The formula
- Maximum annual pension = pension factor x age factor (if any) x final average salary, paid in 12 monthly payments.Handbook pp. 25, 28; N.Y. Educ. Law § 501(12)-(14)
- Tiers 3-4: 1.67% per year under 20 years; 2% per year for all service at 20 to 30 years (40% at 20, 60% at 30); 60% plus 1.5% for each year over 30.Handbook pp. 16, 28
- Tier 5: 1.67% per year under 25 years; 2% per year for all service at 25 to 30 years (50% at 25, 60% at 30); 60% plus 1.5% for each year over 30.Handbook pp. 16, 30
- Tier 6: 1.67% per year under 20 years; 1.75% per year at exactly 20 (35%); 35% plus 2% for each year beyond 20 (for example, 55% at 30 years).Handbook pp. 16, 31; Tier 6 deck (2023) slide 28
- Tiers 1-2: 2.0% per year of NYS service on or after July 1, 1959, and 1.8% per year before then. Out-of-state service counts at 1.0% per year for up to 10 years, only until total service reaches 35 years. Tier 2 gets out-of-state credit only if it was credited under a Tier 1 membership. The maximum is 75% of FAS, or 79% with the two years of Article 19 credit.Handbook p. 32; Actuarial Valuation 2024, App. 19, pp. 82-83
- The '1.67%' rate is exactly 1⅔% (one-sixtieth) per year: 19 years is 31.67%, 24 years is 40%.Actuarial Valuation 2024, App. 19, pp. 83-84; Handbook pp. 28, 30
Your tier picks the column in each table below. The age factor is explained on retiring early, and buying service credit can raise the years you count. Or let the calculator do it for your own dates.
Pension factor by years of service
Percent of FAS, before any age factor. Tiers 1-2 include the cut for service under 20 years. Computed by our engine from the rules above.
| Years | Tiers 1-2 | Tiers 3-4 | Tier 5 | Tier 6 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | 5% | 8.33% | 8.33% | 8.33% |
| 10 | 10% | 16.67% | 16.67% | 16.67% |
| 15 | 22.5% | 25% | 25% | 25% |
| 19 | 36.1% | 31.67% | 31.67% | 31.67% |
| 20 | 40% | 40% | 33.33% | 35% |
| 24 | 48% | 48% | 40% | 43% |
| 25 | 50% | 50% | 50% | 45% |
| 29 | 58% | 58% | 58% | 53% |
| 30 | 60% | 60% | 60% | 55% |
| 35 | 70% | 67.5% | 67.5% | 65% |
Age factor by age
The share of your pension factor you keep if you retire at that exact age without meeting your tier's full-benefit rule. Prorated by month in between. Tier 1 has no age factor.
| Age | Tier 2 | Tiers 3-4 | Tier 5 | Tier 6 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 55 | 73% | 73% | 61.67% | 48% |
| 56 | 76% | 76% | 66.67% | 54.5% |
| 57 | 79% | 79% | 71.67% | 61% |
| 58 | 82% | 82% | 76.67% | 67.5% |
| 59 | 85% | 85% | 81.67% | 74% |
| 60 | 88% | 88% | 86.67% | 80.5% |
| 61 | 94% | 94% | 93.33% | 87% |
| 62 | 100% | 100% | 100% | 93.5% |
| 63 | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
NYSTRS's Tier 2 sources give the age factor only in whole years (73% at 55 up to 100% at 62). They don't say whether it is prorated month by month, as it is for Tiers 3 and 4.
We prorate the Tier 2 age factor by month, the same way the handbook does for Tiers 3 and 4.
Handbook pp. 25, 28; Actuarial Valuation 2024, App. 19, p. 83Percent of FAS, by age and service
Pension factor × age factor, the way NYSTRS's Benefit Comparison Table shows it. Green cells have no age factor. Tap a tier to open it.
