How much UK households need saved for retirement if you want to survive - Birmingham Live

How much UK households need saved for retirement if you want to surviveIndustry trade body The Pension and Lifetime Savings Association calculates how much a single person and a couple need

to afford different levels of comfort in retirement.NewsChristian Abbott Audience Writer08:49, 03 Jun 2025How much UK households need saved for retirement if you want to survive How much you

really need for a comfortable retirement has been revealed. Industry trade body The Pension and Lifetime Savings Association calculates how much a single person and a couple need to afford

different levels of comfort in retirement.

A single person now needs £13,400, down £1,000 from £14,400, while a couple needs £21,600, down £800 from £22,400. For a moderate lifestyle, a single person would need £31,700, up by £400

from £31,300, while a couple would need £43,900, up by £800 from £43,100.

‌ For a comfortable lifestyle, a single person would need £43,900, up £800 from £43,100, and a two-person household would need £60,600 – £1,600 extra from £59,000.

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Tom Selby from AJ Bell said: "The good news for retirees is that the pain of rocketing inflation is now easing, which in turn is reflected in the drop in the cost of a ‘minimum’ retirement

living standard.

Article continues below "This is clearly a positive development although the nature of inflation means living costs for everyone, including retirees, will almost certainly be permanently

higher in the future."

Professor Matt Padley, co-director of the Centre for Research in Social Policy at Loughborough University, said: “The consequences of the cost-of-living challenges over the past few years

are still being felt, and we’ve seen some subtle changes in public consensus about minimum living standards in retirement, resulting in a small fall in the expenditure needed to reach this

standard.

“In these uncertain times, planning in concrete ways for the future is ever more important, and the RLS (retirement living standards) help people to think in more concrete ways about what

they want their retirement to look like, and how much they will need to live at this level.”

Article continues below Zoe Alexander, director of policy and advocacy at the PLSA, said: “For many, retirement is about maintaining the life they already have, not living more extravagantly

or cutting back to the bare essentials.

“The standards are designed to help people picture that future and plan in a way that works for them.”