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Pension milestones: how much should you have saved by 30, 40, and 50?

How much should you have in your pension by 30, 40, or 50?

Many people only begin to consider this question once planning for their retirement feels less distant.

Updated: 09.09.26

By Ben Hewitt

This content was factually correct when written but may not reflect current developments or information.

Pensions for young people

In your 20s, retirement can seem too far away to shape your decisions. By your 30s and 40s, you may be earning more, but your money may also be pulled in several directions, from rent and mortgages to children and other commitments. That can make it hard to judge whether you are roughly on track or falling behind.

Different people also have different expectations for their retirement. Your target will depend on when you want to retire, what you plan to do in retirement, the lifestyle you’re aiming for, whether you’re likely to own your home outright, your state of health, your family circumstances, and any other savings or assets you may have.

Are your retirement savings on track?

A useful starting point is to compare the amount you have already saved for retirement with your current annual salary.

This does not tell you exactly what income you will have when you retire. It is simply a rough way to check whether your pension savings are building at a reasonable pace.

As a general rule of thumb, some retirement planning tools suggest aiming for total retirement savings of around:

Age

Suggested total retirement savings

30

1 x your annual salary

40

2 x your annual salary

50

4 x your annual salary

60

6 x your annual salary

In this table, ‘total retirement savings’ is the money you have built up for retirement so far. This may include your current workplace pension, pensions from previous employers, personal pensions, SIPPs, and other long-term investments you intend to use in retirement.

It does not include the State Pension, because that is future income rather than a savings pot you will hold.

The figures also assume that your current salary gives a reasonable guide to the lifestyle you may want in retirement. That will not be true for everyone. You may need more if you want to retire early, travel regularly, support family members, or will be paying rent or a mortgage in retirement. You may need less if you have lower outgoings, other reliable income, or a defined benefit pension that gives you a guaranteed retirement income.

The Retirement Living Standards guidance from Pensions UK provides a useful guide to what different levels of spending in retirement could look like.

How much should I have in my pension at 30?

By 30, the milestone in the table above would put someone earning £30,000 on course for around £30,000 in total retirement savings.

Many people will not be there yet. You may have been studying, renting, changing jobs, buying a first home, or simply earning less in the early years of your career.

However, age 30 is still early in pension terms, and you still have time on your side. Money invested in your 20s and early 30s has decades to grow. Over time, compound growth means investment returns generate further returns.

If you are employed, auto-enrolment may already have started you on your journey to saving for retirement. This means you may have been placed into a workplace pension automatically, with money going in from your own contributions, your employer’s contributions, and tax relief.

While contributing the minimum required amount via a workplace pension may not be enough for the retirement you want (currently 3% of salary from your employer and 5% from the employee), it does mean you already have a pension pot to build on.

At this stage, it’s important to check how much is going into your pension, find out whether your employer will match higher contributions, and keep track of any pensions from previous jobs. You may also want to consolidate multiple pension pots.

How much should I have in my pension at 40?

At 40, the suggested milestone is higher – around twice your annual salary in total retirement savings.

For someone earning £50,000, that would amount to around £100,000 in pension savings.

At 40, your earnings may be higher than they were in your 20s, but your costs are likely to be higher too. Mortgage payments, childcare, family commitments, and other financial pressures can all compete with pension saving.

If your pension is behind where you want it to be, start by working out what your pension is worth. That may include your current workplace pension, pensions from previous jobs, and any other personal pensions or investments you plan to use in retirement.

It can also help to increase contributions when your pay rises. If some of each increase goes into your pension before it becomes part of your normal spending, you may be less likely to miss it.

Is 40 too late to start saving for retirement?

No, starting at 40 is not too late to save for retirement.

However, you may need to take a more ambitious approach. With less time for investment growth, you may need to contribute more each month, work for longer, or adjust your goals for retirement.

The first step is to understand the gap between where you are now and your retirement goals. That means looking at what you already have, what you can afford to pay in, when you want to retire, and whether you will have other income from savings, investments, property, or a business sale to consider.

You should also check whether your employer will match higher contributions, and whether bonuses could be paid into your pension. This will help you to avoid ‘lifestyle creep’ and invest the money for your future.

A financial adviser can help you turn those questions into a realistic plan, including giving you an understanding of how cashflow modelling can help by simulating different contribution levels, retirement ages, and income goals.

How much should I invest per month for retirement?

There is no single monthly amount that works for everyone. It depends on your age, income, existing savings, retirement goals, and how much you can afford to contribute.

One rough guide is to take the age you started saving into a pension, halve it, and use that figure as the percentage of salary to aim for.

Age when you start pension saving

Rough total contribution target

20

10% of salary

30

15% of salary

40

20% of salary

50

25% of salary

This is only a guide and is the total contribution. In a workplace pension, your total contribution includes your own payments, your employer’s contributions, and tax relief.

That matters because pensions can help your money go further than ordinary savings. With tax relief, a basic-rate taxpayer’s £80 pension contribution is normally topped up to £100. Higher-rate and additional-rate taxpayers may be able to claim further relief, depending on how the contribution is made.

If you are employed, your employer will usually contribute at least 3% of your salary.

Your pension savings are usually invested as well. This means they can rise and fall in value, but over the long term, they have the potential to grow. When investment returns are added to the pot, they can also generate future returns.

These three factors - tax relief, employer contributions and compound growth - are why even modest regular pension payments can accumulate significantly over time. However, the amount you need to contribute will depend on your own retirement goals.

What does a ‘good’ retirement actually cost?

Pension milestones are useful, but they only tell you how much you might aim to have saved. They do not tell you what retirement will actually cost.

Pensions UK publishes Retirement Living Standards figures that give three broad examples of retirement spending: minimum, moderate, and comfortable.

Retirement lifestyle

One-person household

Two-person household

Minimum

£13,900 a year

£22,500 a year

Moderate

£32,700 a year

£45,400 a year

Comfortable

£45,400 a year

£62,700 a year

These figures are estimated annual spending levels, not gross income targets. They also don’t include housing costs. If you are likely to continue paying rent or a mortgage in retirement, your costs may be higher.

Your retirement income may come from several places. The State Pension can provide an important foundation, but many people will also need additional income from workplace pensions, personal pensions, savings, or investments.

Again, the earlier you start and the more you contribute, the more retirement income you’ll have. If you’ve only built up a £35,000 pension pot, it won’t produce much income. Depending on investment performance and withdrawal rates, it might produce only around £1,500 to £2,000 per year before tax.

You should also think about how long your pension may need to last. Retiring at 60, 65, or 70 can make a significant difference to the amount you need. You can read our article to help you calculate how long your pension needs to last.

Next steps

If you’re approaching retirement, making significant pension decisions, or are unsure whether your retirement savings are on track, the most important step is to get a clear picture of what you have now, what you may need later, and whether your current contributions are likely to get you there.

At Alan Boswell Group, our experienced independent financial advisers can help you review your pension savings, understand your retirement goals, and build a plan for the years ahead. Get in touch with our team on 01603 967967.

The value of investments and any income from them can go down as well as up and you might not get back the original amount invested. The past is not a guide to the future. The value of tax benefits depends on your individual circumstances. Tax laws can change.

Thinking about retirement planning and starting a pension is among the most important financial things you can do.

At Alan Boswell Group, we have friendly, experienced independent financial advisers who can guide you through every stage of the process, including helping you work out how long your pension will last.

Speak to us:  01603 967967

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