4.1% in 2024).

This system is known as the pensions ‘triple lock.’

As wage growth has outstripped inflation and the base increase of 2.5%, it means the State pension rose by 4.1% in April 2025.

Keeping on top of your pension pot

Checking in on your pension pot or pots can help ensure you’re on track with your retirement savings – but a survey by The People’s Pension found 32% of UK adults don’t know the value of their retirement savings.

Luckily, it’s never too early or too late to review your retirement savings. Below are a handful of tips that could help boost the value of your pension pot in the long-run:

Consolidate pension pots

The average worker has about 12 different jobs over the course of their career, and could be enrolled in several different workplace pension schemes.

Having multiple pots on the go can make it tricky to keep track of your savings, and it may make sense to consolidate them with a single provider. 

Becky O’Connor, director of public affairs at PensionBee, says: “Consolidating will not only help you assess if you’re on track for the lifestyle you want in retirement, but it can also reduce the burden of monitoring numerous pension accounts.

“Unfortunately, it can be easier to lose track of old pensions than you may think, as almost 1 in 10 workers believe they’ve lost a pension pot worth more than £10,000 during the course of their career.”

Increase your contributions

If it’s feasible to do so, increasing your monthly pension contributions – even by a small amount – can have a significant impact on the overall value of your pot over time. 

If you’re enrolled in a workplace pension, you can ask your employer to increase your contributions whenever you like. 

PensionBee’s O’Connor says: “Even a small increase can make a difference over time and the power of compound interest means the earlier and more you save, the more your money will grow.”

Pension contributions receive tax relief, which means you’ll also benefit from paying less tax on your earnings overall.

Review your investments

Checking where your pot is invested, and how it’s performing, can also help ensure you’re on track for your target retirement income. 

If your pension provider allows you to choose where funds are invested, it could make sense to move money into lower risk investments as you approach retirement, in order to preserve the value of your pot.

On the other hand, if your working life has just begun, you may opt for higher-risk options that have the potential for higher returns over time.