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How much super do I need to retire in Australia?
How much super should I have?
It’s the number one question members ask, and it’s different for everyone. But we’re here to help you figure out how much super, and other retirement income, you should be aiming for. These handy tools, resources, and benchmarks can help you plan your dream retirement.
How much super will I need to retire?
The amount of super you need to support your retirement will depend on what kind of lifestyle you’re hoping to enjoy, and how much income you’ll be earning in addition to your super savings. Income from the Age Pension, part-time work, and other financial investments will affect the amount of super you need to retire comfortably.
The Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA) provides yearly total income recommendations based on the type of retirement you’re aiming for. Depending on how much income you expect to receive from other sources, you can then estimate how much super you’ll need to reach the “comfortable” or “modest” benchmarks. You can see these in the table below, including how they stack up against the maximum rate of Age Pension.
$54,240 a year
$35,199 a year
$30,646 including supplements
$76,505 a year
$50,866 a year
$46,202 including supplements
ASFA Budgets for various households and living standards for those aged 65-84 (September quarter 2025)
What's the difference between a comfortable and modest retirement in Australia?
A comfortable retirement means you can look forward to a broad range of leisure and recreational activities, with a good standard of living. ASFA guidelines suggest you’ll be able to purchase things like private health insurance, a reasonable car, good clothes, and a range of electronic equipment. You’ll enjoy domestic, and occasionally international, holiday travel.
See the chart below to better understand what sort of services and luxuries you might be able to enjoy, based on your retirement savings.
Upper-tier private health insurance. Specialist visits.
Basic private health insurance, with limited gap payments.
No private health insurance.
Fast, reliable internet. Streaming services.
Basic mobile, computer data usage.
Very basic internet and mobile capability.
Own a good car, with car insurance, and can afford maintenance costs.
Own a cheaper, older car.
Limited budget to own and maintain a car.
Regular leisure activities, including clubs, gym, dance, and movies.
Irregular leisure activities.
Very few leisure activities. Infrequent trips to the cinema.
20 years’ worth of repairs, updates, and maintenance to your home.
Smaller budget for home maintenance.
Could be difficult to afford vital repairs.
Frequent, good quality haircuts.
Low-budget haircuts.
Fewer haircuts, or cutting own hair.
Regular use of air conditioning.
Might have to keep a close eye on heating and cooling costs.
Limited budget for heating and cooling.
Restaurant visits, take-away coffees, home-delivery.
Less restaurant visits, take-away coffees, and home-delivery.
Infrequently dining out, and cheaper take-away.
ASFA Budgets for various households and living standards for those aged 65-84 (September quarter 2025)
Calculate your future retirement wealth
Our retirement calculator helps you estimate how much money you could retire with, and how much you’ll need for the lifestyle you want.
You'll also see the impact of any investments, fees, and super contributions, allowing you to plan towards your financial future with clarity.
Do I need a second income stream in retirement?
This will come down to your personal circumstances, and the kind of lifestyle you’re hoping to enjoy when you retire.
There’s a number of additional streams and strategies you can consider to boost your retirement income. Some of these include:
- Setting up a flexible, tax-free retirement income stream for your super
- Building up your financial investments.
- Topping up your super with salary sacrifice, or a personal super contribution.
- Finding part-time employment.
- Applying for the Age Pension.
How much super should I have at 40, 50, and 60?
Our super balance comparison tool lets you check how your super balance compares with others your age, and what you should be aiming to have today. It can help you understand if you're on track to fund the retirement you want.
Having a good understanding of your own super, and how it compares, is the first step towards a better retirement. Simply enter your age in the tool below to find out how you compare to your peers.
What government benefits could I receive?
When you retire, you might be eligible for government benefits like the Age Pension or a concession card. This will depend on your age, your residency status, and your financial situation.
You might also be eligible for:
- Carer allowance: If you provide daily care to an elderly person or someone with a disability, or a serious illness.
- Rent assistance: To help cover your rent if you’re renting privately.
- Concession card: will be issued automatically if you’re receiving the Age Pension.
- Commonwealth Seniors Health Card: separate from the Pensioner concession card.
Both cards allow you to access cheaper medicines, bulk billing for doctor’s appointments, and reduced out-of-hospital expenses through Medicare.
