You could get £351,000 more in your pension pot if you're a DINK: Here's how to translate the money you save into a much richer retirement

Couples without children could boost their retirement pot by hundreds of thousands of pounds if they diverted the cost of raising a child into their pension, new number-crunching has revealed. Pension firm Standard Life has said that doing so could give them an extra £351,000, based on its calculations. Research by Child Poverty Action Group last year estimated that it costs approximately £250,000 for a couple to raise a child until the age of 18. Spread evenly across 18 years, this equates to £13,900 a year.According to Standard Life, if an adult contributed an additional £13,900 to their pension each year for 18 years from the age of 30, they could build a pension pot worth around £603,000 by the age of 68. This is about £351,000 more than someone who also started saving in a pension at the age of 22 on a salary of £30,000 a year and contributed only the minimum auto-enrolment amount for their entire career. Look ahead: Some couples without children could build up a substantial pension potThese equate to a five per cent contribution from the employee and a contribution of three per cent from the employer.Even contributing half of £13,900, so £6,950 a year, could make a significant difference to people's retirement pots, Standard Life said. Standard Life calculations show this could add £175,500 to a retirement fund, resulting in a total savings pot of approximately £428,000 by age 68, allowing for inflation.Emma Furlonger, managing director for workplace pensions at Standard Life, said: 'For people without child-related costs, there may be periods when there is a little more flexibility in the household budget. 'It might not be realistic to put the full equivalent cost of raising a child into their pension every year, but these figures show just how powerful additional saving can be when you give it time to grow.' Pension calculator: When can you afford to retire? When can you afford to retire and how much do you need to get the lifestyle you want? This is Money's pension calculator, powered by Jarvis, uses benchmark Pensions UK Retirement Living Standards amounts to help you work out what your retirement could look like - and what you need to save. > Pension calculator: Work out whether you are on track How parents can boost their pots, too... Those with children might also find times in their life when it makes sense to pay more into their pension. Furlonger adds: 'It doesn’t have to be all or nothing either. Whether you have children or not, putting a bit more away when you can, perhaps after a pay rise, once a debt has been cleared or simply at a point when you have more disposable income, can make a meaningful difference over the course of your working life, helping to build greater financial security in later life. 'The key is finding a balance that lets you enjoy your money today while making sure some of it is working for your future too.'This is Money's guide explains how to top up your pension for a richer retirement. Recent research from pension consolidation service PensionBee showed that many people are far from optimistic about their pension prospects. People aged in their late 40s and 50s are the most gloomy about retirement with one in ten admitting they are unable to imagine life after work. Around half say they did not seriously consider their pensions until well into their 40s, and feel they left retirement planning too late.The 'Generation X' age group, aged 45-60, is considered the most likely to be under-saving for old age, according to PensionBee which carried out the research.'Gen X have been squeezed from every angle,' said vice president for personal finance Maike Currie. 'They came of age as final salary pensions were disappearing, meanwhile auto-enrolment arrived later in their careers.'They have weathered repeated economic shocks while many have found themselves sandwiched between supporting children and caring for ageing parents. 'It's no surprise their own retirement has sometimes slipped down the priority list.' Among those who felt they had left it too late, 40 per cent said they could not afford to pay attention to their pension sooner, and 18 per cent didn't know where to start. SIPPS: INVEST TO BUILD YOUR PENSIONAJ BellAJ Bell0.25% account fee. Full range of investmentsHargreaves LansdownHargreaves LansdownFree fund dealing, 40% off account feesInteractive InvestorInteractive InvestorFrom £5.99 per month, £100 of free tradesInvestEngineInvestEngineFee-free ETF investing, £100 welcome bonusProsperProsperNo account fee and 30 ETF fees refundedAffiliate links: If you take out a product This is Money may earn a commission. These deals are chosen by our editorial team, as we think they are worth highlighting. This does not affect our editorial independence.Compare the best Sipp for you: Our full reviews