Blended Retirement System vs Legacy High-3, 2026
Source: Thrift Savings Plan, contribution limits page at TSP.gov, for the government contribution figure. Verified by Avidity Capital on 2026-06-23. The verification on file used a licensed reference document, which is not republished here.
Service members are under one of two retirement systems. Which one depends on when you entered service and, for some, an election made during a one-time window. The two systems pay for retirement in different ways, and the difference matters most for the majority who do not serve a full career. This page explains the rules in plain words. The only figure on it is the government TSP contribution, taken from the verified dataset.
Rules source: Military Compensation, Blended Retirement System, Department of Defense. The multipliers, vesting period and continuation pay terms are published there and are not restated on this page.
Who is in which system
Members whose date of initial entry into military service falls on or after the start of the Blended Retirement System are in BRS automatically.
Members who entered before that date were offered a one-time choice during an election window. Those who opted in are in BRS. Those who did not are in Legacy High-3.
The election window has closed. If you are unsure which system you are under, your myPay account shows it, and your command's finance office can confirm it.
The pension
Both systems pay a monthly pension for life to members who reach retirement eligibility. Both base it on the average of your highest three years of basic pay, which is where the name High-3 comes from, multiplied by your years of service and a percentage per year.
Legacy High-3 uses a higher percentage per year. BRS uses a lower one. For a member who serves a full career, Legacy therefore pays a larger pension per year of service.
The current multipliers are published by the Department of Defense at the rules source linked at the top of this page. They are not restated here.
The TSP contribution, the part Legacy does not have
Under BRS the government contributes to your Thrift Savings Plan account. Part of that contribution is automatic and arrives whether or not you contribute. The rest is a match on what you contribute yourself, up to a cap.
Together the automatic and matching contributions reach up to 5% of your basic pay. That figure applies to members under BRS.
Under Legacy High-3 there is no government contribution. You can contribute to the TSP on your own, but nothing is added to it.
The two parts vest differently. The automatic contribution becomes yours after a period of service set by the Department of Defense. The matching contributions are yours as soon as they are made. Once vested, the money stays yours even if you leave before retirement eligibility.
Continuation pay
BRS members who reach a mid-career point are offered a one-time cash payment in exchange for a further service commitment. The timing and the amount are set by each service and published by the Department of Defense at the rules source. Legacy High-3 has no continuation pay.
If you leave before retirement eligibility
Under Legacy High-3, a member who separates before reaching retirement eligibility receives no pension and no government contribution of any kind. The retirement benefit is all or nothing.
Under BRS, the same member receives no pension either, but keeps the matching contributions, the automatic contribution if it has vested, their own contributions, and the growth on all of it.
Most service members do not serve to retirement eligibility. That is the reason BRS exists, and it is the single fact that matters most when you compare the two systems.
Which is better
For a member certain to serve a full career, Legacy pays a larger pension and BRS pays a smaller pension plus a TSP balance built from years of government contributions. Which comes out ahead depends on how much you contribute, how long the money grows and what it earns, so there is no general answer and this page does not give one.
For a member who may leave early, BRS leaves them with something and Legacy leaves them with nothing.
The reality-check asks which system you are under and models that system with your own years of service, basic pay and contribution rate.
How this is used in your plan
The app asks which system you are under rather than guessing from your entry date, because the opt-in election cannot be inferred.
For BRS members the app shows whether the TSP percentage you enter, or the one read from your uploaded LES, collects the full government contribution for your years of service.
The app projects your pension and TSP at the separation year you enter, and shows no pension if that year comes before retirement eligibility.
Questions people ask
Can I still opt into BRS?
No. The election window has closed. Members who entered before BRS began and did not opt in remain under Legacy High-3.
Do I get the government TSP contribution under Legacy?
No. The government contribution is a BRS feature. Under Legacy you may contribute to the TSP on your own, with no match.
What happens to the government contributions if I separate early?
The matching contributions are yours from the day they are made. The automatic contribution is yours once you have completed the period of service the Department of Defense sets for it. Either way, what is vested stays yours: you can leave it in the TSP, roll it to an IRA, or roll it to a new employer's plan.
Where are the multipliers and the continuation pay rules published?
By the Department of Defense at the rules source linked at the top of this page. They are not restated here because they are not in the firm's verified dataset.
See these numbers with your own rank and situation
The free reality-check asks which system you are under and models it with your own years of service, basic pay and TSP contribution rate. No account. No card.
Run the free reality-checkThis page is educational and is not investment, tax or legal advice. Figures are published by the source named above and may change; verify the current figure with that source before acting on it. Avidity Capital Inc. is not affiliated with NAS Lemoore, the United States Navy or the Department of Defense. Avidity Capital Inc. is a registered investment adviser. Read the firm's Form CRS and Form ADV Part 2A.