There may also be additional concessions from state or territory governments, or from local councils and businesses.
We’re here to help you manage your financial future with confidence
At no extra cost for CFS members, our guidance consultants can help you:
- Easily set up a flexible, simple, and tax-free retirement income stream.
- Help you understand and action super boosting strategies.
- Recommend more comprehensive financial advice, if that’s what you need.
Is there more support available?
Planning your financial future can be complex and there's a lot to consider - but we're here to help.
If you’re looking for more tailored and in-depth guidance around your super savings and retirement planning, we’ve got you covered.
As a CFS member, you can book a free session with one of our guidance consultants. Either select time a time that suits you or simply call us on 13 13 36.
Our consultants can check if you’re on track for your dream retirement, explain income streams, and offer general financial advice.
We also have a range of more comprehensive financial advice options, if that’s what you're looking for. Ranging from an ongoing relationship with a financial adviser, to one-off sessions.
Frequently asked questions
Generally, you can access the money in your super when you:
- reach your preservation age and start a transition-to-retirement pension
- reach your preservation age and have permanently retired (except if you start a transition-to-retirement pension), or
- cease a paid work arrangement after reaching age 60 (even if you’re not planning to permanently retire)
- turn 65 (even if you haven’t retired).
Topping up your super with an extra contribution – even if it’s only a small amount – can make a big difference over time. By making super contributions you could potentially pay less tax while growing your super balance faster, thanks to the power of compounding. Just keep in mind that there are limits to how much you can contribute to super each year and an upper age limit of 75 applies to some contribution types.
There are two ways you can add to your super: from your before-tax income or from your after-tax income.
It’s easy to end up with multiple super accounts, especially if you’ve changed jobs a few times. But having all your super in one place can help you save on fees – and make your super easier to manage.
Thankfully, it’s quick and simple to bring your super together.
In addition to reading your regular statements, you can check your super balance, transactions and performance online or in the CFS app:
1. Log into the CFS app. If you don’t have the app yet, you can download it here:
2. You’ll see your current super balance on the dashboard.
3. Choose ‘Investments’ to see your investment summary. You can also view a personalised graph that shows how your balance has changed over time.
1. Log into our online portal with your Member ID (OIN) and password
2. You’ll see your current super balance on the dashboard.
3. Choose ‘Investments’ to see your investment summary.
When an employer makes a contribution on your behalf, or you make a personal contribution that you claim a tax deduction for, it’s taxed at 15% instead of your marginal tax rate.
If you earn $37,000 or less per year, the government may make a contribution to your super account of up to $500 to offset the tax.
If your income and before-tax contributions are more than $250,000 per year, you may have to pay an additional 15% tax on some or all of these contributions.
When you make personal contributions that you don’t claim a tax deduction for, or your spouse makes a contribution for you, contributions tax doesn’t apply. This is because you or your spouse have already paid income tax on that money.
Earnings on your accumulation (pre-retirement) super balance are also concessionally taxed at a maximum of 15%. And if you start an income stream in super after retirement, earnings on that balance are not taxed at all.
Once you can access your super (e.g. at retirement), if you are aged 60 or over you can generally withdraw your super tax-free – either as a lump sum or an ongoing income stream.
What’s next?
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Disclaimer
Avanteos Investments Limited ABN 20 096 259 979, AFSL 245531 (AIL) is the trustee of the Colonial First State FirstChoice Superannuation Trust ABN 26 458 298 557 and issuer of FirstChoice range of super and pension products. Colonial First State Investments Limited ABN 98 002 348 352, AFSL 232468 (CFSIL) is the responsible entity and issuer of products made available under FirstChoice Investments and FirstChoice Wholesale Investments.
Information on this webpage is provided by AIL and CFSIL. It may include general advice but does not consider your individual objectives, financial situation, needs or tax circumstances. You can find the target market determinations (TMD) for our financial products at https://www.cfs.com.au/tmd which include a description of who a financial product might suit. You should read the relevant Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) and Financial Services Guide (FSG) carefully, assess whether the information is appropriate for you, and consider talking to a financial adviser before making an investment decision. You can get the PDS and FSG at www.cfs.com.au or by calling us on 13 13 36.