Which is the best performing super fund?
Hostplus has overtaken AustralianSuper as the top performer over the last decade, but has your super fund make the top 10? If not, you might want to think about changing funds.
Best performers for the last 10 years
| Super fund | 10 year % p.a. |
|---|---|
| Hostplus – Balanced | 9.7% |
| AustralianSuper – Balanced | 9.3% |
| Australian Retirement Trust – Balanced | 9% |
| Cbus – Growth | 9% |
| UniSuper – Balanced | 8.9% |
| CareSuper – Balanced | 8.7% |
| VicSuper FutureSaver – Growth | 8.7% |
| HESTA – Balanced Growth | 8.5% |
| Hostplus – Indexed Balanced | 8.5% |
| Aware Super – Growth | 8.5% |
The top-performing balanced fund over the last decade was Hostplus Balanced with an average return of 9.7% p.a. Prior to this year, AustralianSuper Balanced has been the top performer over the long term.
AustralianSuper's return of -2.7% for the financial year has resulted in the fund being knocked down and replaced by Hostplus as the top performer. That said, AustralianSuper still came in at second place with an impressive 10-year return of 9.3% p.a.
If you haven't checked your super in a while, the new financial year is a good time to do so. Compare super funds and make sure you're in a high-performing, low-fee fund and if you're not, it's easy to switch funds in 4 steps.
How have super funds performed recently?
Super funds have delivered a loss for the past financial year, largely due to falls in global share markets. However, it's not as bad of an outcome as you might initially think.
According to Chant West, growth funds delivered a loss of 3.3% for the financial year. The Australian share market dropped almost 12% in the same period.
Plus, this is only the fifth year to see negative returns in the past 30. And this year's negative return comes off the back of a record year the year prior, where growth funds returned around 18%.
That said, there were a few balanced super funds to achieve a positive return over the past 12 months.
Best performers for FY 2021-22
| Super fund | 1 year % p.a. |
|---|---|
| Hostplus – Balanced | 1.6% |
| QANTAS Super Gateway – Growth | 0.6% |
| Christian Super – MyEthicalSuper | 0.5% |
| legalsuper – MySuper Balanced | -1% |
| Australian Retirement Trust – Balanced | -1% |
| Energy Super – Balanced | -1.2% |
| Australian Catholic Super Retirement Fund – Balanced | -1.2% |
| CareSuper – Balanced | -1.7% |
| HESTA – Balanced Growth | -1.8% |
| TelstraSuper Corporate Plus – Balanced | -1.9% |
According to Super Ratings the top-performing growth fund for the 12 months to 30 June 2022 was Hostplus Balanced, with a 1.60% return. Given the median fund made a loss, this return is impressive in such a difficult financial climate.
However, it's important to look at the long-term returns when comparing super fund performance instead of just the past 1 year. This is because super is such a long-term investment, and looking at how a fund performs over 10 years will give you a much more accurate picture of the fund.