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Age Pension Calculator
The Age Pension is assessed twice — once on income, once on assets — and you receive the lower of the two. Most people only model one.
Rates from 20 September 2026 · Both tests applied
At a glance
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Your situation
The Age Pension is assessed on both an income test and an assets test. The lower result wins.
Estimated Age Pension
$0per fortnight
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The two tests, and why both matter
The assets test
Your home is exempt. Everything else counts: super in pension phase, shares, cash, cars, contents. Above the free area, every $1,000 of assets cuts $3 a fortnight.
The income test
Deemed income on financial assets, plus employment and other income. Above the free area, every dollar cuts 50 cents of pension. Deeming means the actual yield is irrelevant.
The lower result wins
You are paid the lower of the two calculations. That is why a household with modest income but substantial super can still lose the pension on the assets test.
Single homeowner, $420,000 of assessable assets
The free area for a single homeowner is $333,000. The $87,000 above it reduces the pension by $261 a fortnight at $3 per $1,000, leaving $976.70 a fortnight — $25,394 a year against a $1,237.70 maximum.
The income test, at $180 a fortnight, would have allowed the full rate. The assets test binds, and costs about $6,800 a year. It is the test people forget to run, and on this profile it is the only one that matters.
Age Pension questions
What is the maximum Age Pension right now?
From 20 September 2026: $1,237.70 a fortnight for a single person and $933.00 each for a couple, including the Pension Supplement and Energy Supplement. Rates are indexed twice a year, in March and September.
Is my home counted in the assets test?
No. The family home is exempt, which is why so much Australian retirement planning revolves around the home. It is, however, counted if you sell it and hold the proceeds as cash.
What are the deeming rates?
Deeming applies a set rate to financial assets regardless of what they actually earn. It currently sits at 0.25% on the lower band and 2.25% above the threshold for singles ($62,600) and couples ($103,800). The rates change when the government adjusts them, not when markets move.
Can I still work and receive the pension?
Yes. The Work Bonus lets a single pensioner earn $300 a fortnight from employment before it counts, and the free area is $226 a fortnight on top of that. Above those thresholds the pension reduces by 50 cents per dollar.
What happens if I gift money away?
Gifting is allowed but heavily restricted. You can give away up to $10,000 a year and $30,000 over five years without it counting as a deprived asset. Above that, the amount is counted as an asset for five years.
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Estimates the Age Pension using published rates and thresholds from 20 September 2026. It does not model deeming in detail, rent assistance, the Work Bonus, transitional rates or the full range of assessable asset types. Centrelink’s determination is authoritative.
Reviewed November 2026 · FY2026–27 rates and thresholds