State pensions replace part of your working income based on contribution years and earnings. This tool gives a rough estimate for EU countries so you can size the gap private savings must cover.
Replacement rates vary from under 40% to over 80% of final salary across the EU, and reforms keep shifting retirement ages and formulas.
National pension calculators (like INPS in Italy or the DRV in Germany) hold your actual contribution record — use this estimate for planning, theirs for decisions.
The estimate assumes an unbroken contribution record at today’s salary, which is the case it flatters. Career breaks, part-time years and periods working abroad all reduce the accrued total, and several systems apply a minimum number of years before any pension is payable at all.
Working across more than one member state is handled by EU coordination rules rather than by losing the contributions: each country pays a pro-rata pension for the years completed there, and periods in other member states count toward qualifying thresholds. The result is several smaller pensions rather than one.
Retirement ages are also moving targets. Several countries have legislated automatic links between the pension age and life expectancy, so the age used here reflects current rules rather than the rules that will apply to someone retiring in thirty years. Treat it as the optimistic end of the range.
Frequently asked questions
How is a state pension calculated?
From your contribution years and earnings, through country-specific formulas — some pay a share of average lifetime salary, others convert accumulated notional contributions into an annuity.
What is a replacement rate?
Your pension as a percentage of pre-retirement income. Across the EU it ranges from under 40% to over 80% — the gap between it and 100% is what private savings must cover.
Can I rely on the state pension alone?
Increasingly risky: reforms keep raising retirement ages and trimming formulas as populations age. Treat the state pension as a floor and check your official projection (INPS, DRV…) regularly.