{"id":536369,"date":"2026-07-21T05:48:32","date_gmt":"2026-07-21T05:48:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/536369\/"},"modified":"2026-07-21T05:48:32","modified_gmt":"2026-07-21T05:48:32","slug":"average-superannuation-balance-for-56-vs-66-year-olds-in-2026-how-does-yours-compare","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/536369\/","title":{"rendered":"Average superannuation balance for 56 vs 66-year-olds in 2026. How does yours compare?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Are you looking forward to living a comfortable retirement<\/a> lifestyle but aren’t sure whether your superannuation is on track to get you there? <\/p>\n

Or perhaps you want to find out the superannuation balance you’d need to maintain a good standard of living, do some regular activities, meals out, and perhaps even an occasional overseas trip. <\/p>\n

Here’s a rundown of what the average Aussie has in their super<\/a> at 56 and 66 years old, and what you’d need at each age to have enough for retirement.<\/p>\n

Find out how yours compares.<\/p>\n

\"Retired<\/p>\n

Image source: Getty Images<\/p>\n

How much superannuation does the average Australian have at age 56?<\/p>\n

There isn’t an exact figure for the average superannuation balance at age 55, but the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA) has a good guideline. <\/p>\n

ASFA’s data shows that at age 55 to 59, the average Australian male has around $319,743 in superannuation. The average female in the same age bracket has approximately $242,945.<\/p>\n

How much superannuation does the average Australian have at age 66?<\/p>\n

The average 65 to 69-year-old Australian male has an average superannuation balance of $448,518, and women have around $392,274.<\/p>\n

Age 56 versus age 66: Why is the gap so wide?<\/p>\n

The difference between super balances at age 56 versus age 66 is significant.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Over the 10-year period, average balances increase by up to $150,000.<\/p>\n

It could be that these individuals have had more time to add additional contributions to their superannuation balance.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But it also shows the importance of compounding. It’s clear that accumulating wealth early on, investing in a well-performing fund, and at a risk profile that suits your own, can supercharge your balance down the line.<\/p>\n

Are these average balances enough to retire on?<\/p>\n

No. In fact, the average Australian is quite far behind.<\/p>\n

ASFA estimates that it’ll cost<\/a> single Australians around $55,923 per year. It’ll cost couples living together closer to $78,566 per year in total. <\/p>\n

These figures also assume you’ll start your retirement at age 67. It also assumes that you’ll receive a part Age Pension around this time and that you own your home outright.<\/p>\n

In order to fund this type of comfortable retirement, ASFA calculates that single Australians will need around $630,000 in their superannuation at age 67. Meanwhile, couples will need around $730,000 combined at the same age.<\/p>\n

Ok, so how much do Aussies need in their superannuation by age 56 and 66 to be on track?<\/p>\n

Using ASFA’s Super Balance Detective tool, I’ve calculated what you’d need at ages 56 and 66 to reach that sum.<\/p>\n

At age 56, you need around $416,000 in your superannuation.<\/p>\n

At age 66, this should be more like $618,500 in order to live comfortably when the time comes.\u00a0<\/p>\n

As you’ll see. These sums are significantly higher than the average at each age milestone.<\/p>\n

And this means you’ll need to bridge the gap another way.<\/p>\n

It’s a good idea to start by making additional contributions. You can take advantage of additional concessional or non-concessional contributions, whether this is via salary sacrificing or by making after-tax payments (within your annual limits).<\/p>\n

Government initiatives (if eligible) could also help bridge the gap between the superannuation balance you have and what you need.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Are you looking forward to living a comfortable retirement lifestyle but aren’t sure whether your superannuation is on…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":536370,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[138,7162,246,111,139,69,244,245],"class_list":["post-536369","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-personal-finance","tag-business","tag-editors-choice","tag-finance","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-personal-finance","tag-personalfinance"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/536369","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=536369"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/536369\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/536370"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=536369"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=536369"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=536369"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}