Women’s pension pot five times lower than men’s, study finds

The average pension pot for a woman in the UK is five times less than a man’s, new research from the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII) has found.

In its report published today, 24 October, CII said that the average pension pot for a 65-year-old woman is £35,800, one-fifth of a man’s, while the average cost for care for woman aged 65-74 is £70,000, compared to £37,000 for men.

According to the report, Solving Women’s pension deficit to improve retirement outcomes for all, the deficit is a result of “British social attitude and cultural norms regarding women’s status in our society”.

Women’s Risks in Life lead and report lead author, Jane Portas, said: “This report is a call to action for each and every one of us. Woman or man, son or daughter, friend or colleague, policymaker, pension provider, financial planner or employer. We all have a role to play in improving women’s pension deficit.

“Today a young woman in the UK can expect to highly achieve educationally, work through raising children until she is 70, save hard for her pension, and yet risks facing financial insecurity in later life.”

The division starts early in life, as 52 per cent of woman in their late 20s say they do not understand enough to make decisions about retirement savings, compared to 38 per cent of men.

Furthermore, 75 per cent of employees that fall below the auto-enrolment threshold are women.

Commenting on the report’s findings, Royal London director of policy, Steve Webb, said: “As this report shows, one of the most powerful factors in the relative disadvantage that women face in pensions is women’s much lower lifetime earnings, as well as the impact of relationship breakdown.

“This report is a reminder that solving the problems of women’s pensions is not just a problem for the pensions industry but for all of us.”

The report added that the incoming Single Financial Guidance Body will provide a “fresh opportunity” to improve financial engagement with woman across the UK, but that more needs to be done.

Moneyhub CEO, Samantha Seaton, added: “Pension providers and employers have a crucial role to play in raising awareness and improving engagement, and the advances in technology has made this more straightforward than ever before. By seizing the opportunities unlocked by Open Banking, providers can use data to give people a truly holistic overview of their finances.

“Seeing the power of a pension alongside other savings and investments can help people to truly understand their value, and therefore encourage and improve engagement.”

    Share Story:

Recent Stories


FREE E-NEWS SIGN UP

Subscribe to our newsletter to receive breaking news and other industry announcements by email.

  Please tick here to confirm you are happy to receive third party promotions from carefully selected partners.


NEW BUILD IN FOCUS - NEW EPISODE OF THE MORTGAGE INSIDER PODCAST, OUT NOW
Figures from the National House-Building Council saw Q1 2025 register a 36% increase in new homes built across the UK compared with the same period last year, representing a striking development for the first-time buyer market. But with the higher cost of building, ongoing planning challenges and new and changing regulations, how sustainable is this growth? And what does it mean for brokers?

The role of the bridging market and technology usage in the industry
Content editor, Dan McGrath, sat down with chief operating officer at Black & White Bridging, Damien Druce, and head of development finance at Empire Global Finance, Pete Williams, to explore the role of the bridging sector, the role of AI across the industry and how the property market has fared in the Labour Government’s first year in office.


Does the North-South divide still exist in the UK housing market?
What do the most expensive parts of the country reveal about shifting demand? And why is the Manchester housing market now outperforming many southern counterparts?



In this episode of the Barclays Mortgage Insider Podcast, host Phil Spencer is joined by Lucian Cook, Head of Research at Savills, and Ross Jones, founder of Home Financial and Evolve Commercial Finance, to explore how regional trends are redefining the UK housing, mortgage and buy-to-let markets.

The new episode of The Mortgage Insider podcast, out now
Regional housing markets now matter more than ever. While London and the Southeast still tend to dominate the headlines from a house price and affordability perspective, much of the growth in rental yields and buyer demand is coming from other parts of the UK.

In this episode of the Barclays Mortgage Insider Podcast, host Phil Spencer is joined by Lucian Cook, Head of Research at Savills, and Ross Jones, founder of Home Financial and Evolve Commercial Finance.