Here’s how much super Aussies need in a cost-of-living crisis

• A comfortable retirement is estimated to require about $630,000 for a single homeowner and $730,000 for a couple.
• Housing, essential bills and high-interest debt should generally come before voluntary super contributions.
• Even modest extra contributions can compound over decades and materially lift retirement savings.

Stashing away extra superannuation contributions is not a current priority for most Australians battling the ongoing cost-of-living crisis.

As workers weigh the trade-off between keeping a roof over their head today and retirement security tomorrow, many assume they’ll have time to worry about retirement savings once things improve.

After all, if you’re struggling to pay rent or mortgage repayments while covering rising grocery and energy bills, managing voluntary super contributions is likely even harder.

But the cost-of-living crisis doesn’t make your superannuation savings less important. Just because Australia is experiencing a cost-of-living squeeze, that doesn’t automatically mean workers should stop contributing to super.

But rising costs do make the order in which Australians allocate their money more important. Covering the cost of a roof over your head, food and utilities comes first.

Before putting extra money in your super, ask yourself:

• Do I have an emergency cash buffer?
• Am I carrying expensive credit card or other high-interest debt I should pay off first?
• Can I comfortably meet my mortgage and bills?
• Am I getting my full employer super entitlement?
• How far away is retirement?
• How much super do I already have?
• Am I eligible for government super incentives?

If you’re working, your employer must pay the Super Guarantee of 12 per cent on top of your eligible earnings. The average for full-time ordinary earnings is $2,083.70 in May this year, which means your boss will stash an extra $250.04 in your super fund without you having to lift a finger.

But voluntary top-ups make a genuine difference to your retirement balance, and the cost-of-living crisis doesn’t change how much retirement income someone needs.

The problem is that periods of lower contributions can leave less money invested and compounding over the decades, which can leave you significantly worse off in retirement. 

It’s the compounding returns that take years to build, and the earlier you start, the better off you will be in retirement. 

As a reminder, a comfortable retirement is estimated to require about $630,000 for a single homeowner and $730,000 for a couple. But that depends on the sort of retirement you want, and housing is a crucial piece of the puzzle.

For private renters, it’s substantially harder to fund retirement. ASFA, the peak body for the superannuation industry, estimates a single renter needs about $51,418 a year even for a modest retirement.

Age Pension not enough

But super experts warn that the Age Pension only guarantees older people won’t live in poverty and wasn’t designed to fund the lifestyle most people aspire to in retirement.

The gap between the Age Pension and a comfortable retirement is growing every year, and super has to work harder to fill it, Mary Delahunty, CEO of the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia, told The Money Edition.

“For millions of Australians, their super will be the difference between relying heavily on government support and having the savings to make their own choices about the life they want to live in retirement,” Delahunty says.

If your essential costs are covered and you can afford to, making regular extra contributions into your super fund can make a meaningful difference over time. 

After all, the cost of retirement will probably only rise. ASFA said in its September 2026 figures that today’s retirees are facing some particularly large price increases.

That includes a 22 per cent increase in electricity costs, alongside higher prices for staple foods, insurance and transport.