UK pensions: 5 key retirement trends every saver should know
Written by Boring Money
22 Aug, 2025
How prepared are UK savers for retirement? From pension confidence and workplace savings to the challenges facing the self-employed, these five key insights explore the biggest trends shaping retirement planning in the UK and what they could mean for your financial future.
September is Pension Awareness Month - a nationwide campaign aimed at highlighting the importance of saving for retirement. At this time of year, you may encounter a tsunami of pension-related articles, webinars, and clinics plastered over your social media and/or email inbox, designed to educate you about how pensions work and how you can use them to set yourself up for a comfortable retirement.
Every year, our research team pick the brains of thousands of UK savers and investors to get a better understanding of what they’re doing with their retirement savings for our annual Pension Report. We've pulled out five of the most interesting insights below.
1) Majority of young people find pensions confusing
7 in 10 non-retired pension holders under the age of 45 told us they find pensions "confusing", showing the extent to which pensions are seen as complex and daunting products to those early on in their retirement saving journey. Older respondents recorded a slightly higher level of confidence, but just under 6 in 10 of non-retired over-55s still agreed that pensions confuse them.
Preparing for retirement is rarely as straightforward as we’d all like it to be. Sadly, the complexity of our pensions system exacerbates the issue, with changing policies, excessive jargon and insufficient government support leaving savers in the dark as they prepare for the future.
2) Almost two-thirds not confident about their retirement plan
Nearly two-thirds (62%) of non-retired pension holders over 18 said they disagree with the statement "I have a retirement plan and I'm confident about how I will fund my retirement". Men are also significantly more likely to report confidence about their retirement plan, with 47% agreeing with the statement compared to just 30% of women.
We looked at data from over four million workplace members and found that every industry in the UK has a significant gender pensions gap. This is a serious issue in itself, but it deepens when life expectancy is taken into consideration too. We’ve all heard about the gender pay gap, but very few discuss the gender pensions gap, despite the fact so many women experience it. This shows more needs to be done to boost engagement with pensions, particularly with those who feel less confident, and who may need help on where to start when it comes to making financial decisions.
3) Self-employed much less likely to have a pension
Around 13% of non-retired UK adults are currently self-employed. Almost 4 in 10 (39%) of these say they have no pension arrangements, compared to just 10% for the employed. Pension holdings are also particularly low for the self-employed under 45, where just 53% own a pension of any kind.
Successive governments have put great effort into establishing automatic enrolment for employees to make it easier for them to save for retirement and have done so with much success. In contrast, the self-employed are left to their own devices. People who spend a long time in self-employment are all too often on course to be reliant on their state pension, some modest other savings, and potentially a partner’s pension or an inheritance to provide for them in retirement.
4) Average workplace pension pot is under £50k
The average workplace pension holder has £49,000 saved in their pot. However, 61% have less than £20,000, and only a minority of 11% have more than £100,000. Unsurprisingly, the average increases with age, with the average 25-34 year old having £19,000 in their workplace pension, compared to £89,000 for the average over-55.
The days of defined benefits pensions are gone for most people and employees have to take an interest in and control of their pension planning. The first step in addressing the pension gap is knowledge and confidence. The more we continue to encourage employees to engage with their pensions early, the more people will enjoy the retirement they are striving for.
5) Appetite for retirement advice is rising
When it comes to future intentions, seeking financial advice is top of the list for non-retired pension holders, with 4 in 10 saying they are considering financial advice for help with their pension and/or retirement plan at some point. 13% say they intend to do so within the next 12 months, rising to 17% for the non-retired aged 55 and over.
We know that people struggle with pensions and retirement, literally stumbling around in the dark. As a rule of thumb, anyone with assets of more than £100,000 who is approaching retirement (within 10 years) and isn’t very clued up on all things tax, investments and pensions should at least investigate financial advice, in my opinion. Even if it’s only a one-off ‘MOT’.
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