Use our quick ready reckoner to find out if you’re on track for a “comfortable” retirement.
On track?But what is a "comfortable" retirement?
The Association of Super Funds of Australia (ASFA) regularly produces information to help super fund members, like you, work out how much super they’ll need in retirement.
They call it The Retirement Standard.
There are 2 levels they use – one is for a modest lifestyle and the other is for a comfortable lifestyle.
A modest lifestyle is a lifestyle that is financially more than the age pension alone, but your income would be limited. For example, you might not be able to maintain your car, run the air-conditioning or heating at home, or buy new clothes and you might have to take a lower level of health insurance or opt out completely, you might have to buy home brand groceries and go without things like new appliances or a new phone when your current ones give up the ghost..
The comfortable lifestyle gives you more choice. You could reasonably expect to go to sporting games, have the streaming services you want, go out to dinners, replace household appliances and keep up with maintaining a car, as well as travel more often.
You can find out more about the Comfortable Retirement breakdown on the ASFA website.
Of course, there is also a third option – spending more in retirement than even the Comfortable Standard! If you have a high standard of living now, aiming for more than the Comfortable Standard could be a wise move.
4 Big Questions
There are 4 overarching questions to answer which could help you get an idea of how much you might need at retirement. Check them out now – how many can you answer right now? How many need a bit more thought?
Wonder how much you'll need?
If you’re unsure whether the Comfortable Retirement will be enough for you, start by having a think about what you spend your money on now. Our quick video can give you some tips to get you started.
(1:20 minutes)
Watch nowWhere are you now?
Know where you are
Knowing your current balance and what that could mean at retirement is important. We’ve put some estimated figures together that might help you start thinking about what you live on now and what you might like to aim for in retirement.
Check out the numbersIf you arrived in Australia later than others, your super balance might not be as high as you’d like. Find out more about ways to boost it.
(2:35 minutes)
Our Retirement Booklet
Our Retirement Booklet has lots of information to help you make the connection between your super balance and what it really means for your life in retirement.
Download nowWant a more detailed picture?
Our comprehensive calculator can give you a much more detailed picture of your super at retirement.
See the difference that retiring earlier or later can make, or the difference that putting more into super can make for you.
Look at your situation nowIf you want to add money to your super
Putting money in to super is easy! You don’t need to make enormous contributions to make a difference.
In fact, modest contributions made regularly can have a huge impact on your final super balance at retirement.
You can choose to make your contributions in a few different ways, including setting it up with your payroll to make extra contributions for you each pay day or transferring a lump sum from your bank account every so often.
You can find more about different contributions on our Contributions webpage.
Or click these links to learn more about the upper annual limits that apply on the amount you can put into super and how contributions are taxed.
If you want to set up regular contributions with your payroll, complete the contribution form and send it to your payroll team for actioning.
Contribution typesSwapping 1 coffee for your future: fact check
We fact check what difference it could make if you contribute the cost of your daily coffee to super.
(1:18 minutes)
Watch nowCombining your super
A case study on the difference rolling your super into one account can make.
(2:11 minutes)
Watch nowAre you in the right investment option for you?
Along with putting money into super, it’s important to know that it’s invested in the right investment option for you.
ElectricSuper offers you 4 different investment options, or you can split your money between the options to create your own mix.
What's the big deal about investment choice anyway?
Find out more about how different investments work and the kind of results you might expect.
(2:43 minutes)
See what options are available to you
Our investment webpages give more information about the options, including the returns that each option aims to deliver you and past performance.
Of course, past performance isn’t a guarantee of future performance.
Want to read more?
Whether you’re on track for the retirement you want, there are always steps you can take to improve things for Future You. Read our articles about whether you’re on track and what difference making the right investment choice and putting extra into your super might make for you:
Forms and resources
Here are some of the forms and other resources that might be helpful as you get started with ElectricSuper.
Want to access our other forms, pages and calculators? See the Resources/Forms page.
Change your investment option (defined benefit members)
Defined benefit members need to complete the paper form to request a change of investment option. See the form for details of restrictions that may apply.
Web pages and links
Quick links to webpages that might help you work how to get your super on track if you’re not quite there yet.
Come and talk to us
Get your super sorted with a face to face consultation.
No cost. Start growing your super today.