$600,000 sits just below ASFA’s comfortable benchmark of $630,000 for a single homeowner retiring at 67, and well above the average super balance for Australians in their early 60s. Retiring at 62 rather than 60 also shortens the gap to the Age Pension from seven years to five, which makes a real difference to how long the money lasts.
This guide walks through the September 2026 numbers: how you access super at 62, how long $600K lasts at different spending levels, what the Age Pension adds from 67 and the decisions that matter most at this balance.
Accessing your super at 62
At 62, you have already passed preservation age. For anyone born after 30 June 1964, preservation age is 60. But as Phil put it on the podcast, preservation age does not automatically unlock your super. It means you are old enough to start ticking boxes.
The box most people tick at 62 is a condition of release: leaving an employment arrangement, or retiring with no intention of returning to substantial work (which the super rules define as 10 or more hours a week). Once that is met, withdrawals from a taxed super fund are tax-free. No income tax on lump sums, no income tax on account-based pension payments. Source: ATO, super withdrawal options (current as at September 2026).
Moving the $600K into an account-based pension also switches the fund’s earnings from 15% tax in accumulation phase to zero tax in pension phase. On a $600,000 balance, that tax saving alone is worth thousands of dollars a year.
The five-year gap: 62 to 67
The Age Pension does not start until 67, so from 62 to 67 your super carries the full load. We generally find this gap is the single biggest blind spot for people weighing up retirement at 62. The question is not “is $600K enough” but “how much of it is left when the Age Pension arrives”.
Here is what the gap years look like, assuming a balanced investment return of about 5% a year after fees, with spending rising with inflation at 2.5% a year:
| Annual spending (today’s dollars) | Approximate balance at 67 |
|---|---|
| $40,000 | $520,000 |
| $45,000 | $490,000 |
| $50,000 | $460,000 |
| $55,000 | $430,000 |
| $60,000 | $400,000 |
Please note: All figures, projections and scenarios in this article are approximate and for illustrative purposes only. Individual outcomes will vary based on personal circumstances, investment returns, fees, spending and current government policy. This is general information, not personal advice.
Even at the higher spending levels, a $600K balance arrives at 67 with a substantial amount intact. That remaining balance then works alongside the Age Pension rather than instead of it, which is where the maths starts to favour the retiree.
How long will $600K really last?
Running the same assumptions past age 67, with Age Pension entitlements included and indexed, here is roughly how long the money holds up:
Single homeowner, retiring at 62 with $600K:
| Annual spending (today’s dollars) | Money lasts until roughly |
|---|---|
| $40,000 to $45,000 | Beyond age 100 |
| $50,000 | Mid 90s |
| $55,000 | Late 80s |
Couple (homeowners), retiring at 62 with $600K combined:
| Annual spending (today’s dollars) | Money lasts until roughly |
|---|---|
| $55,000 to $60,000 | Beyond age 100 |
| $65,000 | Early 90s |
| $70,000 | Early 80s |
For context, ASFA’s June quarter 2026 Retirement Standard puts a comfortable lifestyle at $56,166 a year for a single homeowner and $78,998 for a couple. A single person with $600K at 62 spending at that comfortable level runs the money to around age 85, which is average life expectancy. A couple spending at the full ASFA comfortable level on $600K combined would run short in their mid 70s, so most couples at this balance land somewhere between modest and comfortable, or add income from part-time work in the early years. Source: ASFA Retirement Standard, June quarter 2026.
Want to see how your own numbers stack up? Run them through the free Wealthlab super calculator. It takes two minutes and gives you a clearer picture than any average ever could.
What the Age Pension adds from 67
From 20 September 2026, the maximum Age Pension is $1,237.70 a fortnight for a single person (about $32,180 a year) and $1,866.00 a fortnight combined for a couple (about $48,516 a year), including supplements. Source: Services Australia. Current as at September 2026. These figures are set by the Australian Government and are typically updated each March and September.
Whether you get the full amount depends on the assets test and income test. For homeowners, the full pension applies while assessable assets (super, investments, car, contents, but not the family home) stay under $333,000 for a single or $499,000 for a couple combined. Above that, the pension reduces by $3 a fortnight for every $1,000 of extra assets, cutting out entirely at $745,750 for a single homeowner and $1,121,000 for a homeowner couple. Deeming rates also rose on 20 September 2026, to 1.75% and 3.75%, which mainly affects people assessed under the income test.
This is where the couple story gets interesting. A couple who retired at 62 on $600K combined and spent $55,000 to $60,000 a year typically arrives at 67 with roughly $400,000 to $445,000 left. That sits under the $499,000 couple threshold, which means the full couple pension of $48,516 a year. From that point, the pension covers most of the budget and super only tops up the difference. That is why the couple scenarios in the table above hold up so well after 67.
