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NOTE: Sunsuper has changed its name to be Australian Retirement Trust, and merged with QSuper. All the previous Sunsuper investment options have remained the same.
Australian Retirement Trust and HESTA are both member-owned super funds which are open to all Australians to join.
Australian Retirement Trust vs HESTA
Let's dive in and compare the two super funds side by side, so you can see which one might be right for you.
Australian Retirement Trust
HESTA
Type of fund
Public-offer industry fund
Industry super fund with a focus on the healthcare sector
This fund is a pre-mixed, diversified fund that invests in a range of assets with a strong allocation towards Australian and international shares and is an authorised MySuper product.
This product is also a lifecycle fund that will automatically reduce your exposure to high-risk assets like shares as you get closer to retirement. It's split into three different life stages.
This is a ready-made investment portfolio with a strong focus on shares, private equity and infrastructure. Unlike Australian Retirement Trust - Lifecycle, the investment allocation is the same for all members in the HESTA Balanced fund, regardless of age. It's an authorised MySuper product.
Performance
Past performance of Australian Retirement Trust (formerly Sunsuper for Life) - Lifecycle Balanced Pool, to June 2023:
10 years: 8.4% p.a.
5 years: 6.98% p.a.
Past performance of HESTA Balanced Growth, to June 2023:
10 years: 8.02% p.a.
5 years: 6.56% p.a.
Fees
Here's how much you'd pay in fees for one year if you had the following amounts invested in this product:
$5,000 balance: $110.90 in fees
$50,000 balance: $547.40 in fees
$100,000 balance: $1,032.40 in fees
Here's how much you'd pay in fees for one year if you had the following amounts invested in HESTA Balanced Growth:
$5,000 balance: $94.50 in fees
$50,000 balance: $477 in fees
$100,000 balance: $902 in fees
Additional diversified investment options
If you don't want to invest in the default option (Australian Retirement Trust Lifecycle), you can choose to invest your super in one of the following pre-made investment options instead:
Growth
Balanced
Balanced - Indexed
Socially Conscious Balanced
Diversified Alternatives
Retirement
Conservative
If you don't want to invest in the default option (HESTA Balanced Growth), you can choose to invest your super in one of the following pre-made investment options instead:
High Growth
Sustainable Growth
Indexed Balanced Growth
Conservative
Single asset class investment options
If you want to design your own investment mix, you can invest your super in one or more of the following individual asset classes:
Shares
Australian Shares
Property
Diversified Bonds
Cash
Australian Shares (Indexed)
International Shares (indexed hedged)
International Shares (indexed unhedged)
Emerging Markets Shares
Australian Property (Indexed)
Diversified Bonds (Indexed)
If you want to design your own investment mix, you can invest your super in one or more of the following individual asset classes:
Australian Shares
International Shares
Property and Infrastructure
Diversified Bonds
Cash and Term Deposits
Ethical investment
The Australian Retirement Trust Socially Conscious Balanced investment option avoids investment in companies that generate more than 5% of their revenue from alcohol, tobacco, gambling, pornography, coal or nuclear power manufacturing among other harmful industries.
This fund is certified by the Responsible Investment Association Australasia.
The HESTA Sustainable Growth option invests in companies "with above average environmental, social and governance performance". It lists its top 20 holdings on its website.
This fund is not certified by the Responsible Investment Association Australasia.
However, Australian Retirement Trust Lifecycle is a lifestage fund which adjusts your investment mix in line with your age group. This product will gradually reduce your exposure to growth assets like shares as you get older and closer to retirement, to help minimise your risk of loss and volatility. HESTA Balanced Growth has the same investment mix for all members, regardless of age.
How do their fees and performance figures compare?
Both these funds have delivered very similar returns over the past three and five year periods. Australian Retirement Trust's default fund has lower fees than HESTA's default fund, which becomes more apparent on larger balances.
How do the ethical investment options compare?
Both Australian Retirement Trust Socially Conscious Balanced investment and HESTA Sustainable Growth avoid investments in fossil fuels, tobacco and gambling among many other harmful industries. However, Australian Retirement Trust is certified by the Responsible Investment Association Australasia while HESTA is not.
Both options have similar fees, however HESTA Sustainable Growth has achieved better returns than Australian Retirement Trust Socially Conscious Balanced over the short, medium and long term.
If you're interested in investing your super ethically, you can compare these funds with range of additional ethical super funds in our guide.
How do the additional investment options compare?
HESTA offers five additional pre-mixed portfolio options while Australian Retirement Trust offers seven, so you've got more choice with the latter. Both funds offer an indexed fund option, so if you're looking to invest your super in an indexed fund you can do this with either one.
For the individual sector asset class options, again you've got more choice with Australian Retirement Trust. It offers 11 individual asset class options while HESTA only offers five. The main difference here is Australian Retirement Trust offers several different shares options including indexed, hedged and unhedged options. HESTA doesn't offer an indexed option in its single sector options.
If you're unsure how these different options work with your super fund, here's a guide on superannuation investment options and how to choose between them.
Want to keep comparing?
If you're not yet convinced that either of these funds is right for you, or you simply want to see how they compare to others in the market, you can compare super funds with our guide.
Alison Banney is the money editorial manager at Finder. She covers all areas of personal finance, and her areas of expertise are superannuation, banking and saving. She has written about finance for 10 years, having previously worked at Westpac and written for several other major banks and super funds.
Superannuation is the main way of saving for your retirement in Australia. Your superannuation is one big investment portfolio in your name that's managed for you by your super fund. Â
Trying to decide between AustralianSuper and Sunsuper? We've compared their fees, investment options, performance and extras side by side to help you choose.
Here’s what you need to know about changing super funds including how to do it, the fees that apply, how long it takes and the pros and cons of switching.
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