Social Security pays millions of seniors a monthly benefit, and for many, that income is the only money they have access to during retirement. But going a similar route could be disastrous for you. Here's why.

The amount of replacement income you need during retirement will hinge on factors such as the lifestyle you expect to lead and the ways you'd like to occupy your time. Someone who wants to hang on to a larger home and do a lot of travel is apt to need more income than someone who intends to downsize and spend time volunteering locally.

But as a general rule, you should expect to need about 70% to 80% of your former earnings to live comfortably as a retiree. If you're an average earner, Social Security will replace about 40% of your pre-retirement wages. So clearly, if you want to get to that 70% to 80% mark, you'll need other income sources, like savings, a pension, or a part-time job.

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Source Fool.com