MySuper funds: What they are and who offers them

MySuper acts as a default investment option inside super funds set up for people who don’t choose their own fund when they start their first job. Before 2021, new accounts were also created when people changed jobs and didn’t make a choice for their super, so you may have more than one. They are designed to be:

• Simple. You will be put into either a single diversified investment option or a lifecycle option, depending on the fund. Your fund’s features and investment returns are explained in plain English and easy to read graphs on a ‘dashboard’ that is readily available online or in print form with your annual statement.
• Low cost. A bit like a basic home loan, you don’t pay for features you don’t need. There are restrictions on the type of fees you can be charged, and fees are restricted to the cost of providing a service.
• Easy to compare. MySuper dashboards follow a standard format so they can be easily compared. Be mindful, though, that single option funds should not be compared directly with lifecycle MySuper products.

Retail, industry, and corporate funds can all offer MySuper investments to members in accumulation phase (pre-retirement). However, MySuper options can’t be offered in defined benefit funds and they are not available in super pension accounts for retirees. However, the same diversified option may be available for pension accounts, without the other MySuper features such as fee restrictions and a product dashboard.

A little history

MySuper began as part of the Stronger Super reforms introduced in 2011 by the Gillard Government to replace existing default super products. Legislation was enacted in 2012 and since 1 January 2014 only funds offering a MySuper product have been eligible to receive default super contributions for new employees. These days, if you start a new job and don’t choose a super fund, one of two things will happen:

• If you already have an account with a super fund, this fund is ‘stapled’ to you as you move from job to job. In this case, your new employer will make Super Guarantee (SG) contributions into your stapled fund.
• If you don’t have an existing account with a super fund, your employer will put your SG contributions into a fund that offers a MySuper investment option. That fund will put your savings in the MySuper investment until you choose an alternative investment strategy. The fund may be chosen by your employer or be part of an industry agreement.

Stapling was introduced to combat the estimated one in three super accounts that were unintended multiples, accumulated as people moved employers. Historically, member accounts were attached to the employer, not the employee.

To remedy this situation, and answer one of the criticisms of both the Productivity Commission and the Financial Services Royal Commission, the government enacted legislation to staple super accounts to employees. This was part of the Your Future, Your Super package announced in the October 2020 Budget and took effect on 1 November 2021.

The other big issue for MySuper is defaulting members into poorly performing funds.

APRA turns up the heat on underperforming funds

As part of the Your Future, Your Super package, an annual performance test for MySuper products was created in 2021, and in 2023 the test was extended to some choice investments. The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) conducts the test, with super trustees required to inform members that have savings in an underperforming investment option, and to close options to new members if the test is failed repeatedly.

Since the test’s introduction, APRA has observed a fall in fees and the removal of underperforming options. In the 2026 test, 49 of the 50 MySuper products passed. BUSSQ MySuper failed, after no MySuper products failed in 2024 or 2025.

As part of the same package of reform, the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) launched an online MySuper comparison tool that ranks MySuper option by fees and net returns. The tool also indicates if a product has failed the performance test.

How do they work?

If you have a MySuper account and want to get better acquainted, the first thing to check is whether you are in a single diversified investment product or a lifecycle product. The two approaches can result in very different risk and return profiles, especially early and late in your working life.

In practice the MySuper product offered by a fund is just their default investment option. The fund will have a range of other investment options and you can even hold some of your account in the MySuper option and the rest in another option (or a range of other options).

Just over half of MySuper products (27 of 50, or 54%) are single strategy options with a fixed asset allocation that’s the same for every member, whatever their age. On the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority’s (APRA’s) measure, these options hold between 68% and 81% in higher risk growth assets such as shares and property, with a median of 76%. The rest is in lower risk defensive assets such as cash and fixed interest. The risk and return profile stays medium-high throughout your working life.

The other 23 products (46%) use a lifecycle or lifestage approach and automatically reduce your exposure to growth investments, and increase defensive investments, as you age and get closer to retirement. Between them they hold 5.2 million accounts, about a third of all MySuper accounts. Most retail sector MySuper funds are lifecycle, but some industry funds also use this approach.

The mix of growth and defensive investments in lifecycle accounts is based on your age. Some funds set it by your exact age, others by a five-year or ten-year band of birth years. On APRA’s measure, the median lifecycle product holds the following in growth assets:

• 90% at age 25
• 87% at age 50
• 81% at age 55
• 74% at age 60
• 67% at age 65.

This results in a progressive reduction in risk, from high for younger members to medium-high from your late 50s. Most lifecycle products still hold well over half their investments in growth assets at 65. Some big funds have refined their lifecycle approach on concerns that lumping people into decade cohorts is too broad.

For example, Australian Retirement Trust (previously Sunsuper) transfers small amounts from growth to defensive investments every year from age 50 to 65.

Fees and insurance

One of the guiding principles behind MySuper was the need for greater transparency, and this is particularly so where fees are involved.

MySuper funds are required to disclose all fees and the type of fees that are permitted are defined in law. Some fees must be limited to the cost of providing a service. Fees are charged for administration, investment and other services such as switching funds or contribution splitting.

