Retirement Living Standards: A Guide to Planning Your Future

At MGI360, we are committed to helping individuals and businesses navigate the complex world of workplace pensions and lifetime savings. Understanding how much you’ll need in retirement is crucial for planning a secure and comfortable future. That’s where the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association (PLSA) comes in.

What Are the Retirement Living Standards?

The PLSA has developed standards that show what life in retirement could look like at three different levels: Minimum, Moderate, and Comfortable. These standards provide a clear picture of the costs of common goods and services at each level, helping you understand how much expenditure is required to achieve your desired living standard in retirement.

For many individuals, a combination of private and state pensions, alongside other savings, can help achieve these living standards. The full state pension for 2024-2025 is set at £11,500 per year, which could form the foundation of your retirement income. However, depending on your personal circumstances—such as whether you own a home, rent, or have additional costs like social care—you may need to factor in more.

Why Do We Need Retirement Standards?

Since the introduction of automatic enrolment in 2012, more than 10 million people have started saving for their future, many for the first time. This change has been a resounding success, ensuring that more people are preparing for retirement.

However, with more savings now going into Defined Contribution (DC) schemes—which don’t provide a guaranteed income in retirement—savers need to become more engaged with their future financial needs. While Defined Benefit (DB) schemes offered certainty of outcome, today’s retirement landscape is different, with individuals needing to make more choices about how to manage and spend their savings.

Our research shows that 77% of savers don’t know how much they’ll need in retirement, and only 16% of people can provide an estimated figure. This is concerning, especially with the increasing options and complexities surrounding retirement planning.

Time to Engage: Picture Your Future

The UK Financial Capability Survey (2015) conducted by the Money Advice Service (MAS) revealed that general financial capability is declining. Fewer savers understand the effects of inflation on the real value of their savings, and 51% of people focus more on their current needs than on providing for the future.
At MGI360, we believe it’s crucial for savers to take more responsibility for their retirement outcomes. The PLSA’s Retirement Living Standards give individuals a framework to picture their future and take action to secure it.

How We Can Help

We provide the education, tools, and guidance you need to make informed decisions for your retirement. Whether you’re an employer helping your employees engage with their workplace pensions or an individual planning for retirement, we are here to support you.
At MGI360, we empower you with the information you need to understand how much you should be saving today to ensure a comfortable and secure retirement tomorrow.