• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
SuperGuide

SuperGuide

Superannuation and retirement planning information

  • Join SuperGuide Premium
  • Account
  • Log In
  • Join SuperGuide Premium
  • Account
  • Log In
  • How super works
    • Super for beginners
    • Super rules
    • Employers guide to super
    • Super contributions
    • Super and tax
    • Accessing super
    • Super news
    • Women and super
    • Super tips and strategies
    • How-to guides
    • Super quizzes
    • Superannuation Q&As
    • Superannuation glossary
  • Super funds
    • Best performing super funds
    • Super fund rankings
    • Best performing pension funds
    • Pension fund rankings
    • Super fund average returns
    • Super investing strategies
    • Comparing super funds
    • Choosing a super fund
    • Choosing an investment option
    • Super fund fees
    • Insurance and super
    • Super fund profiles
  • SMSFs
    • SMSFs for beginners
    • SMSF administration
    • SMSF checklists
    • SMSF compliance
    • SMSF investing
    • SMSF pensions
    • SMSF strategies
    • SMSF Q&As
  • Plan your retirement
    • Retirement planning for beginners
    • When should I retire?
    • How long will I live?
    • How much super do I need?
    • Will I get the Age Pension?
    • How much will I spend in retirement?
    • Financial advice
    • Retiring overseas
    • Preparing for retirement
    • Retirement planning strategies
    • Retirement calculators and reckoners
  • In retirement
    • Income in retirement
    • Super lump sums
    • Super pensions
    • Age Pension
    • Working in retirement
    • Life in retirement
    • Senior concessions and services
    • Aged care
    • Estate planning
    • Super death benefits

Home / Super funds / Super fund average returns / Investment performance reckoners / Monthly super fund performance Reckoner: Monthly returns for 5 investment categories

Monthly super fund performance Reckoner: Monthly returns for 5 investment categories

March 17, 2021 by Barbara Drury Leave a Comment

Reading time: 1 minute

In the reckoner below you can view the median monthly investment returns for 5 superannuation investment options going back to January 2016. We’re grateful to Chant West for providing the statistics that power the reckoner.

See also: Super fund performance: Monthly returns


Important: Superannuation is primarily a long-term investment. While the monthly investment returns can be interesting to readers who pay close attention to their investments, and perhaps would like to spot trends over particular times of the year, it’s important to remember that ideally super is built up over a working lifetime. That could equate to more than 500 working months, or more than 40 years.

Don’t panic about a negative month here or there because superannuation funds have been providing positive returns for 24 of the last 28 financial years.


The reckoner is easy to use. Just click on the blue filter boxes. You can then select if you’d like to filter by particular investment options, or by particular months. Just click the OK buttons to select those filters and the table will update automatically.

Investment option Month
wdt_ID Investment option Month 2015 return (%) 2016 return (%) 2017 return (%) 2018 return (%) 2019 return (%) 2020 return (%) 2021 return (%)
1 All Growth January 0.0 -4.0 -0.5 1.0 4.0 2.5 0.3
2 All Growth February 0.0 -1.2 1.7 -0.4 4.0 -5.4 1.6
3 All Growth March 0.0 2.3 2.3 -1.6 0.8 -12.9
4 All Growth April 0.0 2.0 2.1 2.7 2.7 5.7
5 All Growth May 0.0 3.3 0.5 0.5 -1.7 3.2
6 All Growth June 0.0 -2.2 -0.4 1.6 3.3 1.1
7 All Growth July 3.7 4.1 -0.1 1.6 1.9 1.2
8 All Growth August -2.2 0.3 0.8 1.6 -1.3 2.9
9 All Growth September -2.2 -0.2 1.4 -0.2 1.7 -1.4
10 All Growth October 4.9 -1.3 3.5 -5.3 0.6 0.7

Source: Chant West. Performance is shown net of investment fees and tax, and before administration and adviser commissions.

Learn more about super fund performance in the following SuperGuide articles:

Super fund performance: Monthly returns to February 2021

Super fund performance: Monthly returns to February 2021

March 17, 2021

Pension fund performance to December 2020

Pension fund performance to December 2020

February 16, 2021

Super fund performance over 28 calendar years (to December 2020)

Super fund performance over 28 calendar years (to December 2020)

January 19, 2021

Annual super fund performance Reckoner: Annual returns for 5 investment categories

Annual super fund performance Reckoner: Annual returns for 5 investment categories

January 19, 2021

What are lifecycle super funds, and how do they perform?

