When will you retire? Use our retirement calculator to find out when you can afford to stop working

A third of adults across all age groups expect to retire between the ages of 66 and 70, new research shows.

Only 5 percent expect to stop working before they are 55, while 14 percent think they can do so between the ages of 56 and 60, and 24 percent aim for the age of 61 to 65.

Nearly a fifth think they will retire before age 60.

But many people can’t or won’t set a date, with 16 people saying they don’t know in a Hargreaves Lansdown poll.

The state pension age is currently 66 years and will gradually increase to 67 years between 2026 and 2028. Meanwhile, the minimum age to receive a private pension will increase overnight from 55 to 57 on April 6, 2028.

People in their mid-to-late 40s and early 50s should therefore start planning ahead if they want to retire early, or plan to use some of their retirement savings to pay off debts such as mortgages or cover other important expenses.

It’s especially important to know the age rules for your work and other personal pensions because some people can still access their money at age 55 depending on what they say.

“The over-55s are more likely to be in the dark than those aged 18 to 34 about their pension prospects,” says Helen Morrissey, head of pensions analysis at Hargreaves.

‘This could have several reasons. Some may love what they do and have no intention of stopping, others may not really be into it yet.

“Others may have realized that they don’t have enough at the moment and are playing catch-up, so they want to keep their options open.

‘It can also be young people who have confidence in when they want it to happen – before complicated issues arise – like affordability!’

Hargreaves surveyed 1,600 people who are not retired but otherwise weighted to be representative of Britain’s adult population.

Separate research from Compare the Market shows that retirement is the life milestone that people postpone the longest due to the cost of living, at an average of 3.9 years.

Buying a first home came in second, with an average delay of 2.5 years, according to the poll of 2,000 people in Britain.

Meanwhile, an influential sector study looks at what individuals and couples need to save to have a minimal, moderate or comfortable retirement.

Couples need £22,400 for a basic lifestyle, £43,100 for a moderate standard of living and £59,000 for a more prosperous pension.

The Research Association Pension and Life Savings assumes you and your partner are both eligible for a full state pension, which rose to £11,500 per year in April, but the figures exclude income tax, housing costs (if you’re renting or still paying off a mortgage) or healthcare costs.

How to plan your retirement

Helen Morrissey from Hargreaves Lansdown offers the following tips, and scroll down to find out what to do if you’re worried you haven’t saved enough to retire when you want.

1. Check your pension and pension planning occasionally

Having an idea of ​​what you want from your retirement can give you an idea of ​​how much it will cost and this in turn can give you an idea of ​​how much you need to have saved.

2. Use an online calculator (see box above)

You can enter your pension details. You will then see how much you are on track and how much income you will receive when you retire.

You can even model the long-term effects of a larger contribution over time, if you can afford the additional contributions.

Results from a Hargreaves Lansdown survey on when people expect to retire

3. Make sure you don’t lose sight of old pensions in the workplace

This is easy to do when we move around. That small pension you had in a job twenty years ago could very well have grown into a significant sum and can have a big impact on how much you get.

It can even bring your retirement forward by a few years. Make sure you review your paperwork and if you have lost track of a pension, contact the the government’s Pension Investigation Service to see if they can help you find it.

4. Consider merging your pensions

Having them all in one place will give you a better idea of ​​what you have and improve your retirement decision-making. However, make sure you don’t pay expensive exit fees as a result.

You also need to make sure you don’t miss out on benefits, such as guaranteed annuity rates, that could boost your retirement income.

5. Check your state pension

This forms the basis of people’s retirement planning and there are very few people who do not depend on it to some extent.

The fact that the most popular response to when people retire is between 66 and 70 is testament to this, as the state pension age is currently 66 and on the rise.

How do you arrange your pension if you are afraid it will fall short?

1) If you are concerned about whether you have enough saved, examine your existing pensions. Broadly speaking, you should ask schedules the following questions.

– The current fund value.

– The current transfer value – because there may be a penalty associated with a move.

– Whether the pension falls under a final salary or defined contribution scheme. Defined contribution Pensions take contributions from both the employer and employee and invest them to provide a pot of money upon retirement.

Unless you work in the public sector, they have now largely replaced the more generous gold plating defined benefit – average career or final salary – pensions that provide a guaranteed income after retirement until your death.

Retirement planning: A third of adults across all age groups expect to stop working between the ages of 66 and 70, and only 5 percent expect to do so before they are 55

Defined contribution pensions are more meager and savers bear the investment risk, rather than employers.

– Whether there are guarantees – for example a guaranteed annuity – and whether you would lose these if you were to move the fund.

– The pension projection at retirement age. You can use a pension calculator to see if you have enough. These are widely available online.

2) You must add the forecast figures to the amount you expect in a state pension, which is currently £221.20 per week or around £11,500 per year if you qualify for the full new rate. Request an AOW forecast here.

3) If you’re tempted to merge your old pensions, read our guide first to make sure you don’t face a penalty.

4) If you’ve lost track of old pots, you can use the The government’s free pension tracking service is here. Our pension columnist, Steve Webb has a guide to finding lost pensions here.

Be careful when searching online for the Pension Search Service as many companies with similar names will appear in the results.

These also offer to look for your pension, but try to charge you for other services or flog you, and this can be fraudulent.