Credit: Juliane Sonntag / Getty ImagesKey TakeawaysFederal pension estimates may leave out salary changes, service credits, survivor elections, and FERS COLA limits. Relying on an incomplete estimate could lead workers to save too little, retire too soon, or misjudge their after-tax retirement income. Modeling several retirement dates and coordinating pension, Social Security, and TSP income can produce a more realistic projection. Many federal employees rely on their official pension estimate when planning for retirement. What Standard Pension Estimates Leave OutOfficial pension projections rely on assumptions about future pay and employment that may not match how a federal career actually unfolds.