How Much Do I Need to Retire in Australia?
GENERAL ADVICE DISCLAIMER: The information on this page is general in nature and does not take into account your personal financial situation, objectives, or needs. It does not constitute personal financial advice. Before acting on any information, consider its appropriateness to your circumstances and seek advice from a qualified financial adviser.
There is no single right answer to how much you need to retire. The number depends on the lifestyle you want, how long you expect to be retired, whether you own your home, and what your superannuation may earn while you draw it down. This page gives you a starting point with our free retirement calculator, then walks through the key variables that can move your number significantly.
Work Out Your Retirement Number
Use the calculator below to estimate how much super you may need at retirement, and what your balance may need to be today to get there.
How Much Will I Need in Super at Retirement?
Enter your lifestyle cost and retirement timeline to get your number.
Estimated return your super may earn while being drawn down in pension phase.
Discounts your Step 1 target back to what you may need in super today, assuming no further contributions.
The gap between where you are and where you need to be is exactly what a strategy conversation is for. Jeremy Douglas CFP® models salary sacrifice, TTR, spouse contributions, and catch-up strategies for clients with 5 to 20 years to retirement.
Book a Discovery MeetingWhat Determines How Much You Need to Retire?
The benchmarks published by the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA) provide a useful starting point, but they are built on broad assumptions. Several variables can move your retirement number significantly in either direction.
The ASFA Retirement Benchmarks (2026 Update)
ASFA updated its lump sum figures in February 2026 for the first time in three years. These figures apply to Australians aged 67 who own their home outright, are in reasonable health, and receive a part Age Pension.
| Lifestyle | Single (per year) | Couple (per year) | Lump Sum (Single) | Lump Sum (Couple) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Modest | ~$35,503 | ~$51,299 | ~$110,000 | ~$120,000 |
| Comfortable | ~$54,840 | ~$77,375 | ~$630,000 | ~$730,000 |
Source: ASFA Retirement Standard, February 2026 update. Assumes home ownership, retirement at age 67, and part Age Pension eligibility. These are benchmarks only and may not reflect your individual situation.
*Source: ASFA Retirement Standard, February 2026 update. Assumes home ownership, retirement at age 67, and part Age Pension eligibility. These are benchmarks only and may not reflect your individual situation.
Key Factors That Can Move Your Number
Retirement age. Retiring at 60 rather than 67 adds up to seven years of self-funded expenses before Age Pension eligibility may apply. Those years need to be funded entirely from your own savings.
Home ownership. ASFA's benchmarks assume you own your home outright. If you are renting or carrying mortgage debt into retirement, the required super balance can be considerably higher.
Life expectancy. According to AIHW data, men aged 65 can generally expect to live to around 85, and women to around 87. Many Australians will be in retirement for 20 to 25 years or more. That duration has a significant impact on how much super you need.
Age Pension eligibility. Depending on your assets and income at retirement, you may be eligible for a full or part Age Pension from age 67. Services Australia sets the eligibility thresholds. For high-income earners and those with substantial portfolios, Age Pension eligibility is often limited or nil.
Investment returns in pension phase. The rate your super earns while you draw it down directly determines how far your balance stretches. A lower return rate requires a larger starting balance to fund the same annual income.
Lifestyle costs. The ASFA gap between modest and comfortable retirement is around $19,000 per year in annual spending for a single person, but over $500,000 in required super balance. Small differences in lifestyle expectations can mean large differences in what you need.
If Your Number Looks Short, There Are Strategies That May Help
For professionals and high-income earners, the superannuation system offers several levers that may materially improve your retirement position. Which strategies are appropriate depends on your individual circumstances, balance, and years to retirement.
Transition to Retirement (TTR)
For Australians who have reached preservation age (60) and are still in the workforce, a Transition to Retirement strategy may allow salary sacrifice contributions into super at 15% tax, while drawing a tax-free pension to maintain take-home pay.
Over a 5 to 10 year period, this can potentially add significant additional super without changing your lifestyle. Eligibility conditions and suitability vary. Learn more about how TTR works at Summit FP.
Concessional Contribution Catch-Up
If your total super balance is below $500,000 and you have unused concessional contributions cap space from the previous five financial years, you may be able to contribute more than the standard annual cap in a single year. The current concessional cap is $30,000 (2025/26), rising to $32,500 from 1 July 2026. Carry-forward amounts may allow substantially higher contributions, subject to eligibility.
Non-Concessional Contributions
After-tax contributions of up to $120,000 per year (2025/26) (or up to $360,000 over three years under the bring-forward rule, for eligible individuals) can help grow your super balance. These are made from post-tax income and are generally not taxed again on withdrawal after age 60.
The non-concessional cap rises to $130,000 from 1 July 2026, with a bring-forward amount of $390,000 from 1 July 2026. Refer to the ATO non-concessional contributions page for current caps and eligibility conditions.
Estate Planning and Succession
How your super is structured and who it goes to can significantly affect how much of your retirement savings transfers to the people you intend. Superannuation death benefit tax, binding nominations, and the interaction with your estate are all areas where specialist advice may be warranted, particularly for those with balances approaching or exceeding the Transfer Balance Cap.
The Transfer Balance Cap is $2 million for 2025-26, rising to $2.1 million from 1 July 2026. Learn more about estate planning and superannuation succession at Summit FP.
Why Standard Benchmarks May Not Apply to You
ASFA's comfortable retirement figure targets annual spending of around $54,840 for a single person. For executives, medical professionals, and business owners accustomed to household incomes well above $200,000, that figure represents a substantial reduction in lifestyle.
Maintaining anything close to your current living standard typically requires a considerably larger super balance, other investments outside super, or a combination of strategies implemented over your remaining working years.
the Division 296 tax -- which imposes an additional 15% tax on superannuation earnings (including unrealised gains) for balances above $3 million -- commences 1 July 2026 and changes the effective tax rate inside super for some Australians. It may affect how super interacts with other investment structures in retirement, and is relevant to retirement planning at higher balance levels.
Jeremy Douglas CFP® works with professionals and high-income earners to model retirement scenarios that reflect their actual circumstances, not generic benchmarks.
When You Start Matters as Much as How Much You Save
The single most powerful variable in retirement planning is time. For a 50-year-old professional with 15 years to retirement, the difference between an optimised strategy starting now and the status quo can be hundreds of thousands of dollars by retirement age.
Strategies like salary sacrifice, TTR, and catch-up contributions compound over time. A $15,000 annual tax saving reinvested into super for 15 years at a 7% return may generate in excess of $370,000 in additional retirement savings, on top of the underlying contributions themselves.
The more useful question is not just "how much do I need?" but "what is the most tax-effective path to get there?" That is a question best worked through with a qualified adviser who can model your specific numbers.
Taking the Next Step: How Summit Financial Planning Can Help
If you're considering analysing your personal cirumstances, the first step is a strategy session to assess your retirement objectives.
We'll assess your super balance, investment goals, and personal circumstances to create the right plan for you.
Book a consultation to explore your options.
At Summit Financial Planning, we excel in precise financial management tailored to your needs. Contact us today for expert assistance.
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