How much super will I need?

Published industry standards can be useful guides, but they don’t consider your individual wants, needs, or circumstances, and they make some assumptions that may not apply to you.

Think about the life you want and what it will cost. That’s your real retirement standard.

When thinking about your retirement lifestyle, here are a few questions to ask yourself:

• Where will I live?
  An apartment in the city and a house in a regional town will come with very different price tags, and lifestyles.


• What will I do for entertainment and leisure?
  Eating out and attending sports events will cost more than a weekly grocery shop and streaming services.


• What are my regular costs?
  Utility bills, transport costs, groceries, rent, or mortgage repayments are all unavoidable costs.


• Will I have medical expenses to consider?
  Consider future cost of existing illnesses, ongoing medications, as well as potential hereditary conditions.


• What do I have on my bucket list?
  Do you crave travel and adventure, or are home renovations and a garden to tend more your speed? And if you’re looking at travel – what sort of holiday are you looking at? Overseas in top hotels, caravanning through Australia or something between the two?


• Will I have enough put aside for unexpected costs?
  Cars break down, pets get ill, hot water services pack it in and they all come at a cost.

The ASFA Retirement Standard

Established in 2004, the ASFA Retirement Standard is a widely used guide developed by the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA). It breaks down the expenses for singles and couples during retirement – and provides an estimated superannuation balance needed to achieve a comfortable lifestyle. The ASFA standard assumes you own your home, so you’ll need to factor this in if you’re renting or paying a mortgage in retirement.

According to ASFA a 'comfortable' retirement lifestyle looks like:²

Learn more about the ASFA Retirement Standard.

The Super Consumers Australia guide

The Super Consumers Australia guide is another publicly available tool designed to help you work out how much you need to save for retirement. It factors in the government Age Pension and is based on data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics about the spending habits of retirees. It assumes you’ll own your home and won’t be paying rent or mortgage repayments once you’ve retired.

The guide estimates a 'medium' lifestyle will cost a couple who are already retired about $64,000 per year (with a required super balance at retirement of $432,000). A single person would need $44,000 per year (with a super balance of $322,000).³

Learn more about Retirement savings targets from Super Consumers Australia guide.

As you get older, your care needs change - and it’s worth planning for them now. Think about how you want to live independently for as long as possible, and what support might look like down the track.
 

Care advice and support

Mercer Super members have access to ageing care advice and support through Care & Living with Mercer. Our care concierge can help you understand your current and future care needs and help you navigate through different options, government benefits and levels of support available to you or a loved one.