The pension formula is the same for every rank. Three things change with rank: the pay your pension is figured on, a step at 25, 30 and 35 years for detectives, sergeants and lieutenants, and the union annuity fund that pays out next to the pension.
How much is an NYPD sergeant's pension? At 20 years it is half of your final average salary, the same as every rank, in Tier 2 and in Tier 3. A sergeant at top step earns $140,212 in base pay (since December 10, 2025), so half of base pay alone is $70,106 a year. Overtime and night differential count toward the salary the pension uses, so a sergeant who works overtime will see a higher figure. At 25 years of service, with at least three years as a sergeant, the law adds 5% of top sergeant pay to that salary, which is about $3,505 a year more in pension.
Tier 3 members also see a reduction at 62 tied to Social Security. Your own figure comes from the Police Pension Fund.
Pick your rank. The NYPD pension calculator opens with it filled in. Add your start month, years and salary, and the 25, 30 and 35 year step is included for a detective, sergeant or lieutenant who gives years in rank.
Free. It works on your phone, and you don't need an email to see your number.
These are the top base pay rates in each rank's current City contract. Your pension uses what you actually earn, overtime included, so treat the last column as a floor for a top-step member, not a forecast.
| Rank | Top base pay | Since | Half of it (pension at 20, base pay only) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sergeant | $140,212 | Dec 10, 2025 | $70,106 a year |
| Lieutenant | $160,941 | Mar 16, 2026 | $80,471 a year |
| Detective 1st Grade | $160,941 | Jun 1, 2026 | $80,471 a year |
| Detective 3rd Grade | $124,779 | Jun 1, 2026 | $62,390 a year |
Sources: the City's Office of Labor Relations agreements with the SBA, LBA and DEA, and the 2022–2027 Uniformed Officers Coalition Economic Agreement. The lieutenant and detective figures apply each contract's printed 4% raise to its printed schedule. These rates change when each contract is renewed: the SBA agreement runs through December 9, 2026, the LBA agreement through April 15, 2027, and the DEA agreement through May 31, 2027. Captain pay is set by the CEA contract and is not shown here, because the rate in the agreement we read changed on September 22, 2026.
Administrative Code § 14-114(d) adds a percentage of top pay in your rank to the salary your pension is figured on: 5% at 25 years of uniformed service, 10% at 30 and 15% at 35. Because the pension is half of that salary, the pension goes up by half of the amount added. You need at least three years in your rank, and the law adds the percentage for a two-year period and does not stack it with the police officer step (conditions below).
| Rank | At 25 years (5%) | At 30 years (10%) | At 35 years (15%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sergeant | +$3,505 a year | +$7,011 a year | +$10,516 a year |
| Lieutenant | +$4,024 a year | +$8,047 a year | +$12,071 a year |
| Detective (any grade) | +$4,024 a year | +$8,047 a year | +$12,071 a year |
Pension added a year, figured on top base pay (1st Grade pay for every detective). The Fund's figure can be higher if it counts longevity or an assignment rate.
Every rank gets more pay for staying past 20, and in Tier 2 the pension adds 1/60 of your pensionable earnings for each year past 20. Two more things happen at 25 years of service. Longevity pay becomes fully pensionable for every rank: the Tier 2 booklet says that after 20 years only the 5 and 10 year longevity levels count and after 25 full longevity counts (p.17), and the Tier 3 booklet says the 15 and 20 year payments become pensionable at 25 (p.7). And for a detective, sergeant or lieutenant with three years in rank, the step above starts. A police officer's own step works differently: it needs 25 years in the rank of police officer.
So the same member can see a jump at 25 that the 20-year figure never shows. Run 20 and 25 in the calculator side by side, and read how the longevity enhancement works for the full rules.
The three years in rank. A sergeant promoted at 23 years of service has three years in rank at 26. Leaving at 25 would miss the step even with 25 years on the job.
The caps on a pay jump. A big raise late in a career may not count in full. In Tier 3, pay in any year of the average that is more than 10% above the average of the two years before it is left out (Retirement and Social Security Law § 512). In Tier 2 the limit is 20%: on the final-12-month basis, pensionable pay can't be more than 120% of the 12 months before, and on the other bases no year can be more than 120% of the average of the two years before it (§ 443, Tier 2 booklet pp.16–17). A promotion raise and more overtime in the same year can together cross the Tier 3 line.
Captains have their own rule, Administrative Code § 14-114(c). As your years in the rank of captain grow, part of your pension can be figured on a deputy inspector's, then an inspector's, then a deputy chief's salary. The 5%, 10% and 15% step above does not apply to captains.
Neither the law nor the Fund's booklets say what portion of the pension uses the higher salary, so our calculator does not include it and its figure for a captain may be low. Ask the Fund for an estimate that reflects your time in rank before you choose a date.
Every rank also has a City-funded annuity fund, separate from the pension. Sergeants are in the SBA Annuity Fund, detectives in the DEA Annuity Fund, and lieutenants and captains share one fund, the Superior Officers Council Annuity Trust Fund. You put nothing in from your pay. It pays out after you retire or leave.
Fund by fund options are in our union annuity guide.
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Related: NYPD pension calculator · longevity enhancement at 25 and 30 years · union annuity funds · terminal leave and the December VSF
Checked against the sources above on October 16, 2026. Figures are illustrations for education only, figured on base pay, and not a pension estimate for any person. Your pension is set by the NYC Police Pension Fund. This page is not investment, tax or legal advice. Sirmium Capital LLC is a New York state-registered investment adviser and is not registered with the SEC. Registration does not imply a certain level of skill or training.