Our Pick Of The Best Default Superannuation Funds In 2024 (2024)

Superannuation is Australia’s $3.9 trillion retirement savings system, allowing all workers to access savings built from their income once they have left the workforce. These savings start building as soon as Australians begin working, whether on a part-time or full-time basis, and continue to grow across their working life.

By law, employers are required to pay a percentage of an adult worker’s pay into the employee’s chosen superannuation account each pay check. Currently, the superannuation guarantee sits at 11.5% of an employee’s salary—it will rise again in July 1 2025 to reach 12%. The super fund then invests the money into various financial streams, aiming to provide the employee with returns that will increase their super balance come retirement time.

Once an employee retires, they can access their super fund account, which–for most Australians–would have grown over decades due to these regular contributions and returns.

Related: Should You Switch Super Funds?

When choosing a superannuation fund, many Australians simply opt for the default retirement product of the super fund. This is known as the MySuper product, and is the standard financial vehicle that workers will be placed into by their employer unless they elect otherwise. These default products are generally the low-frills option and often have lower fees than more aggressive or actively managed portfolios.

Why Super Matters

Put simply: the earlier you start working (and putting away your money in super) the better off you will be in retirement.

As part of The Productivity Commission’s review of superannuation, the commission used the example of a 21-year-old on a $50,000 starting salary. The commission noted that if they joined a super fund that was regularly in the top 25% of funds rated by performance they could expect to retire at 67 with a super balance of $1.1 million.

However, if the 21-year-old spent their working life contributing to a fund that was regularly in the bottom 25% of performers, they would retire with almost 50% less—that is $610,000 instead of $1.1 million.

Clearly, superannuation is an important part of life, which is why finding the superannuation provider that suits you is paramount. Don’t be scared off from reviewing and comparing different superannuation providers and investment options, either. You can change or consolidate your superannuation funds at any time, which–while it may sound daunting–is actually a relatively simple process. But also be wary of focusing too much on short-term results: if your super fund has a bad year due to macro-economic conditions then it’s worth looking at their performance over time—such as 10 years.

For this analysis, Forbes Advisor has solely focused on the superannuation providers’ default MySuper products as it is overwhelmingly the most popular product among Australians. The returns and costs below are based on a $50,000 balance and are taken from the ATO’s MySuper comparison tool. The returns are current as of September 9, 2024.

Not everyone will be content with a default MySuper product. For example, some workers, especially younger workers with time on their side, may take a more aggressive approach to their super and opt for their chosen fund’s ‘high-growth’ product, which is usually heavily exposed to the share market. Others, perhaps those with fewer working years left before retirement, will play it safe with a more conservative product.

Note: The below list represents a selection of our top category picks, as chosen by Forbes Advisor Australia’s editors and journalists. The information provided is purely factual and is not intended to imply any recommendation, opinion, or advice about a financial product. Not every product or provider in the marketplace has been reviewed, and the list below is not intended to be exhaustive nor replace your own research or independent financial advice. For more information on how Forbes Advisor ranks and reviews products, including how we identified our top category picks, read the methodology selection below.