How much is NZ Super per week?

If you’re 65+ and only earning NZ Super, your tax code will probably be M. As of 1 April 2026, you could get:$555 /week – single, living alone$512 /week – single, sharing$854 /week – couple (both qualify, combined)

What is the increase in superannuation pension for 2026?

NZ Super increased by about 3.1% from 1 April 2026, according to Work and Income. For a single person living alone on the standard M tax code, that works out to an extra $33.46 per fortnight. That takes the payment to $1,110.30 per fortnight after tax.

How much can I earn while on the pension in NZ?

You can earn as much as you like while receiving NZ Super, because it is not income-tested or asset-tested. But NZ Super is taxable, so if you earn other income, your tax code may change, which can affect how much NZ Super you receive after tax.

How long do you have to live in NZ to get the pension?

To qualify for NZ Super, you generally need to have lived in New Zealand for at least 10-20 years after turning 20. At least 5 of those years need to have been after you turned 50.But the exact number of years depends on when you were born. Refer to the eligibility rules on the Work and Income website.

Can I collect the pension if I live overseas?

Yes, but you need to apply to keep receiving NZ Super if you plan to live overseas. And the rules are much more complicated. See Work and Income’s guidance about receiving the NZ Super while living overseas for more details.

Property Investment

6 min read24 May 2026

How much is NZ superannuation in 2026?

Find out how much you currently get from New Zealand Superannuation and how you can prepare for retirement.

Author: Andrew Nicol

Founder, 20+ Years' Experience Investing In Property, Author & Host

Book a session with Andrew

Reviewed by: Ed McKnight

Resident Economist, with a GradDipEcon and over five years at Opes Partners, is a trusted contributor to NZ Property Investor, Informed Investor, Stuff, Business Desk, and OneRoof.

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The NZ Super rates as of 1st April 2026 are:

$555 a week – single, living alone
$512 a week – single, living with other adult(s)
$427 a week – in a relationship and living with that partner (per person)

These figures are after-tax and assume that you are not earning any other income. This is why the exact amount of money each retiree gets is different.

It depends on your living situation and how much other income you earn.

In this article, you’ll learn what the current superannuation rates are and how they can change depending on your circumstances.

What are the current NZ superannuation rates?

Superannuation is a government-provided benefit for Kiwis aged 65+.

Here are the rates as of April 1, 2026:

As of 1 April 2026, NZ Superannuation pays between $512 and $555 per week for single people. And $427 per week if you are in a relationship and living with your partner. This is according to Work and Income NZ and is based on having a tax code of ‘M’.
	Weekly after tax (tax code M)	Weekly Amount (before tax)	Fortnightly Amount (before tax)	Annual Amount (before tax)
Single (living alone or with a dependent child)	$555	$647	$1,295	$33,663
Single (living with someone who is not a partner)	$512	$596	$1,191	$30,970
In a relationship (living with your partner)	$427 each	$492 (each)	$984 (each)	$25,591 (each)

How much tax do I pay for NZ superannuation?

The amount of tax you pay depends on how much money you earn.

So, if you only get NZ Superannuation, or your extra income is less than the pension, your tax code will be “M”.

However, if you earn extra income (e.g. a part-time job, rent from a rental property, or dividends), the amount you get in your hand may be lower.

This isn’t because you qualify for less superannuation. It's because your NZ Super payments could be taxed at a higher rate, since you earn more income.

Why is this important?

According to Infometrics’ analysis of Stats NZ data, 48.4% of Kiwis aged 65–69 were active in the labour market as of 2023. That’s higher than the UK, the US and Australia.

This number will increase as our population ages. So, the amount of NZ Super that each Kiwi pockets will be different.

To be clear, earning extra income does not affect the pre-tax amount of superannuation you get.

(You are not penalised for working past 65).

But if your other income is more than what you get in NZ super, it becomes your primary income.

Then you’ll be in a special tax code and pay more tax on your NZ super. That means you get less money in the hand.

