How do I add a defined benefit pension to PortfolioPilot?
A defined benefit (DB) pension pays a fixed income in retirement based on your salary and years of service — unlike a 401(k), there isn't an account balance you look up. PortfolioPilot has two ways to model it:
Option 1 (recommended) — Add the pension as an asset with its income stream.
Open Net Worth → "Add an asset" → Other assets → Pension. When adding the pension asset, you can set the income on a monthly or yearly basis — the planner handles either input correctly and feeds the income stream into your retirement projection automatically. Some common methods for the asset value include your pension administrator's commuted value or other actuarial estimates from the plan documents.
Option 2 (fallback) — Add as retirement income in the planner.
Open Retirement planner → Money in & out tab and enter the amount in the "Pension or other retirement income" field. Use this if your DBP behaves as anything other than a regular income at retirement (lump-sum payout, irregular schedule, or any structure that doesn't fit a normal monthly/yearly pension flow).
