Most people do not choose between these; their employer does. But if you are consolidating old pots or weighing a transfer, here is how the charges and reviews actually stack up.
Charges verified July 2026. Pension transfers are a big decision; this is information, not advice.
The charge gap between them is small next to whether you're saving enough at all.
See if you're on trackFree to check. No card required. Takes about two minutes.
Savers who value a mutual ethos and ProfitShare top-ups, usually via an employer or adviser.
People with scattered old workplace pots who want them combined into one simple plan.
| Charge | Royal London | PensionBee |
|---|---|---|
| Annual charge | Typically around 0.38% for Governed Portfolios, varying by scheme and pot size | 0.50% to 0.95% depending on plan, halved on the portion above £100k |
| Workplace scheme charge | Set by your employer's scheme, capped at 0.75% for auto-enrolment defaults | Not applicable (personal pension) |
| Fund charges | Included in the plan charge for Governed Portfolios; other funds vary | Included in the single annual charge |
| Contribution charge | None | None |
| Transfers in | Free | Free, and PensionBee does the legwork of finding old pots |
| Drawdown | Included | Included from age 55 (57 from 2028), no drawdown fees |
Royal London consistently scores at or near the top of pension customer satisfaction surveys, and reviewers cite helpful, human service.
Some frustration that plans must be managed through an adviser and the online tools lag app-first rivals.
Read Royal London reviews on TrustpilotThe highest-rated pension provider on the Origo Pension Transfer Index. Reviewers repeatedly mention painless transfers and an app that finally makes their pension make sense.
The main pushback is price: 0.70% on the default plan is more than a DIY SIPP holding a cheap tracker.
Read PensionBee reviews on TrustpilotRoyal London is the UK's largest mutual insurer, and its pension proposition leans on that structure: no shareholders, and a ProfitShare scheme that has added a top-up to members' pots in most years. Service satisfaction scores are consistently among the best in the market.
The catch for DIY savers is access. Royal London pensions come through employers and advisers rather than direct, so if you want a self-serve pension you set up in an app tonight, look at PensionBee or a SIPP platform instead.
PensionBee took the most painful job in UK personal finance, finding and combining old pensions, and made it an app onboarding flow. Transfers are handled for you, the fee is a single number, and drawdown is built in.
You pay for that simplicity. The default Global Leaders plan at 0.70% is roughly triple the cost of holding a global tracker in a cheap SIPP. Whether that premium is worth it depends on whether you would actually do the consolidation yourself. For many people, the answer is no, and PensionBee is the difference between sorted and never done.
A small charge difference is worth optimising. Knowing whether you are saving enough in the first place is worth far more. Delphina models your pensions, ISAs and investments and tells you where you actually stand.
Free to check. No card required. Takes about two minutes.