State Pension to rise by 4.7% from April 2026 under triple lock
Millions of pensioners will see their State Pension increase by around 4.7% from April 2026, after new wage growth figures confirmed the Government’s triple lock will deliver another above-inflation rise.
The change means those on the full new State Pension will get an extra £561 a year, while those on the old basic State Pension will see about £432 more.
How much will payments increase?
- New State Pension (post-2016 retirees): rising from £230.25 to £241.05 a week (£12,534.60 a year).
- Basic State Pension (pre-2016 retirees): rising from £176.45 to £184.75 a week (£9,607 a year).
These figures are based on the 4.7% average earnings growth reported by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), which is expected to be higher than September’s inflation measure.
Why is the increase 4.7%?
The triple lock guarantees the State Pension rises each year by the highest of:
- 2.5%
- inflation (September CPI)
- average earnings growth (May–July, including bonuses)
With wage growth confirmed at 4.7%, and inflation forecast below that, the earnings figure will almost certainly be used.
Will pensioners pay more tax?
The increase brings the new State Pension to £12,534.60 a year — just £35 under the frozen income tax allowance of £12,570.
If allowances stay frozen until 2028, as planned, pensioners with no other income will start paying income tax from April 2027. Experts including Martin Lewis and former pensions minister Sir Steve Webb have warned this will “drag more and more pensioners into the tax net”.
What happens next?
- The Government is expected to confirm the uprating at the Budget on 26 November 2025.
- The rise will apply from April 2026.
- Ministers have pledged to keep the triple lock until the end of the current Parliament, though its long-term affordability is debated.
At a glance
- Rise: 4.7% under triple lock.
- Full new State Pension: £241.05/week.
- Full basic State Pension: £184.75/week.
- Annual increase: £561 (new) / £432 (basic).
- Many pensioners set to start paying tax from 2027/28.
Is it true that the chancellor is considering means testing the state pension?
serps or 2nd pension never seems to be covered by your increase advice.
that’s because it only rises by about 1.5% which means those whose pension plus serps is still lowers than the new pension slip even further behind and struggle more. It is normally those who were in non high flying employment and had no spare monies for private pension schemes end part time working mums.
A year is more than 52 weeks. Allowing for Leap Years it’s on average ~52.18 weeks. So a 4.7% increase takes you marginally over the IT threshold. It would be dumb to try to tax pensioners a tiny sum as it would cost more in admin than it would collect. It should also be made clear that opting to delay getting your state pension (which raises it by about 5.3% for every year you defer) will take you over the IT threshold.
Very easy to use and helpful in the q
questions et
etc.
what is the reason why pre 2016 pensioners get 40 pound less than current claimants do we eat less dont use heating and never go on holiday what a liberty
I think it’s because older pensioners were often able to increase their pensions via payments into SERPS (state earning related pension scheme) in addition to the NI they paid.
My dad just passed away at 91, and I was surprised by the amount of state pension he was receiving, and it was down to paying into SERPS for years and years and years.
The good news is that my mum will inherit 50% of those SERPS payments, which will handily supplement her meagre state pension (she did not work full-time). I found this out by speaking with DWP on behalf of my mum to make sure she gets all the state pension to which she is entitled.
I am not an expert as SERPS was history before I started paying NI in my mid-twenties due to working overseas for some years. Anyway, happy to be corrected if I am mistaken.
There is no reason Bryan (27/11/25) except the red herring that post 2016 higher rate pensioners cannot claim Pension Credit (I believe). It is also wrong that further advantage to the higher rate is that they can potentially exceed their tax allowance (Rachel Reeves/Martin Lewis). Increasing the State Pension to the higher rate for all is morally undeniable.