How much the State Pension pays in 2025/26

Those receiving the UK State Pension will enjoy another decent pay rise this month. Read on to see how much the New and Basic State Pensions pay in the 2025/26 tax year.

UK State Pension pay will rise by up to £473 a year this month.

This means those receiving the full amount will get £11,973 over the course of the 2025/26 financial year.

Time running out to top up your State Pension pay

Not all State pensions are equal

Exactly how much pension you receive will vary based on several factors.

The rest of this article looks in more detail at how the State Pension increases are calculated and how much you can expect to receive.

But first, if you're retired and struggling to make ends meet, make sure you are receiving all these vital credits and benefits that you are entitled to.

If you still need help bringing in extra cash after you've finished working, take a look at this guide to boosting income in retirement.

How the 2025/26 State Pension rise was calculated

The rate at which the State Pension increases each year is calculated using what's known as the triple lock system.

In short, this means looking at three figures:

wage growth between May and July
inflation as determined by the Consumer Price Index in September (released in October)
2.5%.

Whichever is the highest will determine the following year's State Pension rise.

The inflation figure was the final piece of the puzzle we were waiting to see, which was confirmed at 1.7% late last year.

This means the highest figure of the three is wage growth.

This figure came in at 4.1% and will be the one used for this month's State Pension pay rise.

Now let's take a look at how much retirees will get in pounds and pence.

Which State Pension are you eligible for?

As a result of our convoluted and, some would say, unfair welfare system, there are two different State Pensions.

There's the old Basic State Pension and the New State Pension, which pay two significantly different amounts.

The old pension is given to men born before 6 April 1951 and women born before 6 April 1953 and is notably less generous than the new State Pension.

As a case in point, those on the Old State Pension will only see their pay rise £361 this April compared to £473 for those on the new one.

How much the New State Pension pays in 2025/26

The New State Pension will rise to £230.30 a week, or £11,973 a year, in April 2025.

How much the old Basic State Pension pays in 2025/26

Those on the Old Basic State Pension will receive £176.45 a week, or £9,175 a year, from April.

Past State Pension changes

Here’s how the State Pension has increased over the last few years.

	How State Pension has risen in previous years
April 2017	2.5%
April 2018	3%
April 2019	2.6%
April 2020	3.9%
April 2021	2.5%
April 2022	3.1%
April 2023	10.1%
April 2024	8.5%
April 2025	4.1%

Boosting your pension income

If you're struggling to make ends meet in retirement, you must ensure you're getting all the help you're entitled to from the Government.

Sadly, it's pensioners on low incomes who are most likely to miss out in this regard, so we've put together this checklist of vital credits and benefits people can get in retirement.

If you've gone through the list and are still struggling financially, take a look at this guide to boosting your income in retirement and this piece on clearing debt.

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