How Spain calculates your state pension

Key rules

• Full pension: A 100% pension needs 38 years and 3 months of contributions in 2026, and 37 years from 2027.
• Averaging period: You get the better of the last 25 years or 29 years with your 2 worst months dropped.
• Gaps: Empty months are filled at 100% of the minimum base for 48 months, then 50%.
• Cap: The 2026 maximum is about 3,360 euros a month.

The short version

Your pension is a percentage of an average of your contribution bases. The base is the monthly amount your contributions were calculated on. The steps are: average your bases over a set period, fill any gaps, apply a percentage based on how long you contributed, then check the result against the yearly cap. After you retire, the pension rises each year.

Step 1: The averaging period

The average covers the last 25 years (300 months) before you retire. Spain is gradually moving this to 29 years (348 months), with the change running up to 2038. During the move you get the better of two options: the last 25 years, or 29 years with your 2 worst months dropped. You do not choose individual years. The calculation takes whichever option gives the higher pension.

Step 2: Gaps in your record

Months with no contributions inside the averaging period are filled with the minimum base. The first 48 months are filled at 100% of the minimum base. After that they are filled at 50%. A recent reform is gradually improving how gaps are filled, especially for women, so check which version applies to your retirement date.

Step 3: The percentage

You get 50% of your average base for the first 15 years of contributions. Each further month adds a small extra percentage, roughly 0.21% for the earlier months and about 0.19% for the rest. The exact monthly figures change with the transition year.

The scale reaches 100% at 38 years and 3 months of contributions in 2026. From 2027 it reaches 100% at 37 years. If you have fewer years, you get a lower percentage.

Step 4: The cap

No pension can go above the yearly maximum. For 2026 it is about 3,360 euros a month, paid in 14 payments. If your calculation comes out higher, the maximum applies.

After you retire

Pensions are revalued every January in line with inflation. The 2026 increase was 2.7%.

How to estimate yours

Use the estimator below for a quick figure. For an official estimate, use the Seguridad Social retirement simulator ("Simulador de jubilación") on its online office. It works with Cl@ve or an electronic certificate, or you can get a general estimate without identifying yourself. It needs a Spanish contribution record to be useful. The checklist below walks you through the steps in order.

Timeline and deadlines

• Averaging period is the last 25 years (300 months) of contribution bases before retirement: Until the 29-year period is phased in

• Averaging period moves gradually towards 29 years (348 months); you can pick the better of the two options: Gradually, starting in 2026

• Contributions needed for 100% of your base: 38 years and 3 months: In 2026

• Contributions needed for 100% of your base fall to 37 years: From 2027

• Gap months are filled at 100% of the minimum base for the first 48 months, then 50%: When your base is calculated at retirement

• Your pension is revalued by inflation: Every January

Checklist

• Count your years of contributions and compare them with the 38 years and 3 months needed for 100% in 2026 (37 years from 2027).

• Work out your pension as 50% of your base for the first 15 years, plus a small extra percentage for each further month.

• List the months with no contributions in your averaging period and check they are filled at 100% of the minimum base for the first 48 months, then 50%.

• Compare the last 25 years with the 29-year option that drops your 2 worst months, and use the better result.

• Run the Seguridad Social retirement simulator to get an estimate of your retirement date and pension amount.

• Check your estimate against the 2026 maximum of about 3,360 euros a month, since no pension can go above the cap.

• Add the yearly January inflation increase (2.7% for 2026) to see how your pension grows after you retire.

Estimate your Spanish state pension

Work it out

What you enter

• Your average monthly contribution base, in euros (EUR): Your contribution record (informe de vida laboral and bases) on the Seguridad Social website, averaged over the last 25 years.
• Your years of contributions (years): Your work-life report (vida laboral) from the Seguridad Social website, with Cl@ve or a digital certificate.
• Months you retire before the ordinary retirement age (months): Count from your planned retirement date back to your ordinary retirement age; enter 0 if you do not retire early.
• Full years you work past the ordinary retirement age (years): Count whole years between your ordinary retirement age and your planned retirement date; enter 0 if none.

Figures used

• Share of your base paid for the first 15 years: 50 % (as of 2026)
• Years of contributions that earn the first 50%: 15 years (as of 2026)
• Career length needed for 100% of the base in 2026: 36.5 years (as of 2026; check the current figure before you rely on it)
• Reduction for each month of early retirement: 0.2 % (as of 2026; check the current figure before you rely on it)
• Pension increase for each full year of delay: 4 % (as of 2026)
• Maximum monthly pension in 2026: 3,360 EUR (as of 2026; check the current figure before you rely on it)
• Payments per year: 14 payments (as of 2026)

Worked example (with Your average monthly contribution base, in euros 2,400 EUR, Your years of contributions 35 years, Months you retire before the ordinary retirement age 0 months, Full years you work past the ordinary retirement age 0 years)

When the sum misleads

• With fewer than 15 years of contributions you do not qualify for a pension, so the result does not apply.
• The percentage scale here is a straight line from 50% at 15 years to 100% at the full career length. The real scale is set month by month, so expect a small difference.
• Early retirement also needs 35 years of contributions and a pension above the minimum one. The reduction used here is a middle figure; the real one depends on how short your record is.
• Working past the ordinary age gives you a choice of a 4% yearly increase, a lump sum or a mix. This sum shows only the 4% option, and the increase can take you above the maximum.
• Foreign work periods, pension supplements and income tax are not included. Spain's Social Security decides the real amount when it processes your claim.

Frequently asked questions

Can I choose which years are used to work out my pension?

Yes, during the transition you can use the more favourable of the last 25 years (300 months) or 29 years (348 months) with your 2 worst months left out. The 29-year period is being phased in gradually from 2026. Compare both before you claim.

How are months with no contributions filled in?

Gap months inside the averaging period are filled with the minimum contribution base: the first 48 months at 100% of it, then 50%. Women get extra help with gaps under the 2023 reform. This lowers your average less than counting zero.

How much is the maximum monthly pension in 2026?

The maximum pension in 2026 is about 3,360 euros a month, about 47,000 euros a year. It is set each year and rose with the 2.7% revaluation plus an extra increase in the cap. No matter how high your contributions were, you cannot go above it.

How much does my pension go up each year?

Your pension is revalued every January by the average inflation of the previous December-to-November period, which gave 2.7% for 2026. Minimum and non-contributory pensions may rise more.

Is there an official tool to estimate my Spanish pension?

Yes, the Seguridad Social has an online retirement simulator that estimates your retirement date, ordinary age and pension amount.