50 Latest Retirement Statistics & Facts For The UK (2024)

UK’s average life expectancy currently sits at around 80, and most of us spend most of those years working. But what do the current UK retirement statistics show us about when we stop working?

UK Retirement Statistics

1. The average retirement age in the UK was just under 64.55 in 2022. (ONS)
2. For men, the average retirement age is 65.1. (ONS)
3. Women retire, on average, at the age of 64. (ONS)
4. Women in the UK leave the workforce 13 months earlier than men. (The Motley Fool)
5. One survey found that only one in three 55-to-65-year-olds say they work full-time. (Interactive Investor)
6. Another study in 2022 found that over half of British people retire earlier than planned. (ABRDN)
7. There has been a 0.2%-0.3% decrease in the average UK retirement age for both genders from 2021 to 2022. (The Motley Fool)
8. The number of people receiving State Pension in the UK fell by 1% in 2021 to 12.4 million. (UK Government)
9. State Pension Age is due to increase to 68 between 2037 and 2039. (UK Government)
10. Flexible workplace and personal pension plans allow Brits to start drawing a pension from the age of 55 in 2022, the age increasing to 57 in 2028. (Standard Life)
11. The UK has no default state retirement age, meaning you can keep working for as long as you want. (Simply Business)
12. 66% of people plan to keep working in some capacity, even in retirement. (ABRDN)

UK Retiree Life

13. Employees need an income of £33,000 a year to enjoy a comfortable retirement. (Unbiased)
14. In 2018, 35% of people living in the UK didn’t have a pension. (FT Adviser)
15. 34% of 2022 retirees said they wouldn’t work any longer, a decrease from 44% of retirees feeling that way in 2021. (ABRDN)
16. 20% of pensioners received income-related benefits in 2021, a drop from the 37% in 1995. (UK Government)
17. 4 million people received Pension Credit in the UK in 2021. (UK Government)
18. Nearly two-thirds (65%) of people receiving Pension Credits are women. (UK Government)
19. The full State Pension was £185.15 a week in 2022, up from £179.60 in 2021. (UK Government)
20. The average yearly pension was approximately 7% greater in real terms in 2022 compared to a decade earlier and 20% higher than twenty years ago. (Sovereign Boss)
21. The average value of pensions has decreased by more than a third. (The Pension Policy Institute)
22. 19% of people in the South West of England continue to work beyond the age of 70, compared to just 10% living in the North East. (ONS)
23. 10% of people living in the East Midlands stop working before 60, compared to just 4% in Wales and the South West of England. (ONS)
24. The highest number of people (64%) that retire at the typical retirement age of 65-69 live in the North East. (ONS)
25. According to one study, Sunderland, Bournemouth, and Derby are the best places to retire in the UK. (Consultus Care)
26. The same study found that London, Birmingham and Coventry were the worst places to retire. (Consultus Care)

Preparing for Retirement

27. Most Brits over 50 plan to retire at 67. (Unbiased)
28. Those Brits who are 65 and working think they will keep working until 72. (Unbiased)
29. 71% of one survey respondents felt it would be hard to retire before age 66. (Unbiased)
30. 6 million Brits contribute to private-sector pension plans. (Sovereign Boss)
31. Only 31% of self-employed are saving into a pension in the UK. (Sovereign Boss)
32. Just over 79% of employees in the UK contribute towards a pension. (Sovereign Boss)
33. 60% of women do not have a retirement plan, compared to 44% of men. (Money & Pensions Service)
34. One in four Brits say they know nothing about pensions. (Interactive Investor)
35. 39% of women told a survey they don’t understand enough about pensions to save for retirement, compared to 55% of men. (Money & Pensions Service)
36. 20% of Brits don’t know how much money they have in their pension pot. (Unbiased)
37. Brits overestimate their retirement income by approximately 30%. (Interactive Investor)
38. 20% of Brits are concerned if their income will last in retirement. (ABRDN)
39. 57% of people below the State Pension age actively saved for retirement using private pensions between April 2018 and March 2020. (ONS)
40. A third of people didn’t expect to have any pension provision beyond the State Pension in 2020. (ONS)
41. Only 31% of surveyed adults think their occupational pension scheme will be enough to live comfortably in retirement. (Survation for Unite)
42. 54% of surveyed said that having low income or not working was the most common reason for not paying into a pension. (ONS)
43. 39% of self-employed said they couldn’t afford to contribute compared to 26% of employees. (ONS)
44. 16% of employees reduced pension contributions due to COVID-19, and 7% ceased contributing altogether. (Sovereign Boss)

Global Retirement Age

45. South Africa has one of the lowest retirement age averages at 60. (Schroders)
46. Belgian men and women retire officially at 65, but thanks to early retirement schemes, the average effective age is 61.6 for men and 60.5 for women. (Love Money)
47. French workers retire at 62 years old on average. (Schroders)
48. In the US, those born after 1960 need to work until they are 67, but surveys show only 50.1% of adults plan to work beyond 62. (New York Fed)
49. Japanese workers can draw their pension at 62, but men often work until they are 70.8 and women until they are 69.1, on average. (Tokyo Shoko Research)
50. In South Korea, workers stay at work even longer, until they are 72.3 years old, even though the official retirement age is 60. (The Motley Fool)