French Public Pension Simulator

Unlike the Anglo-Saxon model where a state pension is typically a flat benefit (e.g. the UK State Pension or US Social Security), the French general regime is an earnings-related, pay-as-you-go (PAYG) system. Today's workers fund today's retirees through mandatory payroll contributions, and the pension you receive directly reflects your career earnings and length.

The base pension formula is:

• SAM (Salaire Annuel Moyen): Average of your best 25 years of earnings, capped at the Social Security ceiling (48 060 €/yr). Think of it as similar to the AIME in the US Social Security system, but using the top 25 years rather than 35.
• Settlement rate (taux de liquidation): Maximum 50% (full rate). This is not your replacement rate -- it is a multiplier applied to the SAM. The effective replacement rate is higher once the supplementary pension is added.
• Pro-rata: The ratio of your quarters to the number required for your generation. If you have all your quarters, this equals 1.

The 2023 pension reform was one of the most politically contentious changes in recent French history, sparking months of protests. For international observers, the key changes were:

• Legal retirement age raised gradually to 64 (from 62). This may seem low compared to the US (67 for full Social Security) or the UK (66, rising to 68), but the French system is far more generous in replacement rates.
• Contribution period accelerated: 172 quarters (43 years) required from the 1965 generation onward, instead of a gradual phase-in.
• Long careers preserved: Workers who started before age 16, 18, or 20 can still retire 2 to 6 years early.
• Minimum pension raised: Brought to approximately 85% of the net minimum wage for a full career at minimum wage.

In the French system, quarters (trimestres) are the unit used to measure your contribution duration. Unlike the US system where you earn "credits" (max 4 per year based on earnings thresholds), French quarters work similarly but with their own rules. You can validate up to 4 quarters per year.

• Contributed quarters: Validated based on your earnings. In 2026, you need to earn 1 803 € gross to validate 1 quarter (150 x hourly minimum wage). Earning 4x that amount in a year validates all 4 quarters.
• Assimilated quarters: Periods of unemployment (max 6 years), illness, maternity leave, and military service count towards your total, even without contributions.
• Child bonuses: 8 quarters per child (4 for maternity + 4 for upbringing). The 4 upbringing quarters can be shared between parents. This is one of the system's most family-friendly features, with no real equivalent in the US or UK.
• Purchasing quarters: You can buy back up to 12 quarters for years of higher education. The cost varies by age and chosen option -- a concept somewhat like voluntary National Insurance contributions in the UK.

If you do not have all your required quarters at the time of retirement, the system applies a penalty. Conversely, if you keep working beyond the full-rate threshold, you earn a bonus. This mechanism is unique to France and has no direct equivalent in the US Social Security early/late filing adjustments, though the concept is similar.

Comparison: In the US, claiming Social Security at 62 instead of 67 reduces your benefit by about 30%. In France, the penalty is applied per missing quarter at 1.25% each, and you can also reach the full rate simply by waiting until age 67 regardless of quarters. The French bonus (+1.25%/quarter) is comparable to the US delayed retirement credits (+8%/year up to age 70).

On top of the base pension, every private-sector employee in France is enrolled in AGIRC-ARRCO, a mandatory points-based supplementary scheme. There is no equivalent in the US or UK -- it is as though Social Security included a mandatory defined-contribution layer on top.

• Point acquisition: Your contributions are converted into points. 2026 purchase price: 20.1877 per point.
• Tier 1 (up to 1 PASS = 48 060 €/yr): Contribution rate 7.87%. This covers earnings below the Social Security ceiling.
• Tier 2 (1 to 8 PASS): Contribution rate 21.59%. Higher earners accumulate significantly more supplementary points.
• Pension calculation: Number of points x Point value (2026: 1.4386).
• Solidarity coefficient: A temporary 10% malus for 3 years if you retire at the full-rate age before 67 (removed for new retirees from April 2023 per recent agreements).

For higher earners, AGIRC-ARRCO often represents 40-60% of the total pension, making it a critical component that many international observers overlook when comparing French pensions to other systems.

• Long career (carriere longue): If you started working before age 16, 18, or 20 and have enough quarters, you can retire 2 to 6 years early. This has no equivalent in the UK or US.
• Disability: Retirement at 55 with the full rate if you have at least 50% permanent disability.
• Arduous work (C2P): Points accumulated through the "compte professionnel de prevention" can fund extra quarters or early retirement up to 2 years before the legal age.
• Phased retirement (retraite progressive): From age 60, you can combine part-time work with a partial pension -- a concept gaining traction globally but already well established in France.
• Working while retired (cumul emploi-retraite): You can work and collect your pension simultaneously. Since 2023, this work can even generate new pension rights.

The PASS (Plafond Annuel de la Securite Sociale) is the ceiling used for calculating base pension contributions and capping the SAM. Earnings above the PASS do not count towards the base pension, but they do generate AGIRC-ARRCO supplementary points in Tier 2. This is conceptually similar to the US Social Security taxable maximum ($184,500 in 2026), but the French ceiling is considerably lower, which is why the supplementary layer exists.