Pension Credit Calculator

Nearly four in ten pensioners who qualify for Pension Credit never claim it — often because they assume they earn too much. This free calculator gives you a quick, plain-English estimate in about 30 seconds. It runs entirely on your device; nothing is saved.

How is Pension Credit calculated?

The main part of Pension Credit is Guarantee Credit, which tops your weekly income up to a set minimum: £238 a week if you're single, or £363.25 a week for a couple. If your income is below that line, you're likely entitled to roughly the difference. Savings under £10,000 are ignored; above that, every £500 is treated as £1 a week of income.

Who can claim Pension Credit?

• You (or your partner) have reached State Pension age.
• Your income is below the limit above — owning your home doesn't stop you, and modest savings don't either.
• You can claim for a parent or relative with their permission — phone claims make it straightforward.

What else does Pension Credit unlock?

Even a small Pension Credit award can unlock a lot more: the Winter Fuel Payment, Council Tax reduction, Housing Benefit help with rent, a free TV licence at 75+, the Warm Home Discount, and help with NHS costs. That's why it's the single most valuable thing most pensioners can check.

"I get the full State Pension, so I won't qualify"

This is the single most common reason people never apply, and it is worth doing the arithmetic on. The full New State Pension is £241.30 a week. Guarantee Credit tops a single person up to £238 a week. So on income alone, someone on the full new State Pension is £3.30 over the line — and concludes, reasonably, that Pension Credit is not for them.

That conclusion is wrong for three separate reasons, and any one of them can put you back in:

• The £238 is not a fixed ceiling. It is a starting point that goes UP if you have extra responsibilities or costs — see the next section. A carer's £48.15 lifts the line to £286.15 a week on its own.
• Savings Credit is a different payment with different rules, and gov.uk states plainly that you "might still get some Savings Credit even if you do not get the Guarantee Credit part of Pension Credit."
• Very few people actually get the full new State Pension. It depends on your National Insurance record. Check the real figure on your award letter rather than assuming.

What is the maximum income to qualify?

There is no single number, and that is the part almost every article gets wrong. The Guarantee Credit line starts at £238 a week single or £363.25 for a couple, and then rises by whichever of these apply to you:

A single carer, for example, is not being measured against £238 — they are being measured against £286.15. That is £48.15 a week of headroom that nobody mentions, and it is the difference between qualifying and not for a great many people.

Savings Credit calculator: how much can you get?

Savings Credit is a second, separate part of Pension Credit, and it exists to reward people who saved a little for their retirement. It is worth up to £17.96 a week if you are single, or £20.10 a week for a couple — around £930 a year for a couple.

There is one hard gate on it: you must have reached State Pension age before 6 April 2016. If you reached State Pension age on or after that date, Savings Credit is closed to you and no amount of applying will change it.

But if you did reach it before then, the crucial line from gov.uk is this:

"You might still get some Savings Credit even if you do not get the Guarantee Credit part of Pension Credit."

In other words, being turned down for — or ruling yourself out of — the main part of Pension Credit does not settle Savings Credit. They are assessed separately, and people who assume one refusal covers both are leaving money behind.

What stops you from getting Pension Credit?

Very little, and far less than most people believe. The things that genuinely rule you out:

• Not having reached State Pension age. You or your partner must have.
• Income above your line — after the extra amounts above have been added.
• For Savings Credit only, reaching State Pension age on or after 6 April 2016.

And the things that people think stop them, but do not:

• Owning your home. The home you live in is not counted at all.
• Having savings. The first £10,000 is ignored completely. Above that, every £500 is treated as £1 a week of income — so £20,000 in the bank counts as £20 a week, not as a disqualification.
• Having worked all your life, or having an occupational pension. Neither is a bar.
• Being refused before. Rates and thresholds change every April, and your own circumstances change. A refusal three years ago says nothing about today.

How do you claim Pension Credit in Northern Ireland?

Pension Credit works the same way in Northern Ireland, with the same rates — but it is administered by the Department for Communities, not the DWP, and you claim through nidirect rather than GOV.UK. The figures on this page apply to you; the phone number and the form do not. Most UK guides simply do not mention this, which is why Northern Irish readers are often sent to the wrong place.

Common questions

Every figure on this page is checked against its official source automatically. The rates above come from GOV.UK — Pension Credit: what you'll get, and were last verified on 10 September 2026. If GOV.UK changes a number, a check on our side fails and we are told. Most pages carrying these figures were written once and never looked at again.

This is a free estimate to help you decide whether to make a claim — not an offer or a guarantee, and not financial advice. Rules, rates and thresholds change. Always confirm your exact entitlement with the official source before acting.