The full New State Pension for 2025/26 is £11,973 per year which is equivalent to £230.25 a week. The basic State Pension is £9,175 per year, equivalent to £176.45 per week.

You'll receive the State Pension once you reach your State Pension age. For people born before 5 April 1960, their State Pension age is 66. For everyone born after this date, their State Pension age is increasing to 67 and will eventually increase to 68.

There's no longer a special State Pension arrangement for married couples. Each person will receive their own State Pension entitlement individually.

The State Pension's a regular payment you receive from the government once you reach your State Pension age to help fund your life in retirement.

To receive the full State Pension payment, you must have paid 35 years' worth of National Insurance contributions over your working life. To receive the minimum State Pension, you must have paid 10 years' worth of contributions.

It should be noted that the State Pension is not enough to cover even the minimum lifestyle reported by the PLSA and most people are predicted to achieve the minimum standard through a combination of the State Pension and other private or workplace pensions.

If you've never worked, and therefore have never paid National Insurance contributions, you may still be eligible for a State Pension if you've received certain state benefits like Universal Credit or a carer's allowance.

The State Pension age depends on when you were born. Use our calculator above to find out what your State Pension age is.

You can contact the Pension Service to find out about your State Pension eligibility, claims and payments online, over the phone or by post. You may be able to claim backdated National Insurance credits for missing years to give your State Pension a boost.

You should receive a letter in the post three months ahead of reaching your State Pension age. You can also claim your State Pension over the phone up to four months before you reach State Pension age.

You won't automatically receive your State Pension, you'll need to claim it online, by phone or by post.

There's no longer a different State Pension age for men and women. Both will either reach the State Pension age at 66 or 67/68, depending on when they were born.