Tier 1
| Age | 10 yrs | 15 yrs | 20 yrs | 25 yrs | 30 yrs | 35 yrs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 55 | 10% | 22.5% | 40% | 50% | 60% | 70% |
| 56 | 10% | 22.5% | 40% | 50% | 60% | 70% |
| 57 | 10% | 22.5% | 40% | 50% | 60% | 70% |
| 58 | 10% | 22.5% | 40% | 50% | 60% | 70% |
| 59 | 10% | 22.5% | 40% | 50% | 60% | 70% |
| 60 | 10% | 22.5% | 40% | 50% | 60% | 70% |
| 61 | 10% | 22.5% | 40% | 50% | 60% | 70% |
| 62 | 10% | 22.5% | 40% | 50% | 60% | 70% |
| 63 | 10% | 22.5% | 40% | 50% | 60% | 70% |
Tier 2
| Age | 10 yrs | 15 yrs | 20 yrs | 25 yrs | 30 yrs | 35 yrs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 55 | 7.3% | 16.42% | 29.2% | 36.5% | 60% | 70% |
| 56 | 7.6% | 17.1% | 30.4% | 38% | 60% | 70% |
| 57 | 7.9% | 17.77% | 31.6% | 39.5% | 60% | 70% |
| 58 | 8.2% | 18.45% | 32.8% | 41% | 60% | 70% |
| 59 | 8.5% | 19.12% | 34% | 42.5% | 60% | 70% |
| 60 | 8.8% | 19.8% | 35.2% | 44% | 60% | 70% |
| 61 | 9.4% | 21.15% | 37.6% | 47% | 60% | 70% |
| 62 | 10% | 22.5% | 40% | 50% | 60% | 70% |
| 63 | 10% | 22.5% | 40% | 50% | 60% | 70% |
Tiers 3 and 4
| Age | 10 yrs | 15 yrs | 20 yrs | 25 yrs | 30 yrs | 35 yrs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 55 | 12.17% | 18.25% | 29.2% | 36.5% | 60% | 67.5% |
| 56 | 12.67% | 19% | 30.4% | 38% | 60% | 67.5% |
| 57 | 13.17% | 19.75% | 31.6% | 39.5% | 60% | 67.5% |
| 58 | 13.67% | 20.5% | 32.8% | 41% | 60% | 67.5% |
| 59 | 14.17% | 21.25% | 34% | 42.5% | 60% | 67.5% |
| 60 | 14.67% | 22% | 35.2% | 44% | 60% | 67.5% |
| 61 | 15.67% | 23.5% | 37.6% | 47% | 60% | 67.5% |
| 62 | 16.67% | 25% | 40% | 50% | 60% | 67.5% |
| 63 | 16.67% | 25% | 40% | 50% | 60% | 67.5% |
Tier 5
| Age | 10 yrs | 15 yrs | 20 yrs | 25 yrs | 30 yrs | 35 yrs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 55 | 10.28% | 15.42% | 20.56% | 30.83% | 37% | 41.62% |
| 56 | 11.11% | 16.67% | 22.22% | 33.33% | 40% | 45% |
| 57 | 11.94% | 17.92% | 23.89% | 35.83% | 60% | 67.5% |
| 58 | 12.78% | 19.17% | 25.56% | 38.33% | 60% | 67.5% |
| 59 | 13.61% | 20.42% | 27.22% | 40.83% | 60% | 67.5% |
| 60 | 14.44% | 21.67% | 28.89% | 43.33% | 60% | 67.5% |
| 61 | 15.56% | 23.33% | 31.11% | 46.67% | 60% | 67.5% |
| 62 | 16.67% | 25% | 33.33% | 50% | 60% | 67.5% |
| 63 | 16.67% | 25% | 33.33% | 50% | 60% | 67.5% |
Tier 6
| Age | 10 yrs | 15 yrs | 20 yrs | 25 yrs | 30 yrs | 35 yrs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 55 | 8% | 12% | 16.8% | 21.6% | 26.4% | 31.2% |
| 56 | 9.08% | 13.62% | 19.07% | 24.52% | 29.97% | 35.42% |
| 57 | 10.17% | 15.25% | 21.35% | 27.45% | 33.55% | 39.65% |
| 58 | 11.25% | 16.88% | 23.63% | 30.37% | 55% | 65% |
| 59 | 12.33% | 18.5% | 25.9% | 33.3% | 55% | 65% |
| 60 | 13.42% | 20.13% | 28.17% | 36.22% | 55% | 65% |
| 61 | 14.5% | 21.75% | 30.45% | 39.15% | 55% | 65% |
| 62 | 15.58% | 23.38% | 32.73% | 42.07% | 55% | 65% |
| 63 | 16.67% | 25% | 35% | 45% | 55% | 65% |
NYSTRS's own examples
| Example | NYSTRS shows | Our engine | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tier 4, 19 years at 55: 19 x 1.67% x 73% | 23.1% | 23.1% | Handbook p. 28 |
| Tier 4, 20 years at 56: 40% x 76% | 30.4% | 30.4% | Handbook p. 28 |
