Brits hoping to retire early would need an extra £130,000 in retirement income as the state pension age rises, research suggests.
A third of people want to retire by 60 but the average worker would struggle to cover the extra costs, according to figures from PensionBee.
The current state pension age is 66 but with new legislation this could rise to 67 and then 68 over coming years.
People who want to retire at 63 would still need an extra £85,000 to cover their costs before they reach state pension age.
New legislation means the state pension age could rise to 67
Dominic Lipinski
A person with an average of £40,000 saved by the age of 50 would see a shortfall of £153,400 for what they would require for the whole of their retirement.
If this person planned to retire aged 60, they would need to save £232,000.
Becky O’Connor, director of Public Affairs at PensionBee, said: “Retiring before state pension age is pie in the sky for many.
“The ‘pre-state pension gap’ is the total amount of retirement income someone would need to retire earlier than the state pension entitlement age and maintain a moderate lifestyle.
“Our analysis suggests that is way out of reach for a worker on an average salary and with a typical pot size at age 50.”
Research shows that the typical shortfall to offset the average pot size for someone aged 50 who wishes to retire aged 63, would be £89,400.
They would need some £181,000 in private savings to have a moderate retirement lifestyle.
O’Connor added: “The ‘ideal’ retirement age, according to our survey was 60, while the healthy life expectancy age is on average 63 in the UK.
According to research, the ideal age to retire is 60
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“So, we used these two ages in our analysis to give an idea of the value of this particular pension gap for people who might want or need to retire at these ages, rather than waiting until they get the state pension.
“Meanwhile, four in 10 workers think they wouldn’t be able to retire before state pension entitlement age, suggesting that bringing forward the increase to age 68 would not merely be a costly inconvenience for more people.
“It would effectively force more workers to carry on working until the point they can draw their state pension.”
A Government review is set to be published this year into the state pension age.
Many analysts expect the move from 67 to 68 to be brought forward, but currently the state pension age is set to increase to 67 by 2028.
