How much do I need to retire comfortably?

‘The Retirement Standard’ is a simple baseline retirement expenses budget produced and monitored by the Association of Superfunds of Australia (ASFA).  It is modelled to help retirees understand and plan for what their basic expenses can be for either a comfortable or a modest standard of living in your post-work years.  This data is updated quarterly to reflect changes to inflation data and is underpinned by a full example budget you can download for each.  

Modest Lifestyle

The average cost-of-living budget required by those aged around 65 years of age who are planning to retire with a modest lifestyle is: 

Single: $28,254 (total per year)

Couple: $40,829 (total per year)

Comfortable lifestyle

The average cost-of-living budget required by those aged around 65 years of age who are planning to retire with a comfortable lifestyle is:  

Single: $44,412 (total per year)

Couple: $62,828 (total per year)

(Data last updated: March 2021)