The State Pension is the regular payment from the government you can claim once you reach state pension age, based on the National Insurance you've built up over your working life. For 2026/27, the full new State Pension pays £241.30 a week (£12,547.60 a year) if you reached state pension age on or after 6 April 2016, while the older basic State Pension pays up to £184.90 a week for those who reached it before then. Most people need 35 qualifying NI years for the full new rate, and at least 10 to get anything at all.

It's easy to assume the State Pension just "arrives" at the right amount, but in practice your age, your National Insurance record, whether you delay claiming, and how much other income you have all shape what actually lands in your account — and how much of it you keep after tax. This hub brings together everything you need: your state pension age, how your NI record builds your entitlement, whether deferring makes sense, and how it's taxed.