Retirement Calculator Australia
Will your super be enough? ASFA's comfortable standard costs $55,923 a year for a single homeowner — a lump sum of about $630,000 at 67 (March quarter 2026).
A free superannuation retirement calculator for 2026-27: project your super balance at retirement with the 12% super guarantee, compare it in today's dollars with the ASFA Retirement Standard, see the income it could sustain to age 95, and find the age the money runs out at your chosen drawdown. Estimates only — not financial advice.
ASFA Retirement Standard, March quarter 2026, homeowners aged 65–84. Estimates only — not financial advice.
📐 How it worksWhat this retirement calculator projects, and the assumptions behind it
The projection, year by year
Each year until your retirement age, the calculator adds your employer's 12% super guarantee and any salary sacrifice, deducts 15% contributions tax on those concessional contributions, deducts fees and insurance, then applies the investment return to the balance. Your salary grows at the wage-growth rate, so contributions rise over your career. It's the same engine and the same default assumptions as our Super Growth calculator.
| Assumption | Default | Editable at |
|---|---|---|
| Super guarantee | 12% of salary | Fixed (statutory rate) |
| Investment return, before fees | 7.5% p.a. | Standard |
| Investment fee | 0.65% p.a. | Standard |
| Admin fees + insurance | $598 /yr ($78 + $520) | Standard |
| Contributions tax | 15% on concessional | Fixed (statutory rate) |
| Wage growth | 3.5% p.a. | Advanced |
| Inflation | 3% p.a. | Advanced |
| Post-retirement return (real) | 3% p.a. above inflation | Advanced |
Why comparisons are in today's dollars
ASFA publishes its budgets and lump sums in today's dollars, so a fair comparison has to deflate your projected balance the same way. The headline shows the future (nominal) balance; the breakdown converts it at the inflation assumption, and the target comparison, sustainable income and drawdown all work in today's dollars. On the defaults — a 40-year-old with $150,000 in super and a $100,000 salary retiring at 67 — the projection is $1,962,057 in future dollars, which is $883,297 in today's dollars: a $253,297 surplus over the $630,000 comfortable-single lump sum.
The two drawdown results
Sustainable income to age 95 is the level annual income (in today's dollars) your balance could pay from retirement to age 95, with the remaining balance earning the post-retirement real return — for the default scenario, $47,074 a year. Money lasts until instead draws your chosen target income each year and reports the age the balance hits zero — drawing the full $55,923 comfortable-single budget, the default scenario's money runs out at age 87, before counting any Age Pension. If it survives past 100 we show "Age 100+".
🎯 The targetsHow much do you need? The ASFA Retirement Standard, March quarter 2026
The Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA) publishes the most widely used retirement benchmarks in the country, updated quarterly. The March quarter 2026 figures, for retired homeowners aged 65–84:
| Lifestyle | Annual budget | Lump sum needed at 67 |
|---|---|---|
| Modest — single | $36,434 | $110,000 |
| Modest — couple | $52,473 | $120,000 |
| Comfortable — single | $55,923 | $630,000 |
| Comfortable — couple | $78,566 | $730,000 |
Comfortable covers private health insurance, a reasonable car, household upgrades, regular leisure and travel. Modest covers the basics with few extras — and its tiny lump sums ($110,000–$120,000) only work because the modest standard assumes substantial Age Pension support.
Why the comfortable lump sum looks "too small"
Run the arithmetic in this calculator and you'll notice something: $630,000 drawing the full $55,923 comfortable-single budget at a 3% real return runs out at age 80 on its own. The ASFA lump sums are not self-funding targets — they assume the balance runs down and a part Age Pension progressively fills the gap. That's also why the couple lump sum ($730,000) is nowhere near double the single one.
The homeowner assumption
Every ASFA figure assumes you own your home outright at retirement. Rent in retirement and both the annual budget and the lump sum you need are materially higher — treat the targets above as a floor, not a goal, if you expect to be renting.
🔑 Two agesPreservation age 60 vs Age Pension age 67 — and the gap between them
Age 60: when your super unlocks
The preservation age is 60. Once you turn 60 and retire — or start a transition-to-retirement pension while still working — you can access your super. From 65 you can access it regardless of work status. Earlier access exists only in limited cases such as severe financial hardship, specific compassionate grounds, permanent incapacity or terminal illness.
Age 67: when the Age Pension can start
Age Pension eligibility starts at 67, and the payment is means-tested by Services Australia against your income and assets. This calculator keeps the pension out of its figures entirely — use the Age Pension calculator for your entitlement.
Retiring at 60 costs more than seven years of contributions
Retiring early hits the projection three ways: fewer contribution years, fewer compounding years, and more retirement years to fund alone before any pension support. On this calculator's defaults, moving retirement from 67 to 60 cuts the today's-dollars balance from $883,297 to $615,113 — and drawing the $55,923 comfortable budget from 60, the money runs out at age 73 — 14 years earlier than the age-87 run-out for the same drawdown when retiring at 67. If early retirement is the goal, test it here first, then look at what extra contributions would repair.
🚀 Close a gapBehind target? What actually moves the number
1. Salary sacrifice — the biggest lever for most people
Pre-tax contributions compound for decades. On the default scenario, adding just $5,000 a year of salary sacrifice lifts the today's-dollars balance from $883,297 to $1,031,772 — a $148,475 improvement. Salary sacrifice is taxed at 15% going in rather than your marginal rate, so it usually beats saving the same dollars outside super. Model the tax side with the Salary Sacrifice calculator and check your concessional cap room with the Super Contributions calculator.
