Canstar reveals the winners of its Superannuation Awards for 2022

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Which super funds offer outstanding value to Australians in 2022 based on investment performance, fees and features? Canstar reveals the winners of its latest Superannuation Star Ratings and Awards.

Australians’ super balances have been on something of a rollercoaster over the past few years, with the average net return delivered by funds swinging from -0.58% in 2020, to a bumper year in 2021 with average net returns of 19.03%. This is based on default superannuation investment options available for a 30 year old rated in Canstar’s Superannuation Star Ratings.

At the same time, there have been some big changes to the make-up of the industry, with a number of high-profile mergers and acquisitions contributing to a drop in the number of funds in operation, Canstar data shows. Some well-known brands exited the market, with new ones taking their place in some cases.

While the range of options has shrunk, there have been positives for consumers recently. Average total fees charged by funds dropped from 1.14% in 2021 to 1.09% in 2021, having dropped by a similar amount the previous year. Again, this is based on default superannuation investment options available for a 30 year old rated in Canstar’s Superannuation Star Ratings.

2022 Outstanding Value Superannuation Award winners

Canstar has recognised the following superannuation funds with an Award for Outstanding Value in 2022. The funds and individual products are listed below in alphabetical order by fund name.

Australian Retirement Trust: Super Savings (formerly Sunsuper For Life)
AustralianSuper: AustralianSuper
Aware Super: Aware Super – Personal
Cbus Super: Cbus Industry Super
Hostplus: Hostplus Personal Super
UniSuper: UniSuper – Personal Account
VicSuper: VicSuper FutureSaver PersonalSaver

To learn more about how the funds were assessed, read the Superannuation Star Ratings and Awards methodology. You can also use Canstar’s comparison tables to see how each of the superannuation products on our database was rated.

Australian Retirement Trust

Australian Retirement Trust, which is a newly established fund created following the merger of Sunsuper and QSuper, is a recipient of a Canstar Outstanding Value Award for 2022. The fund’s award win is based on the performance of its Super Savings product, which was formerly known as Sunsuper For Life. Sunsuper had previously won a Canstar award each year from 2011 to 2021.

Australian Retirement Trust offers members a choice of 19 different investment options for its Super Savings accumulation account, ranging from premixed options to single-asset classes, as well as information and support tools to help members manage their super. Following the merger, QSuper continues as its own brand as part of Australian Retirement Trust.

AustralianSuper

Australia’s largest super fund, AustralianSuper, is once again one of the recipients of Canstar’s Outstanding Value Awards. This makes it 11 years in a row that the fund has received this award. AustralianSuper was one of the top performers across the range of consumer profiles considered, earning a 5-Star Rating in all but one of the 25 categories.

AustralianSuper offers members a range of investment options, including its default Balanced option and other ‘PreMixed’ options. Members can also invest in ‘DIY Mix’ and ‘Member Direct’ options, which offer greater flexibility to members to choose how their money is invested. Additionally, AustralianSuper offers online learning tools and advice options, ranging from super webinars to simple super advice and comprehensive financial advice for a fee.

Aware Super

Aware Super is another of the top performing funds in Canstar’s 2022 Superannuation Star Ratings and Awards. The Aware Super Personal product (High Growth option) received a 5-Star Rating in each of the consumer profiles based on consumers in their 20s, 30s, 40s and 50s, across all balance levels considered.

According to Canstar Research, Aware Super shifted its default option for those under 50 from Growth to High Growth, and this – paired with strong 2021 investment returns – were among the factors that contributed to its award win this year.

Cbus Super

Australia’s largest super fund for the building, construction and allied industries, Cbus, has also received Canstar’s Outstanding Value Superannuation Award for 2022.

Canstar Research noted that Cbus offers outstanding value to customers through its impressive returns. Most members are invested in Cbus’ default Growth (MySuper) option, but Cbus also offers members a choice of pre-mixed and DIY investment options so customers can mix and match. Cbus also caps fees for customers with larger balances, and Canstar Research said this also contributed to its strong overall performance.

Hostplus

This is the fifth year in a row that Hostplus has won Canstar’s Superannuation Award. Hostplus was traditionally a super fund for workers in the hospitality, tourism, recreation and sport industries, but is now open to all Australians.

Hostplus performed strongly across all consumer profiles considered, earning a 5-Star Rating in all 25 categories for its default Balanced option. Hostplus offers a range of other investment options, including other pre-mixed options, sector options and a ‘Choiceplus’ investment option, which allows members to take a more active role in their investments.

UniSuper

This is the first year UniSuper has received Canstar’s Outstanding Value Superannuation Award. UniSuper was previously only open to people working in the higher education or research sector. But in mid 2021 it opened its doors to the public.

According to Canstar Research, UniSuper had impressive returns over all years considered, particularly in years like 2020 where the market overall didn’t fare as well. Customers are invested in its Balance investment option by default. UniSuper also offers a range of pre-mixed options and sector options.

VicSuper

VicSuper has received Canstar’s Outstanding Value Superannuation Award for the third year in a row. VicSuper is part of Aware Super, after merging with First State Super (now Aware Super) in 2020.

VicSuper offers customers nine different investment options, including its default Growth (MySuper) option, as well as Equity Growth, Socially Conscious, Balanced, Capital Stable, Capital Secure, Australian Shares, Cash and Term Deposit options.

Compare super funds

Date published: 16 March 2022.

This article was reviewed by our Sub Editor Jacqueline Belesky before it was updated, as part of our fact-checking process.

Sean Callery

Former Deputy Editor

Sean Callery is a former Deputy Editor at Canstar. When at Canstar, he and his team covered just about every finance and lifestyle topic under the sun, from property to budgeting to the nitty-gritty of financial products like home loans, superannuation, and insurance. Sean has written and edited hundreds of finance articles for Canstar and his work has been referenced far and wide by other publications and media outlets, including Yahoo Finance and 9News.

Sean has accumulated more than a decade of international experience in communications roles – in Australia, the UK and Ireland – across finance, banking, consumer and legal affairs, and more. His work as a journalist has featured in various publications and media outlets, including the Drogheda Independent, the Law Society of Scotland Journal and Ireland’s national broadcaster, Raidió Teilifís Éireann. Before joining Canstar, Sean oversaw content at Great Southern Bank (formerly CUA), one of Australia’s biggest member-owned financial institutions. He has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism (Dublin City University) and a Masters Degree in Creative Advertising (Edinburgh Napier University).