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AustralianSuper vs LUCRF Super
Let's dive in and compare the two super funds side by side, so you can see which one might be right for you.
AustralianSuper
LUCRF Super
Type of fund
Industry super fund and Australia's largest super fund
This is a pre-mixed, diversified fund that invests your super in a range of assets with a strong allocation towards Australian and international shares, direct property and infrastructure. Investment allocation is the same for all members in the Balanced fund, regardless of age. It's an authorised MySuper product.
Similar to AustralianSuper Balanced, this is a ready-made investment portfolio with a strong focus on shares, bonds, private equity and infrastructure. Investment allocation is the same for all members in the MySuper Balanced fund, regardless of age. It's an authorised MySuper product.
Performance
Past performance of AustralianSuper Balanced as of June 2020:
5 years: 6.75% p.a.
3 years: 8.25% p.a.
Past performance of LUCRF MySuper Balanced as of June 2020:
5 years: 7.88% p.a.
3 years: 9.67% p.a.
Fees
Here's how much you'd pay in fees for one year if you had the following amounts invested in AustralianSuper Balanced:
$5,000 balance: $85 in fees
$50,000 balance: $382 in fees
$100,000 balance: $712 in fees
Here's how much you'd pay in fees for one year if you had the following amounts invested in LUCRF MySuper Balanced:
$5,000 balance: $130.35 in fees
$50,000 balance: $477.64 in fees
$100,000 balance: $863.52 in fees
Additional diversified investment options
If you don't want to invest in the default option (AustralianSuper Balanced), you can choose to invest your super in one of the following pre-made investment options instead:
High Growth
Socially Aware
Indexed Diversified
Conservative Balanced
Stable
If you don't want to invest in the default option (LUCRF MySuper Balanced), you can choose to invest your super in one of the following pre-made investment options instead:
High Growth
Indexed Balanced
Moderate
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:
Australian Shares
International Shares
Property
Diversified Fixed Interest
Cash
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 - Active
Australian Shares - Indexed
International Shares - Active
International Shares - Indexed
Property
Cash
Ethical investment
AustralianSuper offers a dedicated ethical investment option: AustralianSuper Socially Aware. This investment option is a diversified fund that doesn't invest in Australian or international companies that directly own coal and fossil fuel reserves, produce tobacco or those that have single-gender boards. AustralianSuper lists all its fund holdings on its website.
LUCRF doesn't offer a dedicated ethical or sustainable investment option.
LUCRF says it may consider excluding investments in certain companies, but it will consider all aspects of the investment first (i.e. it will also consider the financial implications of excluding certain investments). LUCRF Super does say that it excludes all primary manufacturers of tobacco.
Mobile app
The AustralianSuper app has a 3.6-star rating from users in the Google Play Store and a 3-star rating in the Apple App Store.
The LUCRF Super mobile app has a 3.1-star rating from users in the Google Play Store and a 2.2-star rating in the Apple App Store.
Both funds are popular industry super funds, though AustralianSuper has significantly more members and more funds under management than LUCRF Super.
The two default MySuper options are AustralianSuper Balanced and LUCRF MySuper Balanced. These two products are very similar; both are MySuper products and both are pre-mixed, diversified funds. They both have a very similar level of risk and have the same level of exposure to international shares.
How do their fees and performance figures compare?
AustralianSuper Balanced and LUCRF MySuper Balanced have similar fees for balances under $50,000. However, for larger balances, LUCRF Super has much higher fees than AustralianSuper.
AustralianSuper Balanced has delivered higher returns than LUCRF MySuper Balanced over the short, medium and long term.
How do the ethical investments compare?
AustralianSuper offers a dedicated ethical investment option, AustralianSuper Socially Aware, which you can choose instead of the default option. AustralianSuper Socially Aware is a diversified fund that invests in a range of different assets, but it avoids investments in fossil fuels, tobacco manufacturing and coal. It also avoids companies with single-gender boards and those that have been flagged as having human rights issues.
AustralianSuper is very transparent about the companies it invests in, listing all the fund's investments publicly on its website. While it does offer one dedicated ethical investment option, AustralianSuper says it takes into account environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors into all its investments.
LUCRF Super does not offer a dedicated ethical investment option as a choice to members. LUCRF Super says it may consider ESG factors with its investment decisions; however, this will be considered along with other investment implications like financial outcomes.
If you're interested in investing your super ethically, you can compare these funds with a range of additional ethical super funds in our guide.
How do the additional investment options compare?
AustralianSuper and LUCRF Super offer very similar additional, diversified investment options. Both offer a diversified, indexed balanced option that invests in index funds. The only difference with these ready-made options is that AustralianSuper offers an ethical option, while LUCRF Super does not.
If you want to design your own investment mix using the single-asset class options, you have a bit more choice with LUCRF Super than AustralianSuper. LUCRF Super offers six individual asset class options, while AustralianSuper offers five. The main difference here is that LUCRF Super offers indexed Australian shares and indexed overseas shares as individual investment options, while AustralianSuper offers no single indexed share options. Indexed shares are a popular choice for members looking to lower their investment costs as indexed investments are generally much cheaper.
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 AustralianSuper or LUCRF Super 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
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