The Real Cost of Retirement in Ireland. And How to Work Out Your Own Number

This is one of Paddy's Pension Pieces: a new, short-form series on the channel that takes a single question from a longer episode and works through it on its own. This one tackles the number the average Irish retiree actually needs, according to the Pensions Council's own benchmarks. If you're within a decade of retirement and have never sat down and worked out a real number, this is for you. The Pensions Council's research puts a comfortable retirement for a couple at just over €43,000 a year, with the State Pension already covering a significant share of that once both partners qualify. The calculation itself takes four inputs: your monthly spending, what disappears in retirement, what increases, and your State Pension. Divide the gap by 0.04, and you have a rough sense of the pension pot required. This piece is a short cut from a fuller episode — "There's one calculation that tells you whether you can actually afford to retire" — where Paddy walks through the full framework, the Dublin effect on cost of living, and how tax works in the drawdown phase. Worth the full listen if this raises more questions than it answers. 🎙️ Full podcast episode and 📖 Blog: https://www.informeddecisions.ie/post... 📊 Want to check where you are? Try our free 5-minute Retirement Readiness Scorecard: https://www.informeddecisions.ie/pens... 📅 Find out how we work: https://www.informeddecisions.ie DISCLAIMER This video is for general educational purposes only and does not constitute personalised financial advice. Everyone's situation is different — always speak to a qualified, independent advisor before making pension or investment decisions. Tax rules and pension regulations change; figures quoted are accurate at time of recording. #RetirementPlanningIreland #IrishPensions #PensionIreland #ARFIreland #RetirementIncome