A couple will need £60,600 a year to retire comfortably, an influential pension industry study has found.
That’s a £1,600 annual increase from £59,000 last year, the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association found.
For a single person, the cost of a comfortable retirement is less at £43,900 a year – up by £800 from £43,100 in 2024.
The slight rise reflects the impact of inflation across many spending categories, which have been offset by decreases in energy costs, its report said.
The PLSA sets three different retirement lifestyles – minimum, moderate, and comfortable – to give people a general indication of the kind of lifestyle they may be on track for in retirement.
Here’s a breakdown of what each lifestyle is made up of:
And, this is what it looks like for a single person…
The minimum amount someone needs in retirement has fallen, the study shows, with lower energy prices and people’s changing expectations helping to bring down costs.
The cost of a minimum retirement living standard for a one-person household has decreased by £1,000 per year to £13,400, while for a couple, it is £21,600, down from £22,400.
The amounts needed for moderate standards increased slightly, with a single person needing £31,700, up by £400 previously and a couple needing £43,900, up by £800.
Zoe Alexander, director of policy and advocacy at the PLSA, said: “For many, retirement is about maintaining the life they already have, not living more extravagantly or cutting back to the bare essentials.
“The standards are designed to help people picture that future and plan in a way that works for them.”
She said that for many people, saving more than the minimum contributions required in their workplace pension could help to give them a better chance of the kind of retirement they want.
