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Spending power in today’s money
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—Value when contributions stop
—Paid by family
—Tax relief added
—Final value ÷ family payments
Backtest UK pension contributions against 126 years of market data (1900–2025), for the Fidelity Index US fund (S&P 500 proxy) or the HSBC FTSE All-World fund (world equity proxy) — or a flat assumed growth rate. Every figure is real spending power in today’s money.
Data embedded • 1900–2025Everything is in today’s money: returns are real (after actual UK inflation each year) and the contribution keeps today’s spending power throughout. Contributions start at birth (age 0) and stop after the contribution years; the pot then grows untouched until the access age. A 25% uplift converts £240/month net into £300/month gross — equivalent to 20% relief on the gross contribution. Monthly contributions spread each year’s return evenly across the twelve months. Enter the fund OCF (e.g. 0.06 or 0.13) plus platform fees if you want costs reflected.