Best-Performing Super Funds Over 10 Years Revealed
3 min
The top-performing balanced super fund in Australia has delivered average annual returns of almost 9% over the past decade, according to research. Consumer comparison company Finder has published a list of the top-performing super funds over the 10 years to 30 June 2023, with Hostplus revealed as the No. 1 investment for returns.
Chant West provided the data, canvassing only balanced investment options among super funds. Balanced investment options are popular because they typically spread an investor’s superannuation monies across several asset classes, including shares, infrastructure, property, bonds and cash.
Here are the 5 top-performing super funds over the past decade
Hostplus Balanced (average 8.9% p.a.)
Hostplus’s balanced portfolio invests primarily in high growth assets with high stock diversification, according to the website. The minimum investment timeframe is more than five years and the target return is inflation (CPI) plus 4% p.a. over 20 years. The total investment fee is estimated at 0.98% p.a.
AustralianSuper Balanced (average 8.6% p.a)
This super fund invests in a wide range of assets, including shares, private equity, infrastructure, property, fixed interest, credit and cash, according to the website. The minimum investment timeframe is 10 years and the target return is CPI plus a minimum 4% p.a. over the medium to long term. In an example of fees on a $50,000 portfolio, the fee totalled 0.76% p.a.
Australian Retirement Trust (average 8.4% p.a.)
This fund has adopted the investment strategy of the Sunsuper Balanced investment option, according to the website. It invests in a wide variety of asset classes with a large allocation to Australian and international shares. The minimum investment timeframe is five years and the target return is CPI plus 3.5% p.a. over 10 years. The total investment fee is estimated at 0.8% p.a.
UniSuper Balanced (average 8.4% p.a.)
UniSuper balanced invests in a diversified portfolio of mainly higher-risk assets such as Australian and international shares, property, infrastructure and private equity, with some fixed interest and cash investments, according to the website. The minimum investment timeframe is 10 years and the target return is CPI plus 3% p.a. over 10 years. The total investment fee is estimated at 0.51% p.a.
Cbus Growth (MySuper) (average 8.3% p.a.)
The Cbus MySuper fund invests in growth assets including Australian shares and global shares, private equity, infrastructure, property, global credit, fixed interest and cash. The target return is CPI plus 3.5% p.a. over 10 years. The total investment fee is estimated at 0.5% p.a.
Source: Chant West, average annual returns among balanced super funds, 10 years to 30 June 2023
If we compare these funds’ performance to other assets owned by Australian investors, we find that over this same 10-year period, the median house price across Australia’s combined capital cities rose by about 70%. In other words, your home’s value grew by an average of 7% per year, according to CoreLogic data. If you owned an investment property during this time period, then rental returns would be added on top.
Compared to shares, the top super funds above outperformed the ASX 200. Using a popular index-based exchange-traded fund (ETF) as our yardstick, we see that the iShares Core S&P/ASX 200 ETF (ASX: IOZ) has delivered an average annual return of 7.5% (combined capital growth and dividends) since inception in 2010.
If you want to switch super funds, Finder provides the following advice and a four-step process.
Step 1: Choose a new super fund
Look for a combination of low annual fees, high long-term returns (10 year performance) and an investment strategy you understand and agree with.
Step 2: Join the new super fund
Download and complete the new membership form from the fund’s website.
Step 3: Transfer your existing super
Download and complete a second form to transfer your existing super to the new fund.
Step 4: Tell your employer
Download and complete a third form from your new fund’s website called the ‘employee super choice form’ or similar.
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Luxury watch anniversaries often produce overtly nostalgic designs. Rolex has taken a more restrained route for the centenary of the Oyster, translating references to its 1926 breakthrough into a contemporary Oyster Perpetual 41 rather than reproducing a historic model.
The original Rolex Oyster is central to the company’s mythology. Introduced in 1926, it was presented as the first waterproof wristwatch, using a hermetically sealed case to protect the movement from water and dust. The architecture would go on to underpin the professional and everyday watches that built Rolex’s global reputation.
One hundred years later, the new Oyster Perpetual 41 carries details intended to echo that origin. Rolex describes the model as a centenary tribute and positions it within the direct line of descendants from the first Oyster. The appeal is not a conspicuous anniversary inscription, but the idea that an apparently simple three-hand watch embodies a century of incremental refinement.
Hans Waldorf, the founder of Rolex and Tudor. Image credit: Rolex
At 41 millimetres, it has the scale expected of the modern Oyster Perpetual line. The case, bracelet and automatic movement follow Rolex’s familiar formula: robust construction, legibility and an absence of unnecessary complication. That simplicity is precisely what gives the model breadth. It can serve as a first serious watch, an understated daily piece or a historically meaningful addition to a larger collection.
The launch also arrives as Rolex strengthens its Superlative Chronometer certification. The company says its 2026 standard expands the testing framework with additional criteria addressing magnetism, reliability and sustainability. Buyers should treat those claims as manufacturer specifications until independent long-term testing becomes available, but the change shows where major watchmakers see the next contest for credibility: not only accuracy, but resilience over years of ownership.
For collectors, the centenary context will be the headline. For everyone else, the attraction is more elemental. The Oyster Perpetual has no rotating bezel, chronograph registers or calendar window demanding attention. It is Rolex reduced to its essentials — waterproof case, automatic movement, clear dial and a design intended to outlast fashion.
That makes the 100th-anniversary model a fitting tribute. The original Oyster was important because it made a wristwatch more usable in daily life. A century later, Rolex is celebrating it with a watch designed around the same promise.
About Rolex
Hans Wilsdorf was a German-born watchmaker and entrepreneur, best known for founding Rolex and Tudor. Pioneering innovations like the waterproof Oyster case (1926) and self-winding Perpetual rotor (1931), he transformed wristwatches into precise, durable luxury items.
A master marketer, he introduced brand ambassadors and global expansion strategies. In 1945, he created the Hans Wilsdorf Foundation, ensuring Rolex’s profits support philanthropic causes beyond his death in 1960.
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