If you have ever checked your super balance and wondered whether you are “behind” for your age, you aren’t alone.

To see where you truly sit, you should ignore “averages”, which can be skewed by a small number of very large balances. Instead, we look at the median, which is the middle value. Half of people have more than this amount, and half have less.

Some of us use our balance as a scorecard for how well we are doing at life. But super balances are rarely about how “good” you are with money. They are just a mirror of your working life. They reflect whether you worked full-time, took career breaks, or moved between jobs.

It’s easy to put off thinking about superannuation when retirement is years away. In this five-part series, we ask top experts to explain how to sort your super in a few simple steps, avoid greenwashing, and set goals for retirement.

When the super gender gap widens

You’ll notice in this table that the gap between men and women is small in their 20s but grows significantly from their 30s.

This is not a coincidence. Australia’s super system was built in the 1990s around the idea of an uninterrupted, full-time career over 40 years. In reality, many women reduce working hours or take parental leave during their careers.........

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