Working on UC
For people working on Universal Credit · 2026 to 2027 rates

Build a pension of your own while you're on Universal Credit

If you work and get Universal Credit, every £100 that goes into a pension could cost you as little as £36. It's allowed under the Universal Credit rules, and the money is yours. These free calculators and plain-English guides show you how, step by step.

Try the pension calculator Read the short guide
  • Free
  • Plain English
  • No sign-up
  • Nothing you type is stored

Figures checked against GOV.UK and DWP guidance in November 2026.

An example

Meet Sam

Sam has two children, works part-time and gets Universal Credit. Because Sam works, their Universal Credit is already a bit lower than the full amount.

So Sam starts putting £80 a month into a personal pension.

  1. £100goes into Sam's pension, because the government adds £20
  2. £44more Universal Credit comes back to Sam each month
  3. £36is all it really costs Sam

After 10 years, that's £12,000 in a pension in Sam's own name, before any investment growth.

£80 is just a starting point

Many people put in far more, depending on their wages and what they can manage on. If Sam took home £1,500 a month, they could put in up to £1,073 a month and still get 55p back for every £1. With tax relief, that's about £16,000 a year going into Sam's pension. See how much is worth putting in.

Everyone's situation is different, so try it with your own numbers.

Calculators

Each one runs in your browser. Nothing you type is sent anywhere.

Calculator

Pension payments and UC

How much more UC you'd get for paying into a personal pension, and how much lands in the pot.

Open the calculator Calculator

Savings and UC

Whether your savings cut your UC, by how much, and how far you are from the £16,000 limit.

Open the calculator Calculator

Self-employed: the minimum income floor

Whether UC will treat you as earning more than you do, and what that means for pension payments.

Open the calculator Calculator

Benefit cap check

Whether the cap applies to your household, and how much it would take off your UC.

Open the calculator

Guides

Short explanations of the rules, each with its sources.

Letter templates

Fill in the gaps, then copy into your Universal Credit journal or a letter.

This year's key figures

Monthly amounts for 2026 to 2027, in force from April 2026. See all the rates.

WhatAmount
Standard allowance, single, 25 or over£424.90
Standard allowance, couple, one or both 25 or over£666.97
Child element, each child (£351.88 for the first child if born before 6 April 2017)£303.94
LCWRA element, award that started before 6 April 2026£429.80
LCWRA element, most awards starting from 6 April 2026£217.26
Carer element£209.34
Work allowance, with help towards housing costs£427
Work allowance, without help towards housing costs£710
Earnings taper above the work allowance55p per £1
Savings ignored up to£6,000
No UC with savings over£16,000
Benefit cap, single adult, outside Greater London. Doesn't apply if you get LCWRA, PIP or a carer benefit, or earn £881 a month or more£1,229.42
Benefit cap, couple or family, outside Greater London. Same exemptions£1,835.00
Earnings that exempt you from the benefit cap£881
Minimum income floor, 35 hours, aged 21 or over, after notional tax and NIabout £1,681

Sources: DWP benefit and pension rates 2026 to 2027, GOV.UK benefit cap, LITRG minimum income floor.