State Pension Increase April 2027: Triple Lock Inputs Point to at Least 3.5%, Budget Is Oct. 28

The Chancellor delivers the Budget on Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2026, after Prime Minister’s Questions at 12 noon Greenwich Mean Time (GMT), and the triple lock inputs published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) point to a State Pension rise of at least 3.5% in April 2027. The government has not yet announced the 2027-28 rates. The table below shows what each weekly rate would be if the rise were 3.9% or 3.5%; these are arithmetic scenarios, not forecasts. A one-page printable tracker is in the downloads.

What would the State Pension be in 2027-28?

Weekly rates for 2026-27 come from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) “Benefit and pension rates 2026/2027” publication. The two scenario columns apply 3.9% and 3.5% to those rates, rounded to the nearest penny, and the yearly figures are the weekly amount times 52.

Rate	2026-27 weekly	If 3.9%: weekly	If 3.9%: yearly	If 3.5%: weekly	If 3.5%: yearly
Full new State Pension	£241.30	£250.71	£13,036.92	£249.75	£12,987.00
Full basic (old) State Pension	£184.90	£192.11	£9,989.72	£191.37	£9,951.24

Source: DWP, “Benefit and pension rates 2026/2027”; ONS; Fresh Calendars arithmetic. Pension Credit is left out of this table because the triple lock rule covers the State Pension; the 2026-27 standard minimum guarantee is £238.00 a week for a single person and £363.25 for a couple, and the 2027-28 amounts are not yet announced.

How does the triple lock work?

The Government Actuary’s Department report on the draft up-rating order 2026 (Jan. 13, 2026) says: “Triple Lock increases are determined as the highest of the annual growth in average May-July earnings (AWE), September prices (CPI) and 2.5%.” AWE is average weekly earnings, and CPI is the Consumer Prices Index.

The same report says April 2026’s rise was “4.8% in line with the May-July 2025 AWE earnings growth”. The DWP said in an April 4, 2026 press release that both State Pensions rose 4.8% under the triple lock from Monday, April 6, 2026. That took the full new State Pension from £230.25 to £241.30 a week, and the basic State Pension from £176.45 to £184.90, per the DWP rates publication.

What do the ONS figures say for 2027?

ONS published two of the three inputs this autumn.

Input	Figure	ONS release
Earnings, May to July 2026, total pay (including bonuses)	3.9%	Average weekly earnings in Great Britain: September 2026 (Sept. 15, 2026)
Earnings, May to July 2026, regular pay (excluding bonuses)	3.5%	Same release
CPI inflation, 12 months to September 2026	3.5%, up from 3.1% the previous month	Consumer price inflation, UK: September 2026 (Oct. 21, 2026)
Triple lock floor	2.5%	Government Actuary’s Department, Jan. 13, 2026

The highest of these is 3.9% on total pay or 3.5% on regular pay, so the rise is at least 3.5% on these inputs. The government’s rule names “average May-July earnings (AWE)” without saying which of ONS’s two headline measures it will use, and we do not say which it will pick. The Budget on Wednesday is the next chance for an announcement; see our UK Budget 2026 story for the time in US zones.

When will the April 2027 rate be confirmed?

Not yet announced. The timeline below separates what has happened from what is still pending.

Date	What	Status
Tue., Sept. 15, 2026	ONS earnings release (May to July growth)	Published
Wed., Oct. 21, 2026	ONS CPI release (September inflation)	Published
Wed., Oct. 28, 2026	Budget, after PMQs at 12 noon GMT	Scheduled
Late Nov. 2026	DWP publishes 2027-28 benefit and pension rates	Not yet announced; last year it was first published Nov. 27, 2025
April 2027	New State Pension rates start	Date not yet announced; the 2026 rise started Monday, April 6, 2026

Put the dates on our November 2026 printable calendar and April 2027 printable calendar. The UK bank holidays list shows the days off around them.

Is the State Pension age changing?

GOV.UK’s LA Welfare Direct 3/2026 (updated Oct. 15, 2026) says: “The State Pension age is rising from 66 to 67 between April 2026 and March 2028.” That is separate from the weekly rate, which is what the triple lock sets.

What other payments are due this winter?

The Winter Fuel Payment 2026 story lists amounts and the £35,000 income threshold, and the Cold Weather Payment 2026-27 story covers the £25 payment.

Printable

The “State Pension 2027-28: Triple Lock Tracker” has the key dates and a row for each rate with the 2026-27 amount, both scenarios and a blank “Confirmed:” space to fill in once the government announces the figures.