About this calculator
This calculator covers one scheme only: the urban employee basic pension (城镇职工基本养老保险), the national scheme for enterprise employees, the self-employed who opt in, and flexible workers. Its monthly pension is the basic pension plus the personal account pension. The basic pension rewards both how long you contributed and at what level: the province’s calculation base and your own indexed wage are averaged, then multiplied by 1% per contribution year. The personal account pension is simpler — your balance, including interest, divided by a fixed divisor that depends only on retirement age.
Two things this page deliberately does not do. First, it does not compute the resident pension (城乡居民基本养老保险): that scheme pays a flat government-set basic pension plus its own account pension and is a different system, even though the names sound alike. Second, it does not compute the transitional pension (过渡性养老金): workers who were employed before personal accounts were set up (mostly the mid-1990s, with the exact date set province by province) get an extra component with province-specific coefficients, so anyone with pre-account service will receive more than the figure here. Enterprise annuities and private pensions are also outside this page — they are on top of, not part of, the national basic pension.
Three inputs deserve care. The calculation base is not your salary: it is the figure your province publishes for the retirement year, and it changes annually — a stale base is the most common reason an estimate misses. Your average contribution index is a lifetime average, not this year’s ratio; years at the 60% floor pull it down for good. And the divisor is not a payout limit: once your account balance is exhausted, the统筹 fund keeps paying the personal account pension at the same monthly amount for life, and any balance left at death can be inherited.
How to use it
- Enter your province’s current pension calculation base for the retirement year (the default ¥8,000 is the worked-example value, not a current figure).
- Enter your lifetime average contribution index (1.0 if you always contributed at the local average wage).
- Enter your cumulative contribution years and your personal account balance at retirement.
- Pick your retirement age to set the divisor: 195 months at 50, 170 at 55, 139 at 60.
- Read the monthly total and its two parts. If your years are below 15, the note explains you cannot yet draw a monthly pension.
The formula
The (1 + index) ÷ 2 term is the averaging step: it takes the mean of the province calculation base and your own indexed wage, so contributing above the average raises your pension but never one-for-one — that averaging is what compresses the gap between the 60% floor and the 300% ceiling. The divisor converts a lump sum into a monthly amount using national life-expectancy assumptions; retiring later shrinks the divisor and raises the monthly personal account pension. The transitional pension is excluded because its coefficients and build dates are set province by province.
Worked example
Calculation base ¥8,000, average contribution index 1.0, 30 contribution years, personal account balance ¥200,000, retiring at 60: basic pension = 8,000 × (1 + 1.0) ÷ 2 × 30 × 1% = ¥2,400.00. Personal account pension = 200,000 ÷ 139 = ¥1,438.85. Monthly basic pension = ¥3,838.85 (¥46,066.20 a year). At the 0.6 floor index with everything else unchanged, the basic pension falls to 8,000 × 0.8 × 30 × 1% = ¥1,920.00 and the total to ¥3,358.85.
Sources: State Council Guofa [2005] No. 38 (《国务院关于完善企业职工基本养老保险制度的决定》) for the formula and the national divisor table; Beijing Jing Lao She Yang Fa [2007] No. 21 as published by the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Human Resources and Social Security (beijing.gov.cn policy document t20080414_567066; Beijing HRSS English FAQ, rsj.beijing.gov.cn, 2025-07-21) for the implemented formula wording; Social Insurance Law art. 16 for the 15-year minimum; the phased statutory-age rise from the 2024 Standing Committee decision on gradual delayed retirement. Verified October 2026. Estimates only — not official advice; confirm your base, index and divisor with your local social insurance bureau. Last updated: October 2026.
Frequently asked questions
Is this the same pension as the resident (城乡居民) pension?
No — they are two schemes. This page is the urban employee scheme (城镇职工基本养老保险), where the basic pension is earnings-related through the calculation base and your contribution index. The resident scheme pays a flat basic pension set by central and local government (typically a few hundred yuan a month) plus its own account pension, and its amounts do not follow this formula. If you contributed as a rural or non-employed resident, use the resident scheme’s rules, not this calculator.
Why is my actual pension higher than this calculator shows?
Most commonly the transitional pension: if you worked before personal accounts were established (the build date is set province by province, mostly in the mid-1990s), you get an extra component for that pre-account service, with province-specific coefficients. Local supplements exist in some places too. This calculator covers only the two national parts, so treat its total as a floor for anyone with pre-account service, not a final figure.
What if I have fewer than 15 contribution years?
Under the Social Insurance Law you cannot draw a monthly basic pension with under 15 cumulative years: at retirement you may continue contributing until you reach 15, or take the personal account balance as a lump sum. The calculator still shows the arithmetic for planning, with a note flagging that you are not yet eligible.
Does the pension stop after the divisor months run out?
No. The divisor is only a division rule for setting the monthly amount. Once your personal account balance is exhausted, the统筹 (pooled) fund continues paying the personal account pension at the same monthly amount for life. If you die with a balance left, it can be inherited.
My statutory retirement age is no longer exactly 50, 55 or 60 — what divisor applies?
Since 2025 the statutory age is phasing upward (men 60 → 63, female cadres 55 → 58, female workers 50 → 55, over about 15 years). The classic national table gives whole-age divisors (195/170/139); if your statutory age falls between whole ages, the local bureau interpolates the divisor by month. This calculator offers the three classic whole-age divisors — if your retirement month is not a whole age, ask your local social insurance bureau for the interpolated divisor and treat the nearest option here as an approximation.
Where do I get my calculation base and average contribution index?
Both come from your local social insurance bureau: the calculation base is published by your province each year for that retirement year, and your average contribution index is computed from your lifetime contribution record (each year’s base divided by that year’s local average wage, averaged). Your annual social insurance statement and the local bureau’s online service both show them. Do not substitute your current salary for either — the base is a provincial figure and the index is a lifetime average.
What formula does this China Pension calculator use?
Basic pension = Calculation base × (1 + Average contribution index) ÷ 2 × Contribution years × 1%; Personal account pension = Personal account balance ÷ Divisor months (195 at 50, 170 at 55, 139 at 60); Monthly pension = Basic pension + Personal account pension The (1 + index) ÷ 2 term is the averaging step: it takes the mean of the province calculation base and your own indexed wage, so contributing above the average raises your pension but never one-for-one — that averaging is what compresses the gap between the 60% floor and the 300% ceiling. The divisor converts a lump sum into a monthly amount using national life-expectancy assumptions; retiring later shrinks the divisor and raises the monthly personal account pension. The transitional pension is excluded because its coefficients and build dates are set province by province. The worked example on this page applies the formula step by step with real numbers, so you can verify the result by hand.