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Paul has long worked in financial services research, currently specialising in pensions and retirement planning.
Speak to HUB Financial Solutions to help you compare the options available across the whole market
If you take out an annuity as a result of using the service from HUB Financial Solutions, Which? will earn a commission to help fund its not-for-profit mission.
Buying an annuity involves converting your retirement savings into a guaranteed income.
Annuity rates determine how much income you'll get. For example, if you have a pension pot of £100,000 and the annuity rate is 7%, you'll get an annual income of £7,000.
Rising interest rates over the past few years have helped to boost the amount you can get from an annuity.
Our tables give an idea of how much healthy 65-year-olds and 70-year-olds with a £100,000 pot could get for three different types of annuity:
Source: Money Helper annuity calculator, correct at 9 November 2026. Figures are based on a person living in a CB23 postcode receiving payment annually in arrears and are to be used as a guide only.
Source: Money Helper annuity calculator, correct at 9 November 2026. Figures are based on a person living in a CB23 postcode receiving payment annually in arrears and are to be used as a guide only.
Speak to HUB Financial Solutions to help you compare the options available across the whole market.
If you take out an annuity as a result of using the service from HUB Financial Solutions, Which? will earn a commission to help fund its not-for-profit mission.
Paul Davies, Which? pensions expert, says:
'Annuity rates are closely tied to gilt yields and the Bank of England base rate. When the base rate goes up, gilt yields rise too – and that pushes annuity rates higher, as we've seen in the past few years.
Annuity rates for a healthy 65-year-old with £100,000 have been above 7% since 2022 and consistently in excess of 7.5% since the start of 2025, even nudging above 8% recently.
With the Bank of England having increased the rate and not expected to cut rates in the months ahead, it's likely retirees will continue to be able to take advantage of competitive annuity deals.
You'll generally find that the older you are when you arrange an annuity, the higher the annuity rate you'll get, reflecting the fact that the annuity provider won't have to pay out for as long.
You should also be offered a higher rate if you have a serious health condition, for the same reason. So mention any conditions at the outset.'
Don't automatically accept the annuity rate offered by your pension provider without checking what's on offer across the rest of the market.
Single-life level annuities - which pay out the same income every year and then will stop paying out when you die - tend to offer the highest rates, because annuity companies know they only have a set amount to pay out for the lifetime of one person.
But this means your partner won't get anything if you die before them. Joint-life annuities offer lower incomes than single-life annuities, but will keep paying out to your partner if you die first.
It's important to fully disclose details about your health and lifestyle, as you may qualify for an enhanced annuity rate - giving you a higher income - if…
