Short answer: Plan 1 is for members who joined before October 1, 1977. Later members are in Plan 2 or Plan 3. Plans 1 and 2 pay 2% × years × AFC; Plan 3 pays 1% plus your own investment account. See the formula, Plan 3's account and early retirement. The calculator works out your plan from the date you joined.
Find your plan
| You first joined Washington TRS | Your plan |
|---|---|
| Before Oct. 1, 1977 | Plan 1 (closed to new members) |
| Oct. 1, 1977 - June 30, 1996 | Plan 2, unless you moved to Plan 3 |
| July 1, 1996 - June 30, 2007 | Plan 3 |
| July 1, 2007 - June 30, 2020 | Your choice within 90 days. No choice: Plan 3 |
| July 1, 2020 or later | Your choice within 90 days. No choice: Plan 2 |
The three plans side by side
| Plan 1 | Plan 2 | Plan 3 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pension formula | 2% × years × AFC, at most 60% of AFC | 2% × years × AFC | 1% × years × AFC, plus your investment account |
| AFC (average pay) | 2 highest-paid fiscal years in a row | Highest 60 months in a row | |
| Vested after | 5 years | 5 years | 10 years, or 5 with 12 months after age 44 |
| Full pension | Any age with 30 years; 55 with 25; 60 with 5 | 65 with 5 years | 65 once vested |
| Earliest, reduced | None: no early reduction | 55 with 20 years | 55 with 10 years |
| Early factor, under 30 years | — | Actuarial table: ×0.4092 at 55, ×0.6292 at 60 (2026) | |
| Early factor, 30+ years | — | Hired before May 1, 2013: 2008 factor (20% off at 55, none from 62) or 3% a year. Hired later: 5% a year before 65 | |
| COLA | Only the Optional COLA, chosen at retirement | Automatic each July, up to 3% a year | |
| You contribute | 6% of pay | 7.54% of pay (from Sept. 1, 2025) | 5% to 15% of pay, all to your investment account |
DRS's Plan 1 page says a benefit at 55 "could be reduced depending on your total years of service." The law and DRS's own rule say Plan 1 has no early-retirement reduction.
What we use: no reduction for Plan 1, as the law says.
One teacher, three plans
DRS's plan pages use an average final compensation of $5,400 a month. Here's what that teacher's pension would be in each plan, starting July 1, 2026. Plan 1 closed in 1977, so its members are now in their late 60s or older; the column shows how its rules compare.
| Start at | Plan 1 | Plan 2 | Plan 3 pension |
|---|---|---|---|
| Age 65, 23 years | $2,484 | $2,484 | $1,242 |
| Age 60, 23 years Plans 2 and 3: fewer than 30 years: the actuarial factor | $2,484 | $1,562.93 × 0.6292 | $781.47 × 0.6292 |
| Age 55, 30 years Plans 2 and 3: 30 years: the 2008 factor (hired before May 1, 2013) | $3,240 | $2,592 × 0.8 | $1,296 × 0.8 |
Monthly, single-life amounts (Plan 1 Maximum Option, Plans 2-3 Option 1). The Plan 3 column leaves out the investment account. The age 65 row is DRS's own example: $2,484 in Plans 1 and 2, $1,242 in Plan 3. DRS Washington TRS Plan 1 page, Your income: Example; DRS Washington TRS Plan 3 page, Your income: Example
Plan 3 is a pension plus an account
Plan 3's pension is half of Plan 2's, because your employer pays for it alone. Everything you contribute goes into your own investment account instead. Rate options:
- Option A: 5% all ages
- Option B: 5% up to age 35, 6% ages 35 through 44, 7.5% ages 45 and older
- Option C: 6% up to age 35, 7.5% ages 35 through 44, 8.5% ages 45 and older
- Option D: 7% all ages
- Option E: 10% all ages
- Option F: 15% all ages
You pick the rate when you start (Option A if you don't), and can change it only when you change Plan 3 employers. The account's value depends on your contributions and how the investments do, so we don't estimate it. How the account works DRS Washington TRS Plan 3 page, Washington TRS Plan 3 intro and Member contribution rate options; What if you separate before retirement?; RCW 41.32.831(2)
What the sources say
- Washington's Teachers' Retirement System (Washington TRS) has three plans: Plan 1, Plan 2 and Plan 3. The Department of Retirement Systems (DRS) runs them.DRS TRS23RAPP 11/2022, p. 1, Washington TRS Plan 2 or 3 application; RCW 41.32.005
- Plan 1 covers teachers who first became members before Oct. 1, 1977. It's closed to new members, but a Plan 1 member who withdraws and later returns to an eligible teaching position rejoins Plan 1.RCW 41.32.010(31); DRS Washington TRS Plan 1 page, Plan eligibility
- Teachers who first joined from Oct. 1, 1977 through June 30, 1996 are in Plan 2 unless they transferred to Plan 3. Plan 2 members who began service before July 1, 2007 can make a permanent transfer to Plan 3 each January.RCW 41.32.010(32), 41.32.817(3); DRS Washington TRS Plan 2 page, Transferring to Washington TRS Plan 3
- Teachers first employed on or after July 1, 2007 have 90 days to choose Plan 2 or Plan 3, and the choice is permanent. Without a choice you're placed in Plan 3 if first employed before July 1, 2020, or in Plan 2 if first employed on or after July 1, 2020.RCW 41.32.835(1)
- Plan 3 has two parts: a pension your employer pays for and an investment account you pay into. You contribute 5% to 15% of your pay to the investment account, at a rate option you pick when you start. The default is Option A, 5%.DRS Washington TRS Plan 3 page, Washington TRS Plan 3 intro and Member contribution rate options
- Member contribution rates: Plan 1 is 6%, fixed in statute. Plan 2 is 7.54% (from Sept. 1, 2025). In Plan 3 you choose 5% to 15% for your investment account, and your employer funds the pension.DRS Contribution Rates page; DRS Washington TRS Plan 2 page, Your contributions; DRS Washington TRS Plan 3 page
Questions
How do I know which plan I'm in?
Your DRS online account and annual statement say. Plan 1 is for members who first joined before Oct. 1, 1977. Everyone after is in Plan 2 or Plan 3.
Can I switch plans?
Plan 2 members who began service before July 1, 2007 can make a one-time, permanent move to Plan 3 in January. Teachers hired on or after July 1, 2007 made a permanent choice within 90 days.
Which plan pays more?
Plan 2's pension is twice Plan 3's for the same years and pay (2% vs. 1%). But Plan 3 adds your own investment account, which Plan 2 doesn't have. Which comes out ahead depends on your contributions and investment returns.
Is Plan 1 still open?
No. It closed to new members in 1977. A Plan 1 member who withdrew and later returns to teaching rejoins Plan 1.
Source: DRS plan pages for Washington TRS Plan 1, Plan 2 and Plan 3 (the DRS member handbook is now published as these web pages), retrieved Nov. 11, 2026, DRS plan pages (Plan 1, Plan 2, Plan 3); DRS COLA page; DRS Contribution Rates page; TRS23RAPP (11/2022) pp. 1, 14; TRS1RAPP (11/2022) p. 3; DRS administrative factors 2026; RCW 41.32.005, 41.32.010, 41.32.470, 41.32.498, 41.32.530, 41.32.760, 41.32.770, 41.32.817, 41.32.831, 41.32.835, 41.32.840, 41.32.845, 41.32.875; DRS newly vested checklist (08/2026). Last reviewed .