Women remain at a disadvantage when it comes to pensions, with savings still lagging well behind those built up by men. New figures show that while there have been some signs of improvement, closing the gender pensions gap remains a formidable challenge.
While the state pension gender gap has narrowed to 1%, due to an overhaul aimed at equalising payments for men and women, the private pensions gender gap remains alarmingly wide for those closest to retirement. The average man aged between 55 and 59 has built up a private pension worth £156,000, according to the latest government figures, 48% higher than the £81,000 private pension accumulated by the average woman in the same age group.
Now, new research by PensionBee underlines just how much further we have to go in closing the gap. Male PensionBee customers paid an average of £1,845 per quarter into their pensions in the first half of 2025, compared with the average female contribution of £1,347 — a gap of 27%. There is some encouragement, however: while the average male PensionBee customer reduced their pension contributions slightly in the first six months of the year, female contributions remained steady.
Lisa Picardo, Chief Business Officer UK at PensionBee, said: “The DWP’s own figures show a significant 48% private wealth gap between men and women approaching retirement. The government must urgently address these structural barriers through policy reforms, while employers and the pensions industry need to do more to support women’s retirement outcomes.”
Barriers to pension saving
One of the key reasons women tend to fall behind in their retirement planning is they are still more likely than men to take time out of the workplace in order to raise children or care for older relatives. The working patterns of women and the fact that they might work more than one part-time job — leaving them potentially ineligible for automatic enrolment — also have an effect on women’s pensions.
Women are almost five times more likely than men to be out of paid work because of caring commitments, according to the TUC, limiting their ability to build up a workplace pension. So while the gender pay and pensions gaps have similar drivers — such as women having to work part-time and lack of access to flexible working — closing the care gap is also essential to addressing the gender pensions gap.
Closing the pension gender gap
There are a number of practical steps that can be taken to boost your pension as a woman — though some of these may be useful for anyone saving for retirement.
Take an active role
This means being engaged with how your money is invested in your workplace scheme. If you’re self-employed, that means starting a personal pension. Even if you’re in a work scheme you can have your own private pension — most likely a self-invested personal pension (Sipp) too. Investing doesn’t have to be complicated — there’s plenty of research and guidance available on platforms that can help you get started — which is often the hardest part. Use our free Investment platform comparison tool to find the platform best for you.
Make time
Not having enough time is often cited by women as one of the reasons they don’t invest, but investing needn’t take up hours of your time. You can get plenty of help with selecting a portfolio using best buy fund lists or even taking advantage of the ready-made portfolios offered by most of the investment platforms.
And although you should take the time to review your investments each year, it’s often better not to tinker with your investments too much, as staying invested reduces the risk of making badly timed decisions. Regular buying and selling will also incur trading costs which can eat into your returns.
Consolidate pensions
Consolidate old pensions and seize control. If you have a string of old pension schemes from previous employers you might want to move them into one place. Having your retirement savings under one roof can make things much easier as you won’t have to deal with multiple providers. It means you can take control of your money and potentially have a wider and more flexible range of investment options than might be available through some outdated workplace pension schemes. Also, older pension schemes are also unlikely to offer flexible ways to access your money at retirement.
Consolidating could even see you pay less in fees — something that eats into your returns. Review old pensions you no longer pay into and before moving make sure you check you’re not giving up any valuable guarantees or benefits that come as part of the package.
Track down lost pensions
Also set aside some time to find any lost pensions. Some 3.3 million pension pots worth an average of around £9,500 each are considered ‘lost’, analysis by the Pensions Policy Institute suggests. In other words, there are unclaimed pension pots in the UK worth more than £31bn in total — money that could go a long way to making for a much more comfortable retirement for millions of people.
Throughout a career it’s easy to collect several different pensions, but as they build up, it can be harder to keep on top of them. A good first step to track them down is by using the Government’s Pension Tracing Service. Here you can locate both workplace and personal pensions by entering the names and addresses of your previous employers, or the names of your old pension providers. It may require a little legwork, but a little effort now could reap some rich rewards if you do end up finding some lost pots.
Stay invested during maternity leave
Women on maternity leave should ensure they stay in the pension scheme. Quitting it is likely to cost more in lost employer contributions and tax relief (and potential stock market growth) than can be saved in the short term.
If you take a career break, consider saving in a private pension plan. Those with no earned income at all can save up to £3,600 per tax year but this will only cost £2,880 because tax relief at the basic rate is automatically added to pension savings. Keeping pension savings going, even at a modest level, can make a significant difference to eventual retirement income.
Be canny with your pension
At retirement it may be useful to consider keeping your workplace pension invested for longer and drawing on savings. You might also benefit from deferring your state pension in returns for higher payouts later in retirement. These steps may be especially useful if your partner has a larger fund and is already withdrawing from theirs. It means that your pension has more time to grow.
Discover the power of 1%
If women increased their pension contributions by as little as 1%, they could gain up to £37,000 in retirement, even if they take a career break, according to research by Fidelity International.
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