How to Find Your Pension Numbers

You can't plan retirement without knowing what you've got. Yet most people have only a vague idea of their pension savings — "somewhere around £100k, maybe?" That's not a plan. Here's exactly where to find every number you need.

Your Workplace Pension

Annual Benefit Statement

Every workplace pension provider must send you an annual benefit statement. This is your most important document. It shows:

• Your current pot value
• Contributions made that year (yours and your employer's)
• Investment growth or losses
• Projected value at retirement (take these projections with a pinch of salt)

Where to find it: Most providers now have online portals. Log into your pension provider's website — Aviva, Scottish Widows, Legal & General, Nest, whatever yours is. Your statement should be in your documents section.

Can't find your login? Check old emails for registration confirmations. Your HR department can tell you which provider your workplace pension is with.

Your Payslip

Your monthly payslip shows what's going into your pension each month. Look for:

• Employee contribution — what comes out of your salary
• Employer contribution — what your employer adds on top
• Salary sacrifice — if your pension is set up this way, your gross salary will be lower but your pension contribution will be higher (this is tax-efficient)

Common confusion: Your P60 (the annual tax summary from your employer) shows your taxable pay and tax paid, but it does not directly show pension contributions. For contribution details, you need your payslips or your annual benefit statement from the pension provider.

Multiple Workplace Pensions

Changed jobs a few times? You probably have multiple pension pots. Each former employer's pension provider should still send you annual statements. If they're not, you may need to update your address or track them down (see "Finding Lost Pensions" below).

Your State Pension

Check Your Forecast

This is the single most valuable 10 minutes you'll spend on retirement planning.

Go to gov.uk/check-state-pension and log in with your Government Gateway ID. You'll see:

• How much State Pension you'll get (based on your current record)
• When you can claim it (your State Pension age)
• How many qualifying years you have (you need 35 for the full amount)
• Any gaps in your record that you could fill

If you don't have a Government Gateway account, set one up. You'll need your National Insurance number (on your payslip or tax letters).

Your National Insurance Record

On the same gov.uk service, you can view your full National Insurance record year by year. This shows which years count as qualifying years and which have gaps. This matters because:

• Each qualifying year adds roughly 1/35th of the full State Pension
• Gaps can sometimes be filled by paying voluntary NICs
• The cost of filling a gap (around £907/year) pays for itself in under 3 years of State Pension payments

Finding Lost Pensions

The average person changes jobs 11 times during their career. That's potentially 11 different pension pots. The government estimates there are billions of pounds in lost pensions — money people have simply forgotten about.

The Pension Tracing Service

The government runs a free service to help you find lost pensions:

gov.uk/find-pension-contact-details

You'll need the name of your former employer or pension provider. The service will give you contact details so you can get in touch and find out what's in the pot.

Tips for tracing:

• Write down every employer you've ever had, even short-term jobs
• Check if any old employers have been taken over — the pension may have transferred
• Ask former colleagues if they remember the provider name
• Check old paperwork — offer letters, payslips, anything that mentions pensions

MoneyHelper Pension Tracing

MoneyHelper (formerly the Money Advice Service) also offers pension tracing help and can provide free guidance.

Personal Pensions and SIPPs

If you have a Self-Invested Personal Pension (SIPP) or other personal pension, log into your provider's platform:

• Hargreaves Lansdown, AJ Bell, Interactive Investor, Vanguard — all have online dashboards showing your current value
• Check for any old personal pensions you may have set up directly with insurance companies (Standard Life, Prudential, etc.)

ISAs and Other Savings

While not pensions, your ISAs and savings are part of your retirement picture:

• Stocks & Shares ISAs — check your platform for current value
• Cash ISAs — check with your bank or building society
• General investment accounts — any taxable investments
• Premium Bonds — check on the NS&I website
• Cash savings — check all bank accounts

Putting It All Together

Once you've gathered everything, you should have:

1. State Pension forecast — annual amount and start date 2. Workplace pension(s) — current pot value for each 3. Personal pensions/SIPPs — current pot value 4. ISAs — current value 5. Other savings — cash, investments, etc.

Write these numbers down. Then come and put them into our calculator.

What to Do with Old Small Pots

If you find several small pension pots (under £10,000), consider consolidating them into one provider. Benefits:

• Easier to manage and track
• Often lower total fees
• Simpler retirement planning
• One login instead of five

Warning: Before transferring, check for any valuable guarantees (like a guaranteed annuity rate) on old pensions. Some older pensions have benefits you'd lose by transferring. If in doubt, get advice.

Make It a Habit

Set a calendar reminder to check your pension numbers once a year:

• Log into each pension provider
• Note the current values
• Check your State Pension forecast hasn't changed
• Update your retirement plan

Ready to see how your numbers add up? Enter them into our calculator and find out if your retirement is on track.