Can you rely on NZ Super for a decent life? Here’s what retirees say

Sunday, 21 June 2026

Groceries and bills are outstripping NZ Super, leaving 77% of retirees highly stressed.

Over half must dip into personal savings, proving NZ Super alone is no longer enough.

Early, consistent, and maximised personal contributions are now essential to securing a comfortable retirement.

Analysis: The maths for older New Zealanders is no longer adding up as it used to.

The cost of groceries, power, insurance, fuel, dental care, and rates has all crept up, squeezing every drop out of NZ Super.

Asked in a recent survey by Lifetime Retirement Income what concerns them most right now, a staggering 77% of retirees said the cost of living.

In fact, four of the top five issues were directly linked to the growing expense of life in New Zealand and the lack of sufficient funds to cover the costs.

Given these figures, it’s little surprise that the decision by McDonald’s to moderately increase McCafé coffee costs for SuperGold cardholders sparked such extensive media interest.

It was just another small thing, emblematic of the growing pressure on New Zealand’s retired population.

“The fact that these costs are increasing is no surprise to anyone,” says Ralph Stewart, Lifetime Retirement Income founder and managing director.

“But the breadth of the challenge is significant, particularly for retirees who are trying to balance the budget on a fixed income.”

Stewart says our retirees don’t feel like politicians are paying attention, with 61% of respondents ranking their confidence that their concerns were being heard by elected officials as 1 or 2 out of five.

Fewer than one in ten (7%) genuinely feel heard.

“This response likely reflects retirees' current struggles and the fact that most retirement income policy is currently more focused on future generations than those in retirement today,” says Stewart.

“It suggests that retirees will likely try to navigate these financial challenges themselves as a result.”

Stewart isn’t wrong. Those who have entered retirement over the last ten years would not have enjoyed the full benefits of the KiwiSaver scheme.

What this research confirms in no uncertain terms is that NZ Super alone – or even with a small KiwiSaver balance – will not be enough for a desirable retirement in New Zealand.

“The data shows that more than half of the respondents were dipping into their personal savings to bridge the gap between NZ Super payments and the true cost of living,” says Stewart.

“This makes sense, but ensuring retirement savings last over what can be as many as 30 years is no mean feat and dangerous if not well managed and monitored.”

A careful balancing act

New Zealand’s retirement system currently sits in quite an awkward position. On the one hand, it needs to carry the growing current generation of retirees through retirement, while also ensuring the system is fit for purpose in the future.

“What we do know is that there will be an increasing number of retirees out there, trying to make their NZ Super and whatever retirement savings they have, stretch as far as they can,” says Stewart.

“About 16% of the NZ population, or 870,000 people, receive NZ Super now. However, this number is expected to reach 20% in 2035 and 26% by 2065.”

As the numbers currently stand, around 40% of our retirees rely almost entirely on NZ Super to get through the monthly expenses.

“The maths doesn't look great at the moment,” says Stewart.

The hope is that our retirement savings grow as KiwiSaver matures, helping to ensure that New Zealanders do indeed have a healthier retirement. This is why politicians across the spectrum are trying to increase contribution rates in a bid to ensure retirees have more money in later life.

But there’s a catch. The current system remains voluntary, which means the onus still rests on us to actually make those contributions.

What we can do

A reader named Sandra* recently wrote into us, explaining the difference KiwiSaver made to her.

She recalls that after a discussion with her husband, they agreed that she should contribute. Her husband initially suggested the minimum 3% given that they needed the money for day-to-day expenses, but she ran the numbers and felt that she could afford to contribute the maximum.

It was a decision she didn’t regret.

“Every time I changed jobs and again selected the maximum contribution, my husband would get annoyed,” she says.

“But I stayed consistent.”

Her balance continued to grow, year after year, to the point that she was surprised at what she had accumulated.

“I was on a low income and often working part-time, yet because I started early and stayed consistent, my KiwiSaver has grown to the point where I believe it will eventually allow me to live largely off the interest it generates, alongside NZ Super, and enjoy a secure and comfortable retirement,” she says.

Sandra tells me she isn’t sharing her story to boast, but rather to encourage Kiwis, particularly women, to realise how powerful their own savings can be.

“For women especially, having our own retirement savings is about more than money. It is about autonomy,” she says.

There are no easy answers to these questions, but waiting to see if NZ Super might be enough for you by retirement is no longer an option. More and more retirees are telling us that they don’t have enough, and there’s simply no guarantee that it will become easier over time.

All we can do in the meantime is save as much as we can in our productive years and use that to supplement what NZ Super affords us in retirement.

*Not her real name.

So what are your thoughts on these issues? Are you worried about retiring? And what do you think of Sandra’s advice?