But there’s no real reason $1 million is held up as the ideal benchmark. In fact, most Australians will reach retirement – and thrive, at that – with a much smaller sum.

So what’s a better way to think about how much money you should have once you retire?

Be realistic about your retirement goals

To start, make sure you’ve got a clear idea of the kind of lifestyle you want in retirement.

Take someone who’s perfectly content leading a quiet life, spending time with family, puttering about in the garden, and taking the occasional domestic trip when the fancy strikes them. They’re going to need a lot less money than someone whose bucket list includes regularly dining out and visiting a new country every year.

So what will those respective budgets look like? The Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia (ASFA) regularly crunches the numbers to find out how much the average retiree will need if they want to live a comfortable lifestyle or a modest one.

In its June 2025 release, it says a couple will need a combined balance of around $690,000 at age 67 to enjoy a comfortable retirement. That translates to an annual income of $75,319. Meanwhile, couples who intend to live modestly will need just $100,000, or around $49,992 per year.

Both scenarios make a few assumptions (such as that you’ll own your home outright and will be receiving the Age Pension), so don’t take those figures as gospel. Instead, treat them as a helpful starting point when drawing up your plan.

Think about how long your retirement will last

Remember that life expectancy statistics are just averages, meaning you may very well live beyond them. Ideally, your retirement budget will stretch far enough to cover 25 to 30 years of living expenses, and then some.

Keep in mind that retirement costs are often highest in the early years, when your health allows for travel and other expensive activities, before tapering down as you embrace a quieter lifestyle. Things might then jump up again as your healthcare needs increase.

Will you have any other sources of income?

Important as it is, your super is just one part of the retirement puzzle. To really get a sense of what’s in store for you in your post-work years, it might help to focus less on overall balances and more on income streams.

Once you turn 67, you might be able to supplement the money you get from super with the Age Pension. Your eligibility and the amount you receive will depend on your income and assets, but for many people the support provided is invaluable.

There’s also the option to continue working. Not everyone retires as soon as they can access their super – some people are too attached to their job to give it up, while others feel they’d be in a stronger position if they spent a few more years saving.

If you decide to postpone retirement for a few years (or even return to work part-time after a brief hiatus), this can help firm up your finances and give you more scope to live the kind of retirement you want.

All this isn’t to say that super isn’t important, or that you shouldn’t be proactive and make extra contributions when you can. But it does mean it’s not the end of the world if that fabled seven-figure sum proves to be elusive.

If you’d like help planning your retirement, consider speaking to a financial adviser. They can work with you to clarify your goals, work out how far your money will get you, and – if necessary – find ways to help you build up your savings.

Just as companies monitor the net flow of cash to ensure bills are paid, profits remain high, and investment opportunities aren’t missed, individuals that track and categorise their spending often find they’re better equipped to manage their money. Below, we explore a few important cash flow lessons and how they might empower you to improve your finances.

Work out how much money is coming and going

The first step to understanding your cash flow is creating a budget. Try to choose a method that you can stick to — some people like to manually track their inflows and outflows using a spreadsheet, while others prefer the convenience of a budgeting app that’s linked to their transaction account.

If you have money left over after deducting expenses from your income, you’re in the fortunate position of being cash flow positive. Achieving this regularly is a good sign your finances are tracking in the right direction.

That said, there are going to be one-off or yearly expenses (like your car registration and insurance) that threaten to derail your budget, so it pays to be prepared. Depending on how large the bill is, you might need to set money aside in advance or try to keep your expenses low for the month.

Set savings goals and consider anything extra

Once you have a clearer idea of how much you’re saving as a percentage of your total income, it’s time to find ways to boost that amount. Take a look at your discretionary spending and ask yourself if there’s anything you regret purchasing or can afford to do without.

Of course, there are limits to how much you can cut back on without sacrificing your quality of life. So if you start to notice your savings goals stalling, it might be worth trying to increase how much you earn instead. This might mean pushing for a promotion at work or looking for a new job altogether.

As your cash flow starts to improve and the money you’re setting aside each month increases, you can think about ways to put those excess savings to work. One option is to make a personal contribution to your super (for which you can claim a tax deduction), but you can choose to invest it in other ways too (such as shares and ETFs).

Free up cash by tackling debt

If you’re like many Australians, debt repayments probably feature quite prominently on the expenses side of your balance sheet. But if those repayments are eating up more of your monthly income than you’re comfortable with, it might be time to make some changes.

There are a few ways you might go about tackling debt: you could get in some quick wins by focusing on the smaller debts first, or you could address the higher interest ones to reduce the chances of them snowballing. There’s also the option to consolidate your debts into a single loan, preferably with a lower interest rate, which might make things easier to manage.

Make sure you have a cash buffer 

Job security isn’t a given and medical emergencies can occur at any time, so a big part of cash flow is having money on hand to ride out any difficult periods that crop up. Conventional wisdom suggests having enough set aside to cover three to six months of living expenses, but ultimately this will depend on your personal needs and goals.

Just keep in mind that there might be tradeoffs to hoarding too much cash. For one, even if you’re keeping it in a high interest savings account, you might be passing up on investment opportunities that might be able to generate more favourable returns.