I guess you have three options:

1/ reinvest all dividends as a way to add to your holding (usually) at a discounted SP
2/ take all your dividends as cash
3/ Do a mixture of both eg: elect to reinvest a portion of your dividend for each holding, and take the other portion in cash.

DRP is a good way to increase your holding, if that is what you want to do. What you elect to do before retirement may not be what you elect to do after you retire. It also depends on the size of your investment, what other sources of retirement income you will have, and what your chosen standard of living in retirement will be.

Quote Originally Posted by Sgt Pepper View Post
How important are dividend reinvestment plans when considering investing for relatively reliable dividend income streams?