Comparing superfunds is hard. Your source of truth, the Product Disclosure Statements (PDS), feel (to me at least) deliberately long and complicated.

One might guess the funds are set up this way, because it's confusing enough, we might decide it's "too hard", and leave our money where it is.

But the truth is; Super is your money. It’s not a tax, and it’s not the government’s rainy-day fund. You worked hard for your job, and this is a part of your payment. A payment that will fund your retirement. And a good fund, is the difference between travelling in your retirement or not.

So, lets cut through the marketing fluff and compare  based on  two things that matter: what you pay (fees) and what you get (performance).

About Fees. The smaller the better?

Fees destroy your nest-egg. In two ways; the first is that it cuts into your current profit, the second way is that it cuts into your future profit. Let me explain.

You might look at a fee of 1% and think, "1%? That’s not a lot" But if your fund earns a 5% return and they take 1% in fees, they just took 20% of your profit. Adding to that, every dollar you give up as a fee, is a dollar you will never get a return on that you should have. The impact? Upwards of $100k missing from your retirement.

When comparing providers, you’re generally looking for two types of costs:

• Admin Fees: The cost for them to send you emails, run the call centre, and keep the website running. This is often a flat fee (e.g., $1.50 a week) plus a percentage.
• Investment Fees: The cost of paying the experts to pick the shares and assets. Usually a percentage of your total super.

Rule of Thumb: You want "value," not just "cheap." A fund charging 0.5% fees that delivers 3% returns is not great compared to a fund charging 1% fees that delivers 9% returns.

Performance: Don’t Chase Last Year’s Winner

It's important to do your research, but those little quiet part of those investment commercials are right "Don't base future performance on historical performance".

Don't chase last year’s winner. Sometimes, the professionals get lucky, sometimes the market is lucky, maybe next year they'll be unlucky.

Investment markets move in cycles. The fund that went all-in on tech stocks might have crushed it last year, but they might get hammered next year when the market rotates.

How do I check super performance properly?
Don't look at the 1-year return. Anyone can get lucky once. You want to look at:

1. The 5-Year and 10-Year Numbers: Look for consistency. Has this fund performed well over a decade?
2. The Rolling Average: This smooths out the bumps and tells you if the fund generally beats the market or lags behind it.

The Holy Grail: Net Benefit

You can forget everything, except this one concept, Net Benefit.

When you compare superannuation providers based on fees and performance, you have to look at them together.

Net Benefit = Investment Return (Performance) – Total Fees

Who cares if a fund has the lowest fees in Australia if their returns are terrible? And who cares if a fund has massive returns if they charge you an arm and a leg to get them? The Net Benefit is the money that actually lands in your account.

Apples to Apples: Like for like risk.

You can always try to get better returns....but at what cost?

Some funds are designed to be get the best 10 year returns but are considered "high risk". Whereas other funds are designed to have less risk, so they invest in more stable and achievable targets.

So when you compare fund returns, they should have take the same amount of risk.

To compare properly, you must match the categories:

• Compare Growth options with Growth options (usually 61–80% growth assets).
• Compare Balanced with Balanced (usually 41–60% growth assets).
• Compare Index with Index.

Watch out for the label "Balanced":
Here is a little industry secret. "Balanced" used to mean safe. Some funds puff up their "Balanced" options with 70% or more growth assets just to make their performance numbers look better on the comparison charts. Always check the Asset Allocation, not just the name.

How do I actually compare them? (The Action Plan)

You don't need a spreadsheet wizard to do this. You can sort it out in about 20 minutes.

1. Log in to your current fund: Find your "Investment Option" (e.g., Balanced) and your "Fees" summary. Write them down.
2. Use the ATO Comparison Tool: It’s free and unbiased via MyGov. It shows you a personalized comparison of your current fund vs. others based on fees and net returns.
3. Check the "Passive" Options: Many funds now offer "Index" options. These are low-fee options that just track the market. They are often much cheaper than the "Managed" options. It’s worth asking if your current fund offers one.