Revealed: The 10 best-performing super funds over the past 10 years

Yes, super funds had a bad year in 2022.

Most of the default growth funds (these are funds with 60–80% allocation to growth assets) ended the year with a negative return, due to the falls in global share markets as a result of rising inflation.

In fact even the best-performing growth fund for 2022, CareSuper Balanced, returned -2.0% for members according to super research firm Chant West.

Big name industry funds Hostplus and AustralianSuper also delivered negative returns, with -2.5% and -2.7%, respectively.

However, superannuation is a long-term investment, perhaps the longest investment you'll ever make.

So when comparing super funds, look at the long-term performance figures, as these show a much more accurate picture of how the fund has performed on average over many years.

Top 10 Best-performing super funds over 10 years

Super fund	10 year % p.a.*	50k fees
Hostplus – Balanced	8.24%	$623.77	Go to site More info
AustralianSuper – Balanced	8.02%	$387
Australian Retirement Trust – Balanced	8.12%	$472.40	Go to site More info
UniSuper – Balanced	7.84%	$351	Go to site More info
Cbus – Growth	7.71%	$438
CareSuper – Balanced	7.6%	$553
HESTA – Balanced Growth	7.59%	$472	Go to site More info
Legal Super MySuper Balanced	7.05%	$607.60
Vision Super Balanced Growth	7.67%	$393
Aware Super – Growth

*Performance returns for period ending December 2022 according to Chant West.

Even though all 10 funds above returned a negative result for 2022, over the past decade they've managed to return over 8.0% p.a. on average for members.

This is actually ahead of target, according to Chant West senior investment research manager, Mano Mohankumar. "Over the 30½ years since the introduction of compulsory super in July 1992, the median growth fund has delivered an annualised return of 7.8%, which is 1.7% p.a. ahead of the typical return objective of CPI +3.5% p.a."

Seeing your super fund deliver a negative return one year isn't fun for any of us, but luckily, it's not actually all that common.

"This was the first negative calendar year since 2011 and only the fifth in the full 30 years of compulsory super," Mohankumar said.

"It also comes on the back of a particularly strong 2021, so perhaps we were due for a return to earth given the challenging investment backdrop. Most importantly, members should take comfort in the fact that funds are continuing to meet their long-term return objectives."

If you haven't checked how your fund is preforming for a while, it could be time to compare super funds and make the switch.