A single homeowner arriving at 67 with $460,000 to $490,000 in super sits in part pension territory, roughly $17,000 to $19,500 a year at current rates and thresholds, with the entitlement growing each year as the super balance draws down.
For help structuring assets around these tests, our pension and Centrelink advice page covers what is involved.
What retiring at 62 costs compared to waiting
Scott and Phil dug into exactly this trade-off on the podcast episode about the early retirement trap. Two numbers from that episode are worth sitting with. The average Australian couple retires with around $540,000 combined, well short of ASFA’s comfortable benchmark. And in the scenario they walked through, retiring just one year earlier turned a plan funded to age 105 into one that ran out at 79.
Scott and Phil covered how long different super balances actually last, and why the investment mix matters as much as the balance itself, in Episode 19 of the Wealthlab Podcast. The episode is worth watching if you are close to the decision point on retirement timing:
At $600,000 you are ahead of that average couple, but the one-more-year effect still applies. Working one extra year adds employer contributions, gives the balance another year of returns and removes a year of drawdown. At this balance, that is typically a $55,000 to $70,000 improvement in the position at retirement. That does not mean waiting is the right call. Plenty of our clients decide the extra year of freedom is worth more than the extra money. It just means the decision deserves real numbers, not a gut feel.
There is also the average to consider: Australians currently retire at around 63.8 on average, so retiring at 62 is only slightly early. It is a very different proposition from retiring at 55 with $600K, where super cannot even be accessed for the first five years.
Making $600K work harder
A few themes come up again and again in our client work at this balance:
Keep the money invested properly. Scott and Phil covered this in the episode on why playing it safe in retirement can cost you. The example they walked through: a couple with $500K in super spending $75K a year. A growth-oriented portfolio funded retirement into their late 90s. A conservative one ran out 15 years earlier. We generally find that retirees who move everything to cash at retirement end up worse off over a 25 to 30 year retirement, even though it feels safer in year one.
Shape the spending, not just the total. Most retirees spend more in the active early years (travel, projects, grandkids) and less later. A plan that allows $55,000 in the 60s and tapers to $45,000 in the 80s often outperforms a flat budget on both lifestyle and longevity.
Consider part-time work in the gap years. Even $15,000 a year of casual income from 62 to 67 dramatically reduces the drawdown in the years when the balance is largest and sequencing risk is highest. And once the Age Pension starts, the Work Bonus lets pensioners earn income from work with less impact on their pension.
Get the structure right before 67. Which account the money sits in, how it is split between partners and what is assessable under the assets test can shift the pension entitlement by thousands of dollars a year. These are decisions best made before Age Pension age, not after. Our retirement planning service exists for exactly this.
Frequently asked questions
Can I access my super at 62? Generally yes, if you have met a condition of release. The most common one at 62 is retiring from the workforce or ceasing an employment arrangement, since preservation age is 60 for anyone born after 30 June 1964. Withdrawals from a taxed fund after 60 are tax-free.
Is $600K in super enough to retire at 62 in Australia? For many homeowners, yes. A single person spending $40,000 to $50,000 a year, or a couple spending $55,000 to $60,000 combined, can typically fund the gap years to 67 and then combine the remaining super with the Age Pension. Renters and higher spenders need a tighter plan.
How much Age Pension will I get with $600K in super? At 62, none, because Age Pension age is 67. By 67, a couple who has drawn their combined balance below $499,000 in assessable assets may qualify for the full couple pension ($48,516 a year as at September 2026). A single homeowner with $460,000 to $490,000 remaining would typically receive a part pension of roughly $17,000 to $19,500 a year at current rates.
How long will $600K last if I retire at 62? On a balanced return of about 5% a year after fees, with spending indexed to inflation, roughly: beyond age 100 for a single spending $40,000 to $45,000 a year, to the mid 90s at $50,000 and to the late 80s at $55,000. For couples on $600K combined, $55,000 to $60,000 a year holds up beyond 100, while $70,000 runs short in the early 80s.
Do I pay tax on super withdrawals at 62? Withdrawals from a taxed super fund after age 60 are tax-free, whether taken as lump sums or account-based pension payments, provided a condition of release has been met.
Is it better to retire at 60 or 62 with $600K? Retiring at 62 means only five years of self-funding before the Age Pension instead of seven, plus two extra years of contributions and returns. The trade-off is two fewer years of retirement. We cover the 60 scenario in detail in Can I retire at 60 with $600K in Australia?
Your next step
$600,000 in super at 62 gives you a genuine path to a comfortable retirement in Australia. The five-year gap to the Age Pension is manageable, the balance is close to the ASFA comfortable benchmark, and the Age Pension from 67 extends your money significantly. What determines whether it works well is how your super is invested, how carefully you manage spending in the gap years, and how effectively you transition to pension-supplemented income at 67.
If any of this has raised questions about your own situation, book a free chat with the Wealthlab team. No pressure, no jargon.
