Your retirement readiness checklist
Steps to take before you stop work
Once you reach age 55 – or age 57 from 2028 – you can begin accessing your pension savings. But being allowed to access your money is very different from knowing that you are truly ready to retire completely. Shifting from a lifetime of regular work to full retirement is a massive lifestyle change, and it requires a practical change in your financial strategy.
Hanging up your gloves and stepping away from your career with complete peace of mind requires a structural review of your current finances. You need to ensure that your total wealth can comfortably support your personal goals, that you aren't paying unnecessary costs, and that your assets are positioned safely for the future.
To help you gain absolute clarity over your financial future, here’s your essential retirement readiness checklist – everything you should consider before you finish work for good.
1. Estimate your lifestyle costs
You can’t determine if your pension is ready until you understand how much your regular life actually costs. A good reference is Pension UK’s Retirement Living Standards. These guidelines show what single people and couples outside London spend annually to achieve three different standards of living (assuming you enter retirement mortgage-free):
Minimum Lifestyle: Covers all your basic needs with a little left over for social activities – such as a week-long UK holiday and eating out once a month. A single person currently needs £13,900 a year, while a couple needs a combined £22,500.
Moderate Lifestyle: Provides more financial security and flexibility, including a two-week European holiday, a takeaway once a week, and running a small car. One person needs £32,700 a year, and a couple needs £45,400.
Comfortable Lifestyle: Allows for more financial freedom, spontaneity, and luxuries, factoring in extra UK weekend breaks, a regular clothing budget, and regular meals out. One person needs £45,400 a year, while a couple needs £62,700.
2. Check your State Pension eligibility
To qualify for the UK new State Pension, you must reach your State Pension age and have at least 10 qualifying years on your National Insurance (NI) record. If you have gaps in your record and miss the qualifying threshold, you may be able to make voluntary contributions to make up the deficit.
If you miss the threshold due to periods of unemployment, caring responsibilities, or statutory sick leave, you could apply for National Insurance credits to make up the difference.
Learn more about State Pension eligibility here.
3. Check what you’re paying in fees
Most pensions come with ongoing management and administrative charges. While a 0.75% annual fee might sound tiny on paper, these deductions are taken from your entire balance year after year. Over a multi-decade career, high fees can quietly slice thousands of pounds off the final value of your retirement wealth.
Before you stop working, track down the statements for every pot you hold and check exactly what you are paying. If your money is sitting in older plans with complex fee structures or high baseline costs, bringing those pots together into a low-fee account could help you keep more of your hard-earned wealth exactly where it belongs.
The Moneybox Personal Pension has one of the lowest fees in the UK. Our service fee is only 0.15% and capped at £150 a year – no matter the size of your pension.
4. Review your investment risk profile
The way your pension is invested should reflect where you are in life. When you were in your 30s or 40s, having your money in higher-risk, stock-heavy growth funds made sense because you had decades to ride out short-term market fluctuations.
As you approach your target retirement date, your investment priority changes. If you intend to buy a guaranteed fixed annuity soon, a sudden market drop right before you retire could permanently shrink the size of the lifetime income you can purchase. Because of this, it’s good practice to review your portfolio and consider whether the level of investment risk still reflects your goals.
5. Nominate your beneficiaries
Because most pensions sit outside your estate, they aren’t covered by a will. Instead, the trustees of your pension scheme(s) decide who receives your unspent pension funds when you die. You can tell your pension provider who you’d like to receive this by nominating beneficiaries.
Ensure you complete an Expression of Wish form (sometimes called a nomination of beneficiaries form) for every pension provider you hold an account with. This step takes minutes but gives you peace of mind.
6. Choose your withdrawal strategy
When you’re ready to withdraw from your pension, you don't have to follow one rigid rule. You could explore a combination of withdrawal routes to find a strategy that works for you.
Consider how you could combine these primary retirement options:
Fixed income: You could use a portion of your pension pot to buy an annuity for a guaranteed income. This could cover essentials like utility bills and food.
Flexible ad-hoc withdrawals: You could leave the remainder of your savings invested in a personal pension and make ad-hoc drawdown withdrawals. This strategy gives you control to alter your withdrawals as your lifestyle changes, while allowing your underlying capital the opportunity to keep growing and outpace inflation.
The Tax-Free Sum: Pulling out cash using your 25% tax-free allowance can assist with immediate goals, but make sure to stagger any further taxable withdrawals across different tax years to manage your income tax brackets efficiently.
The easy, low-fee, award-winning Personal Pension from Moneybox. It's the smart way to build a retirement full of possibility.
Shifting your retirement savings from a to-do list into a cohesive layout starts with total clarity. With the Moneybox Personal Pension, managing your long-term roadmap is clear and straightforward.
You can use our free provider search tool to locate your old workplace pensions and consolidate your wealth into one single Moneybox Personal Pension, in just a few taps. It offers:
One of the lowest platform fees in the UK* – service fees are capped at £150 a year, no matter the size of your pension.
Expertly created Moneybox funds managed by Amundi, the largest European asset manager.
Legacy planning. Nominate your pension beneficiaries to ensure your loved ones are looked after.
*Moneybox, Pension fees comparison, as of 26/05/2026
As with all investing, your capital is at risk. The value of your pension can go up and down, and you may get back less than you invest. Tax treatment depends on individual circumstances and may be subject to change in the future. You can only access your pension once you reach the minimum pension age.
When deciding whether to transfer your pension, it’s important to compare the charges, investment options & benefits between Moneybox and your existing provider. If you’re not sure whether transferring is right for you, we recommend you speak with an independent financial advisor.
Taking benefits from your pension is a significant financial decision. We strongly recommend seeking free guidance from Pension Wise or advice from a financial adviser before making a choice.
There are a number of ways to withdraw from your pension at retirement, but not all of these options are currently offered by the Moneybox Pension. When weighing up your retirement choices, it is important to consider the specific benefits, risks, and charges associated with each method. You should compare products offered by other providers on the open market, as they may offer features or lower costs that are more suitable for your individual needs.