A People's Pension comparison, using only what each scheme prints: its charges, fund range and transfer terms beside Nest, NOW: Pensions and Smart Pension.
Each figure below is the scheme's own, dated, with no ranking: which one suits you depends on your employer, your pot and your plans. Your own People's Pension or Nest statement is the real test of these figures; an FCA-authorised adviser will read yours alongside them, without charge, once you tick through the form on this page. The value of investments can fall as well as rise, and you may get back less than you paid in.
Charges as each scheme prints them
The four schemes charge in different shapes, so they cannot be read off a single percentage.
| Scheme | Charge as printed | Document and date |
|---|---|---|
| The People's Pension | 0.5% of the pot each year, plus an annual charge of £6.50 from 1 April 2026 on pots of £106.50 and over; a savings reward on the management charge for savings over £3,000 | Chair's governance statement, year ended 31 March 2025, on its charges page (Internet Archive copy, 18 April 2026) |
| Nest | 1.8% on each new contribution, plus 0.3% of the pot each year | Contributions and fees page, read 26 October 2026 |
| NOW: Pensions | £2 a month (£24 a year) since 1 September 2025, not taken if it would leave £100 or less; plus 0.3% a year in its investment plans or 0.25% to 0.55% a year in its DIY funds | Costs and charges explained page, read 26 October 2026 |
| Smart Pension | A Total Expense Ratio that varies with the funds held, and possibly a small monthly fee | Charges page, read 26 October 2026 |
Three points follow from the wording. A flat annual charge such as £6.50 or £24 is a bigger share of a small pot than of a large one, whereas Nest's 1.8% falls on new contributions, not on transfers in, so it depends on how much is going in. Smart Pension says it does not charge a monthly fee if savings total £100 or less, and that members see the charges that apply to them by signing in to their account. Last, the law caps charges on automatic-enrolment default funds: for trust-based schemes such as Nest and The People's Pension, SI 2015/879 regulation 6 sets 0.75% a year for a single charge, with separate limits for combined structures; workplace personal pensions come under the FCA's COBS 19.6.6R.
Each scheme's charges have a page of their own: The People's Pension, Nest, NOW: Pensions and Smart Pension. The general picture is in pension charges and fees.
Fund range: profiles, funds and what is the default
The People's Pension offers three investment profiles and eight self-select funds. Savings go into the "balanced" profile unless the member chooses otherwise; it starts in the Global Investments (up to 85% shares) Fund, and all three profiles begin shifting to lower-risk funds 15 years before the selected retirement date. The scheme adds that its self-select funds do not move to lower-risk investments as retirement approaches, so a member choosing them has to review them. People's Pension funds goes through each one.
Nest lists seven choices: its Retirement Date Funds, which over 99% of members are in, plus Ethical, Sharia, Higher Risk, Lower Growth, Guided Retirement and Ready to Retire options. Because one scheme counts profiles and funds while the other lists named options, the totals are not like for like. On cost, Nest says its charges stay the same whatever fund a member is in, and the People's Pension Chair's statement lists a 0.5% management charge on each of its funds. How NOW: Pensions and Smart Pension build their ranges is covered in NOW: Pensions charges and Smart Pension fees. Past returns are no guide to future ones, so none are set side by side here; if you want help judging which risk level fits your years to retirement, an adviser can talk that through without charge if you use the call-back form.
Moving a pension in or out
The People's Pension says: "While we don't charge you for transferring in or out, your other pension scheme might." Nest says it does not charge for "transferring your pot", NOW: Pensions says it does not charge to move savings into or out of the scheme, and Smart Pension says it does not charge for transferring pensions to it. Whatever the receiving scheme says, the scheme you are leaving may have its own charges or terms, so it is worth asking it before anything moves.
The People's Pension also lists conditions on its own transfer page. It cannot accept pots from which money has already been taken through an annuity or drawdown. A with-profits pension may carry a market value reduction, and a guaranteed annuity rate is usually lost on transfer. For final salary or career average pensions, the scheme's own wording is "It's generally best to not transfer", and it points to authorised advice. How to transfer a pension covers the steps, final salary pensions why that case is different, and the FCA's pension scams page what to check before any pot moves. Which move suits you is for the authorised adviser who telephones once this page's form is sent; that conversation costs nothing.
Aviva, Scottish Widows, PensionBee and the rest
Those names appear in searches next to The People's Pension, but each sells more than one kind of pension and its charge depends on which one you hold, so each has its own page here: Aviva, Scottish Widows, PensionBee, Legal & General and Standard Life. For a wider sweep, see workplace pension providers, which also covers whether an employee can choose, and Smart Pension against four rivals.
Comparing The People's Pension: your questions
Is The People's Pension cheaper than Nest?
The two print different structures: a percentage plus a flat annual charge at The People's Pension, and a percentage of contributions plus a percentage of the pot at Nest. Which costs less turns on pot size and what is paid in, and the table above sets out the printed figures.
What kind of scheme is The People's Pension?
It describes itself as "an authorised master trust scheme run by an independent corporate Trustee". That line is from its transfer page. Its eligibility rules are in People's Pension eligibility and its background in what The People's Pension is.
How do I check what I personally pay?
The scheme says members find their exact charges by logging in, then going to "Manage my pension" and "Charges". Its savings reward, a rebate on some of the management charge depending on pot size, is one reason that figure can differ from the headline 0.5%.
Does the cheapest charge mean the best pension?
Charges are one part of what a pot ends up worth, alongside what is paid in, how it is invested and when it is taken. Workplace pension rules explains what an employer must provide.
Putting these figures against your own pot
Start with your own statement: your scheme's charges, any flat fee and any with-profits or guaranteed terms. With those to hand, a few details in the form here let an FCA-authorised adviser phone, go through them with you and charge nothing for it. If a call about your pension arrives unexpectedly, the FCA's scams page above is the place to check first.
Sources: The People's Pension (People's Partnership), archived copies of Costs and charges (18 April 2026), its transfer-considerations page (17 May 2026) and Pension investment options (5 June 2026); Nest, Contributions and fees and Fund choices; NOW: Pensions, Costs and charges explained; Smart Pension, Our charges and Transfer your pensions; legislation.gov.uk, SI 2015/879 regulation 6; each read 26 October 2026 unless dated otherwise.