What are lifecycle super funds, and how do they perform?

September 16, 2020

Superannuation funds: Does size really matter?

Superannuation funds: Does size really matter?

June 3, 2019

Fund Performance: SMSFs vs APRA super funds

Fund Performance: SMSFs vs APRA super funds

May 7, 2019

Learn more about the best performing super funds in the following SuperGuide articles:

Best performing super funds: All Growth category (96–100%)

Best performing super funds: All Growth category (96–100%)

February 15, 2021

Best performing super funds: High Growth category (81–95%)

Best performing super funds: High Growth category (81–95%)

February 15, 2021

Best performing super funds: Growth category (61–80%)

Best performing super funds: Growth category (61–80%)

February 15, 2021

Best performing super funds: Balanced category (41–60%)

Best performing super funds: Balanced category (41–60%)

February 15, 2021

Best performing super funds: Conservative category (21–40%)

Best performing super funds: Conservative category (21–40%)

February 15, 2021

Super funds of the year awards: Best super funds for 2020/21

Super funds of the year awards: Best super funds for 2020/21

December 9, 2020

Top 10 Balanced super funds ranked by risk and return

Top 10 Balanced super funds ranked by risk and return

August 4, 2020

Top performing sustainable investment funds

Top performing sustainable investment funds

April 12, 2019

Related topics

Investment performance reckoners Super fund average returns Super funds

IMPORTANT: All information on SuperGuide is general in nature only and does not take into account your personal objectives, financial situation or needs. You should consider whether any information on SuperGuide is appropriate to you before acting on it. If SuperGuide refers to a financial product you should obtain the relevant product disclosure statement (PDS) or seek personal financial advice before making any investment decisions. Comments provided by readers that may include information relating to tax, superannuation or other rules cannot be relied upon as advice. SuperGuide does not verify the information provided within comments from readers. Learn more

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

How super works
Super for beginners
Super rules
Employers guide to super
Super contributions
Super and tax
Accessing super
Super news
Women and super
Super tips and strategies
How-to guides
Super quizzes
Superannuation Q&As
Superannuation glossary
Super funds
Best performing super funds
Super fund rankings
Best performing pension funds
Pension fund rankings
Super fund average returns
Super investing strategies
Comparing super funds
Choosing a super fund
Choosing an investment option
Super fund fees
Insurance and super
Super fund profiles
SMSFs
SMSFs for beginners
SMSF administration
SMSF checklists
SMSF compliance
SMSF investing
SMSF pensions
SMSF strategies
SMSF Q&As
Plan your retirement
Retirement planning for beginners
When should I retire?
How long will I live?
How much super do I need?
Will I get the Age Pension?
How much will I spend in retirement?
Financial advice
Retiring overseas
Preparing for retirement
Retirement planning strategies
Retirement calculators and reckoners
In retirement
Income in retirement
Super lump sums
Super pensions
Age Pension
Working in retirement
Life in retirement
Senior concessions and services
Aged care
Estate planning
Super death benefits
Compare super funds

Footer

Important: Disclaimer

All information on SuperGuide is general in nature only and does not take into account your personal objectives, financial situation or needs.

You should consider whether any information on SuperGuide is appropriate to you before acting on it.

If SuperGuide refers to a financial product you should obtain the relevant product disclosure statement (PDS) or seek personal financial advice before making any investment decisions.

Learn more

About SuperGuide

SuperGuide is Australia’s leading superannuation and retirement planning website. Learn more

Superguide Pty Ltd ATF Superguide Unit Trust as a Corporate Authorised Representative (CAR) is a Corporate Authorised Representative of Independent Financial Advisers Australia, AFSL 464629

  • Contact us
  • Advertise on SuperGuide
  • Careers

Before using this website

  • New to SuperGuide?
  • Terms and Conditions of Use
  • Financial Services Guide
  • Privacy Policy and Privacy Collection
  • Copyright Policy
  • Editorial Policy and Complaints
  • Disclaimer

  • SuperGuide Premium
  • Subscriber feedback
  • Sitemap
SuperGuide

Dynamic title for modals

Are you sure?

Please confirm deletion. There is no undo!