State pension rise – when the new increases will be paid

State pension payments will rise by 8.5% next month, thanks to the triple lock. 

The full rate of the new state pension is now worth more than £221 a week – however, pensioners will have to wait until their next payment date to see a boost to their bank balance.

Here, Which? reveals how much the state pension is worth in 2024-25 and when to expect your payments. 

How much state pension will I get in 2024-25?

If you’re a man born on or after 6 April 1951, or a woman born on or after 6 April 1953, you’ll get the new state pension.

For the 2024-25 tax year,  the full amount is worth £221.20 a week or £11,502.40 a year.    

You’ll only qualify for a full state pension if you have 35 years’ worth of National Insurance contributions (NICs).

To get any state pension at all, you need at least 10 years’ worth of NICs. 

However, there are still some scenarios where you may get more or less than this. For example, if you had periods of ‘contracting out’. You can find out more about how this works in our state pension guide.

Basic state pension

If you reached state pension age before 6 April 2016, you’ll get the basic state pension. This is worth £169.50 a week in 2024-25 (£8,814 a year).

Married couples where both partners have built up state pension will get double this amount in 2024-25 – so £339 a week, up from £312.40 a week in 2023-24.

If your partner hasn't built up their own state pension, they'll still be able to claim a state pension based on your record.

You may also have built up some additional state pension, previously known as the State Earnings Related Pension Scheme (Serps) or state second pension (S2P). If this is the case, you'll get more than £169.50 a week in 2024-25.

• Find out more: state pension explained

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What day is the state pension paid?

The new state pension is usually paid every four weeks into an account of your choice. 

You’re paid in arrears for the previous four weeks – which is why April's payment increases won't be paid in full until May.

Your payment day depends on your National Insurance number. If it falls on a bank holiday then you may be paid earlier. 

Source: Gov.uk

When will you receive the new rates?

The state pension rates increase from the first Monday of the new financial year, which is 8 April. 

The new 2024-25 rates take effect from the first day of your next full benefit week. If your pay day is a Wednesday, for example, your state pension increase will take effect from that date onwards. As the state pension is paid in arrears, any previous days and weeks owed in your next payment, will be at the 2023-24 rate. 

The Department for Work and Pensions applies the same approach each year, meaning that people receive the same rates of state pension for an equal number of weeks, regardless of their pay day. 

Therefore, if your pension payment day is on a Monday, then the first full four-weekly payment at the new rates will be the 6 May for the period between 8 April - 6 May. 

And if your payday is on a Wednesday, the first full four weekly payment at the new rate will be 8 May for the period between 10 April - 7 May. 

• Find out more: how do I qualify for state pension?

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How to boost your state pension

Not everyone will get the full state pension amount, so it’s worth checking if you can boost your state pension payments, or increase your retirement income in other ways. 

If you don't know how much state pension you'll get, it's worth getting a state pension forecast, which will tell you what you're on track to receive, and at what age you'll receive it. 

Here, we've listed some ways you can boost your retirement fund for those already receiving their state pension, and for those who have not yet reached state pension age:

Check for state pension errors 

Many pensioners have been left short-changed due to a combination of complex rules about entitlements under the old state pension system, and computer errors made by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).

The DWP started the correction exercise – known as a Legal Entitlements and Administrative Practices (LEAP) process – last January. It was due to be completed by the end of 2023 but is likely to continue most of this year. 

The government has so far repaid £571m to around 97,0000 pensioners who were underpaid their state pension, but there's still a long way to go.

• Find out more: state pension underpayments - are you owed money?

See if you’re missing out on free NICs

Parents (aged over 16) who receive child benefit and are caring for a child under the age of 12 receive Class 3 National Insurance credits.

Many women have missed out on this in the past because their husband claimed child benefit rather than them. 

Others may have missed out when they opted out of child benefit after the introduction of the high-income child benefit tax charge, which reduces the amount of child benefit you can receive if one or both parents earn more than £50,000.

However, you can register for child benefit without claiming the cash, so you still accrue NI credits. 

Grandparents and other family members (aged over 16, but under state pension age) that provide care for a child aged under 12 may also be able to get Class 3 Specified Adult National Insurance credits.

These are not credited automatically, and need to be applied for – find out how to do this on Gov.uk.

Buy extra years 

Buying voluntary Class 3 National Insurance contributions can help you top up your state pension if you have gaps in your record. 

You can visit the Check your State Pension forecast government website to get a summary of your National Insurance history and gaps you might have.

It's usually possible to pay voluntary contributions for the past six years. The deadline is 5 April each year, so you have until 5 April 2025 to make up for gaps for the tax year 2018-19.

However, the DWP temporarily relaxed this rule back in 2014, allowing some people to fill gaps for any year from 2006-07 onwards.

The rule was changed so those reaching state pension age in the early years of the new state pension, which came into force in April 2016, had an extended opportunity to assess whether they would be able to improve how much they got under the new system.

The deadline for this has been extended several times, and now stands at April 2025. 

• Find out more: Government extends state pension top-up deadline – should you boost your contributions?

Apply for pension credit 

If you're on a low income, you may be able to claim pension credit, which will help boost your state pension income.

Pension credit is a means-tested benefit, meaning it's awarded to you based on your earnings.

It's made up of two parts, guarantee credit and savings credit. You may be eligible for one or both of these.

Guarantee credit

Guarantee credit tops up your weekly income to £201.05 for if your single and £306.85 if your're in a couple in 2023-24. In 2024-25 this will increase to £218.15 for single people and £332.95 for couples. 

If you're a carer, have severe disabilities or certain housing costs, you might qualify for more guarantee credit

Savings credit

Savings credit is available to those who reached retirement age before 6 April 2016 with incomes of at least £174.49 if you’re single, or £277.12 if you’re in a couple for 2023-24.  Savings credit pays out £15.94 to a single person and £17.84 to a couple, per week, if you meet the qualifying criteria in 2023-24. 

In the new tax year, the thresholds will rise to £189.90 for single people, and £332.95 for couples in the 2024-25 tax year and will pay out £17.01 for single people and £19.04 for couples in 2024-25. 

• Find out more: how to apply for pension credit