This article compares the link at individual level between pensions and earned income in the main OECD countries. The rules of the pension systems in the countries studied may create a very strong connection between career-long earnings and pensions. However, in most of the countries, some pension-calculation procedures may loosen the link in one of two ways: (1) via the calculation parameters (rules for determining the reference wage and for measuring the contribution length); (2) via provisions to offset the impact of some career hazards (e.g. unemployment, disability, and child-raising) on pension benefits. Ultimately, the statistical approach needs to be supplemented with an examination of pension-calculation parameters and of pension-credit provisions in order to obtain a more refined assessment of the link between pensions and career-long earnings in each country. Because of their specific features, however, the comparison of national pension systems remains a delicate exercise.