What pension growth are others seeing while planning early retirement?

[Anyonegotacluewhattheirjobsabout]

How much % growth are you seeing in pensions? I’m keen to retire early but will have a lot of outgoings for the next 7 years until the mortgage is paid off. Last year mine grew a lot and wondered if it was just a good year? I now contribute £16000 per year to pensions but made over 5 x that amount. Am in my mid 50s but not sure I’ll remain in a job for 7 years as my industry has become more unstable and I was laid off last year. Luckily I got a job quickly but my current job laid someone off who’d only been there 9 months.

Over the 20 years I've had my pension I'm averaging 12.5% growth a year. Some years "growth" has been a minus number. I think Jan 2025 to Jan 2026 was around 19%

Over the last 8 years I am averaging about 8% growth

Yes last year was a very good year. Mine went up 32% from growth over that time (ie excluding my contributions).

@Pomegranatemum Are these higher risk funds being invested in?

@leah7 not in my view. Basically global trackers. But probably quite heavily weighted in the US. I’ve still got 2 decades of investing in my pension left, so I don’t mind if I see some volatility along the way. I don’t get stressed when I see falls.

Very true. Which tracker funds are you invested in @Pomegranatemum ?
My pension growth isn't great, looking to change. Looking long term to invest.

I’m averaging about 9% over the last 5 years.

it’s compounding nicely

@leah7 a Blackrock global tracker (used to also have a Blackrock US tracker as well, but moved it all to Global) and HSBC Islamic Global Equity Index. I have no allegiance to the Islamic part, and chose it based on performance. Both are fairly low fee, which I think helps.

Thank you @PomegranatemumWill check those funds. My current pension is mostly Bonds, which may be more stable yet much lower growth.

I’ve not looked over the past few years but mine looked as though it grew 19% without my contributions included. I have 7 different pensions and would like to consolidate them into a fund with low fees. About two are charging me near 1% but the rest are low between 0-0.5%

Bonds are better for as you get nearer to retirement as they are more stable. When you’re younger you can afford a higher mix of equities to boost growth. I’m in 100% equities and I’ve got 15 years to go.

Bit see everything I’m reading says that’s not so relevant anymore if you are planning drawdown.

I’m looking at retiring about 63 so I could have another 20 years after that, the advice I have seen is move a few years worth of pension to something more stable but leave the majority invested for the longer term.

Yes, that sounds about right. I didn’t mean moving 100% from equities to bonds, I meant adjusting to a slightly lower % of equities and introducing bonds a few years before retirement to provide a buffer should you need to weather a ‘crash’.