One of the main features of MySuper dashboards is that fees are added up and reported as a single dollar figure for a member with a $50,000 balance. This allows for an easy comparison of total fees across MySuper funds.

MySuper funds are also required to offer a basic level of cover for life and TPD (Total and Permanent Disability) insurance for most, but not all members. Insurance is now ‘opt-in’ for members aged under 25 or with an account balance below $6,000 so their retirement savings aren’t eroded by fees for cover they may not need. This change was part of the Putting Members’ Interests First legislation that came into effect on 1 April 2020.

How to compare MySuper funds

If you know which superannuation providers you are interested in, you can go directly to their websites and check their MySuper dashboard.

The ATO’s comparison tool allows you to search and compare MySuper funds. You can search under type of fund, ranked by fees or returns.

When you compare MySuper funds, make sure you are checking like for like. For example, don’t compare the performance of a lifecycle fund with a single diversified investment fund. And when you check fees, drill down to see if services you need are covered.

List of all MySuper products

The table lists all 50 MySuper products by number of member accounts. For each product’s growth assets and 10-year return, see the tables in our guides on what lifecycle super funds can teach younger members (age 25) and what they can teach us about investment risk around retirement (age 60).

Fund	MySuper product	Type	Member accounts	Fund assets in MySuper
AustralianSuper	Balanced	Single strategy	3,187,900	54%
Rest	Growth	Single strategy	1,993,890	77%
Hostplus	Balanced	Single strategy	1,641,950	56%
Australian Retirement Trust	Lifecycle Investment Strategy	Lifecycle	1,472,450	27%
HESTA	Balanced Growth	Single strategy	978,570	69%
Aware Super	MySuper Lifecycle	Lifecycle	959,670	52%
Cbus	Growth	Single strategy	767,560	69%
CareSuper	Balanced	Single strategy	570,070	72%
Australian Retirement Trust	QSuper Lifetime	Lifecycle	505,860	17%
UniSuper	Balanced	Single strategy	412,910	21%
Mercer Super	SmartPath	Lifecycle	407,410	50%
MLC Super	MLC MySuper	Lifecycle	378,690	40%
AMP	SignatureSuper MySuper	Lifecycle	343,030	39%
ANZ Smart Choice Super	MySuper	Lifecycle	274,090	41%
Colonial First State	FirstChoice Employer Super MySuper	Lifecycle	168,350	14%
PSSap	MySuper Balanced	Single strategy	148,300	65%
Essential Super	Lifestage	Lifecycle	134,560	87%
Prime Super	MySuper	Single strategy	133,670	73%
Brighter Super	MySuper	Single strategy	129,580	44%
Team Super	MySuper Lifecycle	Lifecycle	124,270	62%
Australian Ethical	Balanced (Accumulation)	Single strategy	98,770	45%
Equip Super	MySuper	Single strategy	94,250	39%
Guild Super	MySuper Lifecycle	Lifecycle	93,610	81%
NGS Super	Diversified	Single strategy	91,780	57%
Virgin Money Super	LifeStage Tracker	Lifecycle	88,420	2%
First Super	Balanced	Single strategy	69,590	82%
BUSSQ	MySuper	Single strategy	66,480	72%
Vision Super	MySuper	Single strategy	65,190	23%
Australian Food Super	MySuper	Single strategy	61,670	81%
IOOF	MySuper	Single strategy	61,420	6%
Active Super	Lifestage	Lifecycle	51,720	20%
Russell Investments iQ Super	GoalTracker	Lifecycle	45,620	36%
Vanguard Super	Lifecycle	Lifecycle	44,870	43%
ADF Super	MySuper Balanced	Single strategy	42,840	67%
legalsuper	MySuper Balanced	Single strategy	34,510	46%
smartMonday	PRIME MySuper	Lifecycle	32,000	32%
MLC Super	NAB Staff MySuper	Single strategy	21,940	4%
Rei Super	Balanced	Single strategy	21,510	70%
ANZ Staff Super	Balanced	Single strategy	14,260	38%
NESS Super	MySuper	Single strategy	11,350	64%
Bendigo Super	MySuper	Lifecycle	8,820	39%
Mercer Super	WGSP MySuper	Lifecycle	8,810	2%
Mercer Super	Tailored (CRG) MySuper	Lifecycle	7,960	2%
Macquarie Group Super Plan	MySuper	Single strategy	5,440	1%
Lutheran Super Plan	MySuper	Single strategy	3,320	Under 1%
AMP	SignatureSuper Water Corp MySuper	Lifecycle	2,680	1%
Superhero Super	MySuper Growth	Single strategy	2,530	2%
AMP	SignatureSuper AFLPA AFL MySuper	Lifecycle	2,370	Under 1%
Mercer Super	Santos MySuper	Lifecycle	1,300	Under 1%
ANZ Smart Choice Super	QBE Super Plan MySuper	Lifecycle	1,210	1%

Fund assets in MySuper is the share of the fund’s total assets held in its MySuper product. Source: APRA, Comprehensive Product Performance Package, MySuper products, 30 June 2026