What keeps you up at night?

New cost-of-living research by National Seniors Australia (NSA) has found that overall older people are most concerned about the affordability of general insurance, power, healthcare, and private health insurance. 

The research based on a survey of over 4,000 seniors conducted as part of our annual social survey in February 2026 asked participants to indicate if they were concerned about the affordability of 12 items: 

• Power 

• Insurance – car, home, other 

• Healthcare 

• Groceries 

• Transport 

• Phone and internet 

• Aged care services 

• Private health insurance 

• Interest and hobbies 

• Holidays and travel 

• Subscriptions and memberships  

• Housing

Results showed that while almost half of older people (46%) were not concerned about the affordability of goods and services, concern levels differed greatly depending on the financial circumstances of survey respondents and the specific goods or services in question. 

Twice as many survey respondents were concerned about insurance, power, healthcare, and private health insurance compared to other items listed in the survey, including phone/internet and aged care.  

While only 15% of seniors were concerned about the affordability of transport, this was before the war on Iran caused fuel prices to spike, so we expect this result to have changed significantly since this time.

Critically, the survey results differed among demographic groups.

Compared to self-funded retirees, the survey found that a greater proportion of full pensioners were concerned about the affordability of goods and services. 

• The difference in the proportion of people concerned about affordability was greatest for transport (34% vs 9%, x3.8), housing (26% vs 7%, x3.7), groceries (39% vs 11%, x3.5), subscriptions (17% vs 5%, x3.4), and phone / internet (27% vs 8%, x3.4), when comparing full pensioners with self-funded retirees. 

• Differences in the proportion of people concerned about affordability was less for power (49% vs 18%, x2.7), interests / hobbies (24% vs 9%, x2.6), general insurance (49% vs 21%, x2.3) and aged care (18% vs 8%, x2.3), when comparing full pensioners with self-funded retirees 

• The difference in the proportion of people concerned about affordability was lowest for healthcare (42% vs 21%, x2), and holidays / travel (42% vs 21%, x2) when comparing full pensioners with self-funded retirees. 

Overall, 59% of self-funded retirees told us they were not concerned about the affordability of any of the listed items compared to only 20% of full pensioners. 

Understandably, full pensioners on limited incomes and with limited savings will be more sensitive to the affordability of goods and services, and our survey helps to quantify the level of this sensitivity. 

The top concerns for part pensioners were private health insurance (33%), holidays and travel (33%), and general insurance (30%). These items were only nominated by approximately 20% of self-funded retirees. 

Interestingly, full pensioners, part pensioners and self-funded retirees were similar in their concern about the affordability of private health insurance, a result that should worry the Federal Government and its plan to cut the private health insurance rebate for seniors.