State pension with 25 qualifying years — ten years to go.
What state pension do you get with 25 qualifying NI years? Calculate your forecast and see the cost-benefit of topping up your NI record.
Twenty-five qualifying years puts you at roughly 71% of the full new state pension — about £164 per week or £8,500 a year at 2025/26 rates. You are 10 years short of the maximum. That gap costs you roughly £3,300 a year for life. This is a common position for people who emigrated to or from the UK mid-career, or who had significant caring responsibilities. If you have 10 or more working years before state pension age, you will reach the full pension through normal employment. If you are closer to retirement, the decision to buy voluntary Class 3 years becomes compelling: 10 years of contributions at £824 each totals £8,240, but the resulting £3,300 per year extra pension pays that back in under three years. Few investments offer anything close to that return.