What is the UK State Pension?

In a nutshell

The State Pension is a regular payment by the government to qualifying citizens once they reach the State Pension age (68 at the time of writing).

How much will I get?

How much you get depends on how many qualifying years of National Insurance contributions you have. You must pay a minimum amount of National Insurance each financial year for that year to be counted as a qualifying year (don’t mind the exact weekly amount as this will likely change over time).

• 35 years: 35/35 x £203.85 = £203.85 a week
• 30 years: 30/35 x £203.85 = £174.73 a week
• 10 years: 10/35 x £203.85 = £58.24 a week

When do I get it?

At the time of writing (2023), it’s 68 but this is probably going to change. You can use this tool to get the latest State Pension age.

Other notes

• Beyond a certain threshold, higher contributions towards your pension don’t mean you’ll get more back.

Sources

• The new State Pension – gov.uk