CalSTRS is the largest teacher pension fund in the United States, covering roughly 950,000 active and retired California educators. The formula, the tier you're in, and the DB Supplement account all affect your final retirement income. Here's what you need to know.
The CalSTRS benefit formula
Your CalSTRS defined benefit is: age factor x years of service credit x final compensation.
The age factor is the percentage per year of service that you earn, and it varies by your tier and your age at retirement. For most members, it ranges from 2.0% to 2.4%.
Final compensation is the average of your highest-paid 12 consecutive months for Tier 1 members, or the highest 36 consecutive months for members under CalSTRS 2% at 62 (Tier 2).
Tier 1 vs. CalSTRS 2% at 62
If you were hired before January 1, 2013, you're in Tier 1. Your standard age factor is 2.0% at age 60, stepping up to 2.4% if you retire at age 63 or later with at least 20 years of service. You can retire as early as age 55 with 5 years of service, but with a reduced factor.
If you were hired on or after January 1, 2013, you're under the CalSTRS 2% at 62 formula (part of the Public Employees' Pension Reform Act, known as PEPRA). Your standard age factor is 2.0% at age 62. The maximum factor of 2.4% applies if you retire at age 65 with at least 30 years of service. Your final compensation is calculated using a 3-year average rather than 1 year. Early retirement begins at age 55, with reduced factors.
The 2013 reform reduced benefits for new hires in exchange for more sustainable plan funding. If you were grandfathered into Tier 1 and retire at 63 with 30 years, your multiplier is the same as a new hire at 65 with 30 years. The practical difference is mostly in the final compensation averaging period and the retirement age for full benefits.
The Defined Benefit Supplement
CalSTRS has a second component called the Defined Benefit Supplement, or DB Supplement. It's a separate account, not a separate pension.
The DB Supplement is funded by member contributions above the normal DB contribution level plus a share of excess investment earnings credited by CalSTRS in strong market years. Your DB Supplement balance grows in your account over your career.
At retirement, you can take the DB Supplement balance as additional monthly income added to your main pension, as a partial lump sum, or as a combination of both. Unlike the main CalSTRS pension, the DB Supplement balance is yours in a more direct sense: if you die before exhausting it, remaining funds can pass to beneficiaries.
Log into your myCalSTRS account to see your current DB Supplement balance. For most career teachers, it's a meaningful amount, often $30,000 to $100,000 or more.
No Social Security for most California teachers
Most California public school teachers don't pay into Social Security and don't earn SS credits from their teaching work. If you worked in Social Security-covered employment before or after teaching, those benefits were previously subject to the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and the Government Pension Offset (GPO).
Both the WEP and GPO were fully repealed effective January 2025 under the Social Security Fairness Act. If either provision previously reduced your Social Security benefit, you should now receive your full earned amount plus retroactive payments back to January 2025. Use the WEP calculator to estimate how much you're owed.
CalSTRS funding status
CalSTRS had a funded ratio of approximately 72% as of 2025. That sounds low, and it is below the 80% threshold most plan analysts consider healthy. But California law guarantees accrued pension benefits. They cannot be reduced retroactively, even if the fund is underfunded.
Since the 2014 funding reform, the state, school districts, and members have all increased their contribution rates significantly. CalSTRS is on a statutory funding path that projects full funding by 2046. Benefits for current and future retirees are protected by state constitutional and statutory guarantees.
How to estimate your CalSTRS benefit
The most accurate way is to log into your myCalSTRS account at mycalstrs.com. The site has a benefit estimate calculator that uses your actual service credit, compensation history, and DB Supplement balance. It lets you model different retirement ages and final compensation scenarios.
As a quick estimate: multiply your age factor (2.0% to 2.4%) by your years of service by your final compensation. A Tier 1 teacher retiring at 63 with 32 years of service and a $85,000 final compensation earns: 0.024 x 32 x $85,000 = $65,280/year, or $5,440/month before any survivor benefit election.
Full plan details and state-specific information at the California state pension page. For private-sector pension lump sum math, use the main PensionMath calculator.