Washington TRS Plan 2 vs Plan 3: Which Can Teachers Choose in 2026?

Start with your hire date and the DRS clock

The choice is for eligible new members of Washington’s Teachers’ Retirement System, including public school employees who are certified to teach and work in an instructional, administrative, or supervisory capacity. A new member has 90 days to choose. If the election is not made during that window, the default is Plan 2. Confirm the date DRS uses to start your window; an employer’s onboarding date and the date your choice materials arrive may not tell the whole story.

Plan 1 is not the new-hire alternative. DRS describes Plan 1 as closed to new members. The current decision described on its choice page is Plan 2 versus Plan 3. In certain cases, an existing Plan 2 member has a later January transfer opportunity to Plan 3, but that is a separate rule and should not be confused with the new-member election period. Check whether earlier service or membership in another DRS system changes your status.

• Ask payroll or HR for your DRS-reported membership date.
• Write down the 90-day choice deadline and submit early enough to confirm receipt.
• If you have previous Washington public service, ask DRS whether it changes your plan eligibility.

The plans share a pension promise, but the math differs

Both plans provide a defined-benefit pension for life, calculated from service credit and average final compensation (AFC). The formula is a starting estimate, not necessarily the exact check you will receive. Retirement age, survivor option, eligibility, and your verified service record affect the amount. Under Plan 2, the pension formula is 2% times service credit years times AFC. Under Plan 3, the pension formula is 1% times service credit years times AFC; the employer funds that pension portion.

Plan 3 then adds an account that belongs to your individual retirement arrangement. You select a contribution rate or rate option from the choices DRS makes available and choose investments or an offered default. Your eventual account balance depends on contributions, investment gains and losses, fees, and the way you take money out. Plan 2 has no member-directed investment account; the guaranteed monthly pension is not calculated from your account’s market performance. A larger formula percentage in Plan 2 does not settle the comparison by itself because contributions and the Plan 3 account matter too.

What a plain 30-year illustration can and cannot tell you

Here is a hand calculation that isolates the pension formula. Assume 30 years of credited service and an annualized AFC of $70,000. First convert the annual salary figure to monthly AFC: $70,000 ÷ 12 = $5,833.33. Plan 2 gives 2% × 30 × $5,833.33 = $3,500 a month, or $42,000 annualized before taxes and survivor-option adjustments. Plan 3 gives 1% × 30 × $5,833.33 = $1,750 a month, or $21,000 annualized. This is not a forecast of a member benefit or eligibility date.

The calculation deliberately leaves the Plan 3 investment account out. Its balance cannot be computed from the pension formula. We would need the actual contribution rate and pay history, timing of deposits, investment choices and returns, fees, and withdrawal method. Do not add an assumed investment return and present it as a promise. Ask DRS for a side-by-side estimate and, for Plan 3, use the official account projection with assumptions you can inspect.

Contributions change the feel of each paycheck

Plan 2 members contribute a percentage of pay toward the pension. The Plan 2 rate can change as plan funding needs change, so a rate copied from an older article or a coworker’s pay stub can be stale. The DRS choice page currently lists a teacher rate of 7.54% effective September 1, 2025. Treat that as a dated figure and check the contribution-rate page and your own payroll deduction when you enroll.

In Plan 3, the employer contribution pays for the pension portion, while the teacher directs contributions into the investment account. Current listed options range from 5% to 15% of pay; once chosen, the rate is locked unless you change employers. You can change investment options separately. This means a Plan 3 member needs to understand both a paycheck deduction and the investment menu. Plan 2 is less hands-on, but its employee rate can move as funding needs change. Neither description tells you the net cost after taxes or other payroll deductions.

Leaving work early changes the comparison

For Plan 2, DRS describes an unreduced pension at age 65 with at least five service-credit years. An actuarially reduced pension can be available from age 55 with 20 years. Plan 3 has a different early route: an actuarially reduced pension can be available at age 55 with 10 years, while its investment account has separate access rules after leaving employment. These are threshold summaries, not a personalized retirement date. Service credit is earned under system rules, not simply by counting calendar years at a school.

Vesting also differs. Plan 2 pension rights vest after five years. Plan 3’s pension vesting rule is 10 years, or five years if at least 12 months of service were earned after age 44. The Plan 3 investment account does not use that pension vesting rule; DRS says it may be accessed after leaving employment. If you may change careers, compare what follows you, what remains in the system, and any tax consequences before treating account access as a benefit.

Which profile may prefer which structure?

Plan 2 may suit a teacher who values a larger formula pension and a predictable lifetime payment, expects to qualify under its service rules, and prefers not to manage a separate account. That is a description of plan characteristics, not an individualized recommendation. The contribution percentage can change, and a future benefit estimate still depends on actual service and salary history.

Plan 3 may suit someone who wants both lifetime pension income and a member-directed investment account, values portability of that account after leaving covered work, and is willing to make and maintain investment choices. A short career can make the account more central, but investment losses are possible and the smaller pension formula remains. If you want to compare an investment account with a guaranteed formula benefit, ask DRS to show a range of account outcomes instead of relying on one return assumption.

Get an estimate before you lock in a decision

A plan page cannot know your final service credit, future pay, retirement date, beneficiary choice, or how long you will remain in Washington public employment. It cannot know future contribution rates or investment returns either. These unknowns can change the result substantially. Get an official estimate from DRS using your actual member record, then ask what assumptions it uses and how the estimates change at more than one retirement date.

If the 90-day window is still open, make a decision calendar reminder and save confirmation of your election. If the deadline passed, ask DRS to confirm which plan is on record and whether any separate transfer rule applies. Do not assume a Plan 2-to-Plan 3 transfer option is open at all times. A plan election affects future benefits; it is worth asking the system to resolve any service-history question before the election becomes final.

The DRS Plan 2 and Plan 3 pages were checked in October 2026. Contribution rates and membership rules can be revised, so revisit those official pages immediately before making an election. DRS can also confirm whether a leave of absence, part-time school schedule, refund, or return to public service changed the service credit shown in your record.

Retiree health coverage is separate from the pension calculation. DRS says teachers with PEBB or SEBB coverage may qualify for retiree coverage, but members must elect it within 60 days of termination. The Health Care Authority manages that coverage, so ask your employer which rules apply. Add that separate deadline to your calendar; it is not the same as the 90-day new-hire plan election.

• Confirm your DRS membership and plan-choice deadline.
• Request official estimates for Plan 2 and Plan 3 using the same retirement dates.
• Ask for Plan 3 account projections at more than one return assumption.
• Check current payroll rates and write down what the estimate excludes.
• Confirm vesting and beneficiary rules for your situation.