2. Fees — the quiet compounder
Fees come out every single year, in up markets and down. Try changing the investment fee field from 0.65% to 1.5% and watch the result — then check what your fund actually charges on its annual statement. APRA publishes comparative fund performance and fee data if yours looks high.
3. Consolidate lost and duplicate accounts
Multiple funds mean multiple sets of fixed fees and insurance premiums. Check myGov for lost super and duplicate accounts — but compare insurance cover before closing anything, because cover ends with the account.
4. Retire later — even slightly
Each extra working year adds contributions, adds a compounding year, and removes a drawdown year. Moving the retirement age field from 65 to 67 is often worth more than years of extra saving.
5. Check your investment option
Decades from retirement, an overly conservative option is a real cost. Nudge the return field down a percentage point to see what it does to the outcome, then check which option your fund actually has you in.
📉 Drawdown rulesMinimum pension drawdown rates by age
Once your super moves into an account-based pension, the rules require you to withdraw at least a minimum percentage of the account balance each financial year:
| Age | Minimum drawdown |
|---|---|
| Under 65 | 4% |
| 65–74 | 5% |
| 75–79 | 6% |
| 80–84 | 7% |
| 85–89 | 9% |
| 90–94 | 11% |
| 95+ | 14% |
This calculator models drawing your chosen target income, which is how most people actually plan. In later years the statutory minimum can exceed your target — you'd be required to withdraw more, but nothing forces you to spend it: the excess can be saved or invested outside super. The practical effect is that a real account-based pension may deplete slightly differently from the smooth drawdown modelled here, and earnings inside the pension account are untaxed while a minimum is being drawn.
Considering a guaranteed income instead? Compare with the Annuity calculator.
❓ FAQFrequently asked questions
How much do I need to retire in Australia?
ASFA's Retirement Standard for the March quarter 2026 puts a comfortable retirement at $55,923 a year for a single homeowner and $78,566 for a couple, funded by lump sums at age 67 of about $630,000 (single) and $730,000 (couple). A modest lifestyle costs $36,434 a year for a single or $52,473 for a couple, and needs only around $110,000 to $120,000 in super — because the modest standard assumes substantial Age Pension support. All figures assume you own your home outright and are aged 65–84.
How much super should I have at my age?
There's no single right number — it depends on your salary, retirement age and returns, so put your own figures into the calculator above and check the verdict. For scale, on the default assumptions a 30-year-old with $60,000 in super and an $85,000 salary projects about $937,846 in today's dollars at 67 — clear of the $630,000 comfortable single target — while a 40-year-old with $150,000 and a $100,000 salary projects about $883,297. Career breaks, part-time years and late starts pull these numbers down quickly, which is where salary sacrifice matters most.
When can I access my super — at 60 or 67?
They're two different ages. Preservation age — when you can access your super once you retire (or start a transition-to-retirement pension) — is 60. Age Pension eligibility starts at 67 and is means-tested by Services Australia. If you retire at 60, your super has to carry you alone for up to seven years before any Age Pension can start, which shortens how long the money lasts.
Does this calculator include the Age Pension?
No — deliberately. The Age Pension is means-tested against your income and assets, your home, and your relationship status, so adding a guessed pension amount would be misleading. Every figure on this page is super-only. Many retirees with balances above the ASFA targets still qualify for a part pension, which makes money last longer than shown here — use the Age Pension calculator for a proper entitlement estimate.
What investment return and fees does this calculator assume?
The defaults match our Super Growth calculator: a 7.5% p.a. investment return before fees, a 0.65% p.a. investment fee, $598 a year of fixed admin fees and insurance ($78 + $520), 3.5% wage growth, 3% inflation and 15% contributions tax on concessional contributions. After retirement the balance is assumed to earn 3% p.a. above inflation, and all target comparisons are made in today's dollars. Every assumption is editable at the Standard and Advanced levels.
Why are the ASFA lump sums so much smaller than my projected balance?
Because the ASFA lump sums assume some Age Pension support in retirement — substantial support at the modest level — and assume you own your home. On this calculator's own maths, $630,000 drawing the full $55,923 comfortable single budget at 3% real return would run out at age 80 by itself; in ASFA's modelling the gap is filled by a part Age Pension as the balance runs down. If you rent, or want to self-fund without any pension, you need substantially more than the ASFA lump sums.
What are the minimum pension drawdown rates?
Once your super is in an account-based pension, you must withdraw at least a minimum percentage of the balance each financial year: 4% under 65, 5% at 65–74, 6% at 75–79, 7% at 80–84, 9% at 85–89, 11% at 90–94 and 14% at 95 or older. This calculator models drawing your chosen income instead; in later years the statutory minimum can force you to withdraw more than that — the excess can simply be saved or invested outside super.
Will the 12% super guarantee be enough on its own?
Often, for an unbroken full-time career. The super guarantee reached its final rate of 12% on 1 July 2025. On this calculator's default assumptions, a 25-year-old starting from $0 on a $75,000 salary projects about $795,517 in today's dollars at 67 — clear of the $630,000 ASFA comfortable single lump sum. The risk cases are career breaks, part-time years, late starts and self-employment without SG — those are the situations where salary sacrifice or personal contributions are needed to stay on track.
Is the projection in today's dollars or future dollars?
Both are shown. The headline balance is in future (nominal) dollars; the breakdown also converts it to today's dollars using the inflation assumption (3% by default). All comparisons against the ASFA targets, the sustainable income figure and the drawdown projection are done in today's dollars, because the ASFA budgets and lump sums are published in today's dollars.