TRS retirement calculator: estimate your Texas teacher pension
Short answer: Your TRS standard annuity is 2.3% × your years of service × your average salary (your highest 3 or 5 years, depending on your tier). It's unreduced at 65 with 5 years, or when your age plus years of service reach 80, with a minimum age of 60 or 62 for members who joined after August 2007.
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How the TRS formula works
TRS of Texas pays a defined-benefit pension. Your standard annual annuity is years of service credit × 2.3% × average salary. Thirty years gives 69% of your average salary for life. Average salary is your highest 5 years for most members, or highest 3 years if you were grandfathered under the 2005 rules.
When your pension is unreduced
| Tier (when you joined) | Unreduced at 65 with 5 years | Rule of 80 minimum age |
|---|---|---|
| Tiers 1-2: before Sept. 2007, 5+ years by Aug. 2014 | Yes | No minimum |
| Tiers 3-4: Sept. 2007 to Aug. 2014, 5+ years by Aug. 2014 | Yes | Age 60 |
| Tiers 5-6: Sept. 2014 or later, or under 5 years by Aug. 2014 | Yes | Age 62 |
Retiring under the minimum age with the Rule of 80 or 30 years reduces the annuity by 5% a year for most members. Retiring at 55 or later without either uses TRS's early-age table, with reductions up to 53%.
Social Security for Texas teachers changed in 2025
Most Texas school districts don't pay into Social Security. The Windfall Elimination Provision and Government Pension Offset used to cut Social Security for teachers with a TRS pension who had Social Security from other work, or through a spouse. The Social Security Fairness Act, signed in January 2025, repealed both for benefits payable from January 2024 on. If you have Social Security credits from other jobs or a spouse's record, your benefit may now be much larger than older estimates showed.
Decisions to make before you retire from TRS
- Which annuity option: life-only, or a reduced amount that continues to a survivor.
- Whether to take a partial lump sum, if eligible.
- How TRS-Care and Medicare fit together at 65.
- How your 403(b) or 457 savings and any Social Security fill the gap between your pension and your spending.
See how your pension fits the whole plan
A TRS annuity is the foundation. The free Retirement Check shows whether it, Social Security and your 403(b) cover the life you want.
Run the free Retirement CheckCommon questions
How is my TRS pension calculated?
Years of service credit × 2.3% × your average salary (highest 5 years, or highest 3 if grandfathered). For example, 30 years with a $70,000 average salary is 69% × $70,000 = $48,300 a year.
What is the Rule of 80 for TRS?
Your age plus years of service credit add up to at least 80. Members who joined before September 2007 (Tiers 1-2) can retire unreduced under it at any age; later members need to be at least 60 or 62.
Do Texas teachers get Social Security?
Most Texas districts don't participate in Social Security. Teachers can still earn it from other jobs or through a spouse, and since the 2025 Social Security Fairness Act, a TRS pension no longer reduces those benefits.
Can I retire early from TRS?
Yes, from 55 with at least 5 years, but the annuity is reduced, by up to 53%, unless you meet the Rule of 80 at the required minimum age.