| Tier 4, 29 years at 55: 58% x 73% | 42.3% | 42.3% | Handbook p. 28 |
| Tier 5, 24 years at 57: 40% x 71.67% | 28.67% | 28.67% | Handbook p. 30 |
| Tier 5, 29 years at 57: 58% x 71.67% | 41.57% | 41.57% | Handbook p. 30 |
| Tier 6, 30 years at 55: 55% x 48% | 26.4% | 26.4% | Tier 6 deck (2023) slide 29 |
| Tier 6, 23 years at 55 and 1 month | 19.9% | 19.9% | Tier 6 deck (2023) slide 30 |
| Tier 2, 15 years at 62: 30% cut 25% for service under 20 | 22.5% | 22.5% | Handbook p. 32 |
Final average salary (FAS)
- Your final average salary (FAS) is the average of your highest three consecutive school years of salary, whenever they occurred; typically your last three. Tier 1 members get the higher of a three-year or five-year FAS.Handbook p. 26; N.Y. Educ. Law § 501(11)
- Yearly raises above these limits are left out: Tier 1, 20% over the previous year; Tier 2, 20% over the average of the previous two years; Tiers 3-6, 10% over the average of the previous two years.Handbook p. 26; NYSTRS Regulations §§ 5003.1, 5003.4
- For Tier 6, salary above the NY governor's salary doesn't count. With several employers, only the two highest-paying positions in a school year count.Handbook p. 26; NYSTRS Regulations § 5003.6(b)
- The three-year FAS can include pay for teaching, coaching, tutoring, summer school, chaperoning, workshops, after-school programs and club advising. It can't include bonuses, payments in lieu of health insurance, buyouts or termination pay, payments outside contract terms, or raises on the eve of retirement.Handbook p. 26
- Tier 6 FAS has been the highest three consecutive years since April 20, 2024 (Chapter 56 of the Laws of 2024). Raises over 10% of the average of the previous two years are excluded; before that it was five years with a four-year lookback.Bulletin 2024-7 p. 2; Compilation of Laws 2026, Introduction; Handbook p. 26
Tier 6 pay above the New York governor's salary doesn't count toward your pension. The newest figure in our sources is $250,000, as of June 30, 2024.
We don't cap the salary you enter. If you're a Tier 6 member earning near that level, check the current limit with NYSTRS.
Handbook p. 26; Actuarial Valuation 2024, App. 19, p. 81Questions
What is the NYSTRS pension factor?
The percentage of your final average salary you earn for your years of service. It depends on your tier and your years of service.
What is the age factor?
If you retire before your tier's full-benefit age or service, NYSTRS multiplies your pension factor by an age factor: the share of the pension factor you keep. It is prorated by month.
Is it 1.66% or 1.67% a year?
NYSTRS prints 1.67%. It is exactly one-sixtieth (1⅔%) a year, so 24 years is 40%, as the handbook's own example shows.
Source: NYSTRS Active Members' Handbook, Updated October 2026, pp. 16, 25, 26, 28, 30, 31, 32. Also: Benefit Comparison Table 2014 pp. 2, 3, 4; Actuarial Valuation 2024 App. 19, pp. 81, 82, 83, 84; N.Y. Educ. Law; NYSTRS Regulations §§ 5003.1, 5003.4, 5003.6, 5005.5, 5005.6; Tier 6 deck slide 28, slide 29, slide 30; Bulletin 2024-7 p. 2; Compilation of Laws 2026 Introduction. Last reviewed .