1 - 17 of 432

Name	Last 1 year performance (p.a.)	Last 3 year performance (p.a.)	Last 5 year performance (p.a.)	Last 10 year performance (p.a.)	Fees on $50k balance (p.a.)
Aware Super Future Saver - MySuper Lifecycle High Growth Industry fundLifestageHigher risk	Last 1 year performance (p.a.) +11.92%	Last 3 year performance (p.a.) +5.03%	Last 5 year performance (p.a.) +8.56%	Last 10 year performance (p.a.) +8.85%	Fees on $50k balance (p.a.) $497	Go to site More Info Compare
Vanguard Super SaveSmart - High Growth Higher risk	Last 1 year performance (p.a.) +14.46%	Last 3 year performance (p.a.) N/A	Last 5 year performance (p.a.) N/A	Last 10 year performance (p.a.) N/A	Fees on $50k balance (p.a.) $270	Go to site More Info Compare
Hostplus Australian Shares Industry fundHigher risk	Last 1 year performance (p.a.) +12.45%	Last 3 year performance (p.a.) +6.66%	Last 5 year performance (p.a.) +8.96%	Last 10 year performance (p.a.) +8.92%	Fees on $50k balance (p.a.) $368	Go to site More Info Compare
Virgin Money Super - LifeStage Tracker Lifestage	Last 1 year performance (p.a.) +14.38%	Last 3 year performance (p.a.) +5.84%	Last 5 year performance (p.a.) +8%	Last 10 year performance (p.a.) N/A	Fees on $50k balance (p.a.) $363	Go to site More Info Compare
Hostplus Indexed Balanced Industry fund	Last 1 year performance (p.a.) +13.75%	Last 3 year performance (p.a.) +5.75%	Last 5 year performance (p.a.) +7.66%	Last 10 year performance (p.a.) +7.77%	Fees on $50k balance (p.a.) $153	Go to site More Info Compare
Australian Retirement Trust - High Growth Industry fundHigher risk	Last 1 year performance (p.a.) +11.81%	Last 3 year performance (p.a.) +7.17%	Last 5 year performance (p.a.) +9.19%	Last 10 year performance (p.a.) +9.28%	Fees on $50k balance (p.a.) $517	Go to site More Info Compare
Spaceship - GrowthX Higher risk	Last 1 year performance (p.a.) +16.94%	Last 3 year performance (p.a.) +4.59%	Last 5 year performance (p.a.) +10.51%	Last 10 year performance (p.a.) N/A	Fees on $50k balance (p.a.) $711	Go to site More Info Compare
AMP Super MySuper Lifestages 1970s Lifestage	Last 1 year performance (p.a.) +12.35%	Last 3 year performance (p.a.) +5.17%	Last 5 year performance (p.a.) +7.22%	Last 10 year performance (p.a.) +7.6%	Fees on $50k balance (p.a.) $506	Go to site More Info Compare
Australian Ethical Super International Shares Green CompanyEthicalHigher risk	Last 1 year performance (p.a.) +16.54%	Last 3 year performance (p.a.) +6.9%	Last 5 year performance (p.a.) +10.56%	Last 10 year performance (p.a.) +10.12%	Fees on $50k balance (p.a.) $643	Go to site More Info Compare
Superhero Super - High Growth Higher risk	Last 1 year performance (p.a.) +17.43%	Last 3 year performance (p.a.) +6.36%	Last 5 year performance (p.a.) +8.73%	Last 10 year performance (p.a.) N/A	Fees on $50k balance (p.a.) $397	Go to site More Info Compare
CFS FC MySuper - Lifestage 1985-89 LifestageHigher risk	Last 1 year performance (p.a.) +15.55%	Last 3 year performance (p.a.) +6.02%	Last 5 year performance (p.a.) +7.66%	Last 10 year performance (p.a.) +7.69%	Fees on $50k balance (p.a.) $375	Go to site More Info Compare
UniSuper - Sustainable High Growth Finder AwardIndustry fundEthicalHigher risk	Last 1 year performance (p.a.) +16.62%	Last 3 year performance (p.a.) +4.29%	Last 5 year performance (p.a.) +9.2%	Last 10 year performance (p.a.) +9.94%	Fees on $50k balance (p.a.) $321	Go to site More Info Compare
Vanguard Super SaveSmart - International Shares Higher risk	Last 1 year performance (p.a.) +17.24%	Last 3 year performance (p.a.) N/A	Last 5 year performance (p.a.) N/A	Last 10 year performance (p.a.) N/A	Fees on $50k balance (p.a.) $280	Go to site More Info Compare
CFS FC MySuper - Lifestage 1975-79 Lifestage	Last 1 year performance (p.a.) +15.1%	Last 3 year performance (p.a.) +5.74%	Last 5 year performance (p.a.) +7.42%	Last 10 year performance (p.a.) +7.58%	Fees on $50k balance (p.a.) $380	Go to site More Info Compare
Australian Retirement Trust - International Shares Index (unhedged) Finder AwardIndustry fundIndexed investmentHigher risk	Last 1 year performance (p.a.) +16.03%	Last 3 year performance (p.a.) +8.13%	Last 5 year performance (p.a.) +11.51%	Last 10 year performance (p.a.) +12.22%	Fees on $50k balance (p.a.) $192	Go to site More Info Compare
Vanguard MySuper - Lifecycle Age 47 and under Lifestage	Last 1 year performance (p.a.) +14.46%	Last 3 year performance (p.a.) N/A	Last 5 year performance (p.a.) N/A	Last 10 year performance (p.a.) N/A	Fees on $50k balance (p.a.) $280	Go to site More Info Compare
Virgin Money Super Indexed Overseas Shares Indexed investmentHigher risk	Last 1 year performance (p.a.) +17.81%	Last 3 year performance (p.a.) +9.48%	Last 5 year performance (p.a.) +12.36%	Last 10 year performance (p.a.) N/A	Fees on $50k balance (p.a.) $385	Go to site More Info Compare

Showing 17 of 102 results

The information in this table is based on data provided by SuperRatings Pty Limited ABN 95 100 192 283, a Corporate Authorised Representative (CAR No.1309956) of Lonsec Research Pty Ltd ABN 11 151 658 561, Australian Financial Services Licence No. 421445. In limited instances, where data is not available from SuperRatings for a product, the data is provided directly by the superannuation fund.

*Past performance data and fee data is for the period ending August 2024

Image: Getty Images

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Written by

Alison Banney

Editor

Alison Banney is the money editorial manager at Finder. She covers all areas of personal finance, and her areas of expertise are superannuation, banking and saving. She has written about finance for 10 years, having previously worked at Westpac and written for several other major banks and super funds. See full bio

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Alison has written 626 Finder guides across topics including:

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2 Responses

KirkFebruary 9, 2023

Looking for a good super that invests in property on top of a decent return

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AlisonFebruary 22, 2023Finder

Hi Kirk, you can compare super funds here: https://www.finder.com.au/super-funds

Using the filters on the left side, if you and select ‘High growth’ and untick the box that says “Only show products with direct links & enquiry options” you’ll see heaps of options for high-growth funds, including many that are focused on property.

Thanks,
Alison

Revealed: The 10 best-performing super funds over the past 10 years

Super funds had a terrible year, but a great decade. Here are the 10 funds that have performed best over the long term.

Top 10 Best-performing super funds over 10 years

Alison Banney

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