How Long Will My Super Last Calculator Australia

Project an account balance year by year after a starting lump sum, inflation-linked spending gap, investment return and fees. Optionally compare each modeled withdrawal with the standard age-based minimum pension factor.

How this super longevity calculator works

The immediate lump sum is deducted once from the starting balance. Annual household spending minus other retirement income creates the first desired withdrawal from super, floored at zero. Spending and other income are treated as today’s-dollar amounts that rise together with the entered inflation rate, so the real gap is preserved. If those income sources change at different times, model stages separately.

Each year starts with the prior closing balance. The model adds a constant nominal investment return, subtracts the percentage fee and an inflation-linked fixed fee, then deducts the applicable withdrawal. When the available balance cannot fund a complete withdrawal, the final year is shown as a fraction based on available cash divided by that year’s modeled withdrawal.

Standard minimum factors are a comparison, not full compliance

The standard factors used from 2023–24 onwards are 4% below age 65, 5% from 65 to 74, 6% from 75 to 79, 7% from 80 to 84, 9% from 85 to 89, 11% from 90 to 94 and 14% from age 95. The calculator applies the factor to each modeled opening balance using the modeled age for that year.

Actual minimum annual payments depend on the member’s age at 1 July or pension commencement, the relevant account balance, commencement timing, pro-rating, rounding and pension type. Market-linked products have additional rules. This page does not round to the nearest ten dollars or pro-rate a commencement year. Its output is labelled an indicator so a user can see when age-based withdrawals could exceed the desired spending gap.

Desired household spending is not the same as super withdrawal

Retirement spending may be funded from an account-based pension, Age Pension, annuity, cash, investments, employment or a partner. The other-income field reduces the amount assigned to this balance, but it assumes that income begins now, grows with inflation and continues for the full model. Entering an Age Pension amount before eligibility or assuming a partner’s income continues after death can overstate sustainability.

Build staged scenarios when income starts or ends. For example, model the bridge to Age Pension age with zero Age Pension, then use the resulting balance as the start of a second stage. If a lifetime income stream covers part of spending, confirm whether it is indexed. Do not enter the same income both here and as a reduction to household spending.

Returns do not arrive in a straight line

The constant-return assumption produces the same arithmetic path every time. Real portfolios experience gains and losses in different orders. Poor returns early in retirement can be especially damaging because withdrawals sell more of the portfolio before a recovery. Two retirees with the same average long-run return can have different outcomes when their return sequence differs.

Stress-test a lower return, a negative early period outside this model and a higher spending path. Maintain liquidity for near-term spending appropriate to the strategy. A result that reaches age 100 under one smooth return is not evidence that an actual portfolio has a guaranteed lifespan.

Fees and inflation compound through the runway

Percentage fees are charged against the opening balance in this model; fixed fees rise with spending inflation. Product fees may instead have administration tiers, investment costs, transaction costs, advice charges, insurance or dollar caps. Use the product disclosure statement and statements to form a total scenario without counting a fee twice inside both return and fee inputs.

The “net real rate” output removes the percentage fee from nominal return and then adjusts for inflation. It does not subtract the fixed fee because that fee is a dollar amount whose percentage impact changes with balance. A small difference in return, inflation or fees compounds over decades, so run independent changes rather than tuning several assumptions together to preserve a preferred result.

Immediate lump sums reduce the income-producing base

A renovation, vehicle, debt payout or family gift taken at retirement leaves less invested before the first modeled return. Enter the full immediate amount only once. If the expense will occur later, run the model to that age, subtract the amount from the then balance and start a second stage. Inflating a known future cost may also be necessary.

Paying debt can reduce future spending, so model both sides consistently. Deduct the lump sum, then lower annual spending by the repayments that genuinely cease. Keeping the old repayments while also paying out the debt understates sustainability; removing all housing costs when rates, insurance and maintenance continue overstates it.

Use the balance-check age as a resilience test

The check-age balance is the modeled closing balance after the number of complete years between current age and selected age. If the account exhausts sooner, it displays zero. Select an age beyond the central life-expectancy assumption to test longevity rather than choosing the age that makes the plan succeed.

A surviving balance does not automatically represent a bequest because later health, care and housing costs are not included unless entered in spending. A zero balance does not prove destitution because other income and assets may remain. The output describes only the one entered account and its modeled cash flows.

Scenario review table

Tax, access and product rules remain outside

Super access depends on preservation age, conditions of release and product terms. Tax treatment can depend on age, taxed or untaxed components, pension type and other circumstances. Transfer balance caps and minimum pension standards can affect account structure. The calculator assumes the entered balance is available for the modeled withdrawals and makes no tax deduction.

Confirm current rules before starting, commuting or changing an income stream. Financial advice may be valuable where the decision affects Age Pension means tests, death benefits, estate planning, reversionary nominations, tax or partner outcomes. Keep statements and annual minimum calculations rather than using this projection as a payment instruction.

Review the runway against actual statements

At least annually, replace the opening balance, fees and spending gap with current evidence and save the prior scenario. Compare actual withdrawals and investment results with the amounts assumed rather than merely checking whether the balance rose. A strong market year can hide excessive spending, while a weak year does not by itself prove the long-term plan has failed.

Review sooner after a major withdrawal, partner change, move, care need, product switch or confirmed change in other income. Keep the central, cautious and long-life cases together. The comparison should show which assumption changed and which action remains available, making the model a repeatable planning record instead of a one-time forecast.

Frequently asked questions