Pension saving continues to take a back seat to day-to-day financial pressures for many UK adults, despite broadly stable optimism about personal finances heading into 2026, according to three separate studies from Aegon, Scottish Widows and PensionBee.

Research from Aegon found that six in 10 UK adults (60 per cent) feel positive about their finances for 2026, unchanged from last year and up from 52 per cent in early 2024.

However, optimism is unevenly distributed, with notable gender and generational divides persisting.

Women reported lower financial confidence than men, with a net positivity score of 55 per cent compared with 65 per cent for men.

Gen X savers, aged 44 to 59, were the least upbeat at 49 per cent, while Millennials (68 per cent) and Gen Z (64 per cent) were significantly more positive about the year ahead.

Despite this relative optimism, pensions ranked low among financial priorities.

Aegon’s research showed that only 12 per cent of respondents placed pension saving in their top three financial priorities for 2026.

By contrast, covering basic living costs was cited by 39 per cent, followed by building emergency savings (34 per cent) and enjoying life (33 per cent).

Meanwhile, unexpected expenses remain the leading financial worry, with a third of those surveyed highlighting it.

Aegon pensions director, Steven Cameron, warned that the continued deprioritisation of pension saving could have long-term consequences.

He said that while it was understandable that short-term pressures were dominating financial decisions, many people would need to place greater focus on pension saving in the future to secure an adequate retirement income, underlining the importance of the government’s Pension Commission addressing pension adequacy.

Echoing these concerns, separate research from Scottish Widows suggested that a significant proportion of those nearing retirement are still failing to take concrete steps to prepare.

The study found that almost a quarter (24 per cent) of people planning to retire by 2028 had taken no action in the past 12 months to get ready for retirement.

Among those planning to retire in 2026, just 21 per cent said they had made a retirement plan, while 19 per cent had spoken to a financial adviser or discussed their plans with loved ones.

In addition, only 13 per cent had consolidated their pension pots, and 12 per cent had purchased an annuity.

The study highlighted affordability as a barrier for some, with 12 per cent of baby boomers saying they were delaying retirement because they could not afford to stop working, while others cited a desire to keep working or maintain a sense of purpose.

Commenting on the findings, Scottish Widows pension expert, Robert Cochran, stressed that early engagement was critical for those approaching retirement, arguing that understanding the full picture of state, workplace and private pension entitlements was key to making informed decisions about income options.

Meanwhile, research from PensionBee found a persistent gap between awareness and action on pensions.

While more than half of UK adults (53 per cent) said they had thought about their pension ‘a fair amount’ or ‘a great deal’ in 2025, just 17 per cent expect to review or increase their pension contributions in the next 12 months.

Indeed, although 52 per cent said they anticipated reviewing or making changes to their pension in 2026, only one in five had a clear plan to do so, with nearly a third yet to take any steps.

It also revealed that day-to-day money worries continue to crowd out long-term planning, with 33 per cent saying that reviewing their pension is simply not a priority at present.

PensionBee’s findings also showed that short-term savings, managing everyday finances and paying down debt are far more likely to feature in people’s priorities and resolutions than pension saving.

While 55 per cent resolved to save more money in general, just 14 per cent said they would focus on improving their pension.

PensionBee chief business officer, Lisa Picardo, warned that the UK is facing a retirement savings crisis, with nearly 15 million people undersaving for retirement.

She argued that structural issues, including gaps in auto-enrolment and the complexity of pension transfers, were compounding the problem, and called for reforms to make pension saving simpler, more inclusive and easier to manage.

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