transferring your pensions to PensionBee or out of PensionBee to another provider;
switching to a different PensionBee plan;
contributing to your pension; or
withdrawing from your pension*.
*If your pension pot has been with PensionBee for less than a year and you wish to withdraw it in full, then a full withdrawal fee of £150 applies, including if the value of your account is less than £150 at the point of withdrawal.
Like all pension providers, we charge a fee to manage your pension. Unlike many providers, though, we don’t charge additional fees like platform fees, fund fees, trading fees and other extra fees. These aren’t always clearly displayed, making it harder to figure out exactly how much you’re really paying in total. At PensionBee we keep it simple with a fee that includes all the key aspects of managing your pension with us.
Your annual management fee is calculated based on the daily value of your PensionBee plan and your account will be charged each month. If you withdraw your pension in full (available from the age of 55, rising to 57 from 2028), switch plans or transfer your pension to another provider, you'll only be charged a proportion of the annual management fee up to when your request has been completed.
Pension pot size | < £100k | £250k | £500k | £1 million |
Tailored | 0.70% | 0.49% | 0.42% | 0.39% |
Tracker | 0.50% | 0.35% | 0.30% | 0.28% |
Climate | 0.75% | 0.53% | 0.45% | 0.51% |
4Plus | 0.95% | 0.67% | 0.57% | 0.52% |
Shariah | 0.95% | 0.67% | 0.57% | 0.52% |
Preserve | 0.50% | 0.35% | 0.30% | 0.28% |
Pre-Annuity | 0.70% | 0.49% | 0.42% | 0.39% |
The amount you’ll pay depends on how much you’ve got in your pension. You’ll pay between 0.50% and 0.95% depending on the plan you choose, and we'll halve the fee on the portion of your savings over £100,000.
You can use this table to see the overall fee for a particular account size. For example, if you have £250,000 in your pension and you’re invested in the Tailored Plan, you’ll be charged 0.70% on the first £100,000. For the amount over £100,000 the fee will be halved. This means you’ll be charged 0.35% on the remaining £150,000. Your overall annual fee would be 0.49% of your total pension pot value of £250,000.
Get started combining your pensions into one easy-to-manage account in minutes. Make free and flexible contributions and hassle-free withdrawals from the age of 55 (57 from 2028) with no forms to fill out. We make it easy to stay on top of your pension 24/7 through our app or website. Experience a pension product built for the 21st century.
Sometimes, only human support will do. So, once you sign up to PensionBee you'll be given your very own UK-based account manager, or "BeeKeeper". They'll guide you through the transfer process and beyond.
We have a range of plans carefully selected to meet different savings needs including socially responsible plans like our Climate and Shariah plans. All plans are managed by some of the world’s largest and most experienced money managers, responsible for more than £18 trillion of investments between them.
PensionBee has been recognised as a low-cost pension provider by Boring Money and rated as excellent in the value for money it provides for its Investment Pathways drawdown options. Read the GAA’s 2023 report.
Whenever you invest your money, whether it's in a pension, ISA or other investment product, transaction costs will apply. Transaction costs arise when your money manager buys or sells investments to maintain your plan. Our pension plans are no different, which is why our money managers (BlackRock, State Street Global Advisors and HSBC), will sometimes incur transaction costs when they manage your money.
Transaction costs are very small, as we only work with the largest money managers in the world, and cost around 0.04% of the value of your pension each year. They’re separate from your annual management fee (so we don't make any money from them) and most money managers now separately disclose these costs.
Drawing down from your pension is completely free, unless you withdraw everything within 12 months of having a live balance with us or the balance of your account is less than £150 at the point of withdrawal (a full withdrawal fee of £150 will apply). All figures include VAT where applicable.
Is there an exit fee to leave PensionBee?
There’s no exit fee if you leave PensionBee at any point. There’s a 30-day cancellation policy, which means we’ll return your pensions to your old providers (assuming they are also willing to take them back), free of charge if you cancel your PensionBee plan within 30 days of opening it.
What happens if there are exit fees or special benefits found when transferring my pensions to PensionBee?
We don’t charge you any fees for transferring your pensions to us. If we locate any special benefits or exit fees over £10 on your pension, we’ll ask you to confirm whether you’re happy to continue with the transfer. If you’ve got a pension with certain special benefits worth more than £30,000, you’ll have to obtain a positive recommendation from an independent financial advisor before you can transfer it to PensionBee. Read more about special benefits.
Does PensionBee charge a fee to change my plan?
No, we don’t charge any fees to change your plan but there are transaction costs associated with switching that arise from the buying and selling of the investments in your plan. You can learn more about transaction costs above under ‘Transaction costs’. You can change plans at any time through your BeeHive.
How much does drawdown with PensionBee cost?
Unlike other providers, we won’t charge you extra fees for drawing down your pension. However, if your account has been with PensionBee for less than a year and you wish to withdraw it in full, then a full withdrawal fee of £150 applies, including if the value of your account is less than £150 at the point of withdrawal.
Are there any costs involved with switching plans?
It’s standard industry practice that plan switches have small transaction costs associated with them, both at PensionBee and all other pension providers. These costs are designed to protect existing investors in the plans from any inflows and outflows from the fund. The subscription (charge to enter) and redemption (charge to leave) spreads are usually visible on fund factsheets. They’re an unavoidable feature of the market when moving money between different funds. Neither PensionBee nor our money managers make money from the transaction costs associated with switches.