This is how your NZ Superannuation amounts can change, depending on the tax code:

Your weekly NZ Super payment can change depending on your tax code. For example, a single person living alone receives $555 a week on tax code M, but $395 a week on tax code SA. This is according to Work and Income NZ.
	M	S (17.5%)	SH (30%)	ST (33%)	SA (39%)
Single (living alone or with a dependent child)	$555	$534	$453	$434	$395
Single (living with someone who is not a partner)	$512	$491	$417	$399	$364
In a relationship (living with your partner)	$427 each	$406 each	$345 each	$330 each	$300 each

Here are 3 quick scenarios showing how your NZ Super payments can change, depending on your lifestyle and tax code.

Scenario #1 – You work part-time

Let’s say you’re a retired teacher and receive NZ Super while you are living with your partner. But you also work 2 days a week as a reliever teacher at your former school.

You earn $600 a week from teaching (before tax), so your job becomes your main income. That means your NZ Super tax code changes from M to S.

So instead of getting $427 a week, you’d get $406.

Scenario #2 – You and your partner still work

Let’s say you and your partner both receive NZ Super, but you also pay yourselves $50k a year each from your family business.

That means your NZ Super tax code changes to SH.

Instead of getting $854 a week combined, you’d get $689 combined.

That’s $165 a week less.

Scenario #3 – You are in a relationship, but your partner does not qualify for NZ Super

Let’s say you receive NZ Super as a single person who is living alone. You don’t work, and NZ Super is your only source of income. So you get $555 a week in the hand.

You then enter into a relationship with a person who is a new migrant from overseas. And you decide to move in together.

Your partner does not qualify for NZ Super. But you’re no longer single and living alone. You’re living with your partner. This means that you now get $427 a week, $128 less per week.

This is because the government assumes you will share living costs with your partner. So you don’t need the same level of benefit.

Can't I just live off the pension for retirement?

NZ Super doesn’t usually give you enough money to pay for everything you need in retirement.

As of 2025, a “no-frills” retirement lifestyle costs $705.34 a week for a single person living in Auckland, Christchurch or Wellington. That’s according to 2025’s NZ Retirement Expenditure Guidelines report by Massey University.

So if you rely only on NZ Super, you could find yourself a couple of hundred dollars a week short. That’s even if your spending is modest.

Let’s say you’re a retired office worker who was used to getting about $1,000 a week in the hand. Then, when you retire, your income drops to just $555 a week on NZ Super.

That means your income has almost halved overnight. You’re also about $150 a week short of what Massey University says you’d need for a “no-frills” lifestyle.

This is why at Opes Partners, we help investors build a property investment portfolio as part of their retirement plan.

That way, you might use the rental income from your property portfolio to supplement your NZ Super.

This can help make up the shortfall, so you can maintain a higher standard of living in retirement.

What if NZ Super changes?

Sometimes Kiwis Google how much superannuation is and think that is the amount they will definitely get. But if you earn an income, you might get less.

The good news is that there are ways to prepare for retirement. You might contribute more to KiwiSaver, build other savings, or invest in income-producing assets.

While NZ Super gives you a safety net for retirement, it’s also not guaranteed. In the future, politicians could decide to:

Raise the age of eligibility to 67 (or older)
Means-test NZ Super
Decrease the rate it increases in value

That’s why many of the Kiwis I work with don’t even factor NZ Super into their retirement plan. They aim to have enough money to look after themselves in retirement.

That way, if the programme changes, they’re not affected. If it’s still there, it’s a nice bonus.

If you're still unsure if NZ Super will be enough for your retirement lifestyle, use our free Retirement Calculator. This will help you figure out how much you might need and whether you’re on the right path.

Want to find out if your current savings plan will be enough to fund your retirement?

Use our retirement calculator to find out in less than 2 minutes

Find out now

Andrew Nicol

Founder, 20+ Years' Experience Investing In Property, Author & Host

Andrew Nicol, Managing Director at Opes Partners, is a seasoned financial adviser and property investment expert with 20+ years of experience. With 40 investment properties, he hosts the Property Academy Podcast, co-authored 'Wealth Plan' with Ed Mcknight, and has helped 1,894 Kiwis achieve financial security through property investment.

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Ok, now for the legal bit:

This article is for your general information. It’s not financial advice. See here for details about our Financial Advice Provider Disclosure. So Opes isn’t telling you what to do with your own money.

We’ve made every effort to make sure the information is accurate. But we occasionally get the odd fact wrong. Make sure you do your own research or talk to a financial adviser before making any investment decisions.

You might like to use us or another financial adviser

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