Pension calculators · Rules checked November 2026

PERS 3 Pension Calculator

Estimate your monthly PERS 3 pension in under a minute. PERS covers employees of state agencies, counties, cities and other local governments. Enter the age you’d like to retire, your years of service and your pay.

How the PERS 3 formula works

The pension part of PERS 3 is 1% of your average final compensation (AFC) for each year of service. AFC is the average of your highest-paid 60 consecutive months. Your Plan 3 investment account, funded by your own contributions, is separate and isn’t in this number. The Retirement Scorecard projects it on its own line.

Example: $95,000 pay, 28 years of service, retiring at 62: $95,000 ÷ 12 × 28% × 74.97% kept for retiring early = $1,662 a month. With 30 years at 62 instead (started before May 1, 2013), there’s no reduction: $95,000 ÷ 12 × 30% = $2,375 a month. Those two extra years of service add $713 a month.

When you can retire from PERS 3

Full pension at 65 with 10 years of service, or 5 years if at least 12 months were earned after age 44.
Early retirement from 55 with 10 or more years. The pension is reduced by DRS’s early retirement factors: retiring 3 years early (at 62) keeps 74.97% of it, and retiring 10 years early (at 55) keeps 40.18%.
With 30 or more years, the reduction is much smaller. If you first started in a PERS, TRS or SERS job before May 1, 2013, you keep 80% at 55, rising 3 points a year to 98% at 61, and the full pension from 62. If you started on or after May 1, 2013, it’s 5% less for each year before 65.
When more than one rule applies, the calculator uses the one that pays more.

Then the bigger question: is it enough?

The pension is usually the biggest piece, but it’s one piece. The free Washington Retirement Scorecard adds your savings and Social Security, shows your monthly income against your spending before and after Social Security, what one more year of work is worth, and the three things to work on first. Your numbers from this calculator carry over.

What this estimate leaves out

Survivor options. It shows the single-life amount, the highest option. Choosing a survivor benefit for a spouse lowers it.
Months. It counts whole years; DRS counts months.
Service credit purchases, and pay rules that differ by plan, like which overtime counts.
Cost-of-living raises. Pay and pension are in today’s dollars. After you retire, these pensions get a yearly cost-of-living raise of up to 3%.
Plan 1. This calculator covers Plan 2 and Plan 3 (PSERS 2, LEOFF 2 and WSPRS 2 too), not Plan 1.

For your official number, request a benefit estimate in your DRS online account at drs.wa.gov. DRS suggests doing it 3 to 12 months before you retire. Every formula behind this calculator is written out on the how it works page.

Common questions

How is the PERS 3 pension calculated?

The pension part of PERS 3 is 1% of your average final compensation (AFC) for each year of service. AFC is the average of your highest-paid 60 consecutive months. Your Plan 3 investment account, funded by your own contributions, is separate and isn’t in this number. The Retirement Scorecard projects it on its own line.

When can I retire from PERS 3 without a reduction?

At 65 with 10 years (or 5 years with 12 months after age 44), or at 62 with 30 years if you first started before May 1, 2013.

Can I retire early from PERS 3?

Yes, from 55 with 10 years, with a reduction. With 30 years the reduction is much smaller, and none from 62 if you started before May 1, 2013.

Is this the same as my official DRS estimate?

No. It uses the plan’s published formula, so it’s a close estimate, not your official benefit. Your official estimate is in your DRS online account at drs.wa.gov. DRS suggests requesting one 3 to 12 months before you retire.