OECD Pensions Outlook 2026

Pension assets grew in 36 out of 38 OECD countries in 2025. On aggregate, they grew by 11.3%, sustaining the long‑term trend of the last two decades, and reached USD 78 trillion at end‑2025 (including USD 7.3 trillion in reserves of public pay‑as‑you‑go schemes). This expansion was driven primarily by higher contributions, positive investment returns and relatively low pension benefit payments in many countries. Growth is expected to continue, especially in countries that have introduced measures to increase participation in a pension plan, raise contribution levels or shift pension assets towards less conservative investment strategies.

All but one OECD country face a contribution gap, meaning that workers need to complement their mandatory pension with voluntary contributions to reach their retirement income objective. The contribution gap is 10% or more for male employees on average earnings in 17 countries out of 41 analysed. Women face a larger gap than men in 17 countries, and the self‑employed face a larger gap than employees in 31 countries. In half of the countries, the contribution gap is largest for high earners, while in 12 countries low earners need to contribute the most.

The countries with the largest pools of pension assets relative to GDP (above 100%) are Australia, Canada, Denmark, Iceland, the Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland and the United States. Four countries have assets between 50% and 100%, nine between 20% and 50%, and nearly half below 20% of GDP. The availability of asset‑backed pension plans over time and differences in contributions partly explain these differences.

Risks to the sustainability of portfolios can have significant implications for the long‑term returns of pension funds and insurance companies. As a result, investors are increasingly required to integrate these risks in their investment decisions and processes. In 41 out of 53 jurisdictions assessed, pension or insurance investors are required to integrate sustainability risks in their investment and risk management processes. Of these, 30 have requirements in place for pensions, insurance and asset managers, 6 for both pensions and insurance, 3 only for pensions, and 1 only for insurance.

Asset‑backed pension plans usually benefit from a favourable tax treatment compared to other savings vehicles to encourage people to set money aside to finance their future retirement. This includes the taxation of death‑related payments made to beneficiaries when a plan member dies, which can affect whether individuals use their retirement savings to improve their retirement income or as a form of wealth transfer. In most OECD countries, these payments are generally taxable, but the tax treatment varies depending on the form of payment, the type of beneficiary, the plan member’s situation at the time of death and the type of pension plan.