How to read and understand your super statement

Your super may be one of the biggest assets you’ll ever own – and for most of your working life, it works away in the background to grow your retirement savings.

Annual statements represent a moment in time each year when every super fund provides their members with a complete picture of how their money performed over the previous financial year.

Learn to read your statement properly to catch the things that may affect your balance, such as fee changes, old accounts you’ve forgotten, insurance you’re paying for but may not need and whether returns are lagging comparable options.

You don’t need to be an expert in super to do this. Below, we walk through every section of a typical super statement and tell you exactly what to look at – and what should make you stop and act.

Why your super statement is worth 10 minutes of your time

It may not seem as though a small fee difference or a duplicate account would make much difference to your super in any single year. But left unchecked across a working life it can cost you a meaningful slice of your final balance.

That’s why 10 focused minutes once a year is one of the highest value financial habits you can build.

When you get it and where to find it

Your fund issues an annual statement after the end of the financial year (30 June), so most statements land by about September. You’ll usually find it in your online member account or app.

If you can’t locate it, your fund can resend it – and you can also see your super accounts through the ATO via your myGov account, which is the easiest way to find lost or forgotten accounts.

The one habit that pays off: read it the same way every year

It’s worth reading your statement the same way each year, in the same order and comparing it to last year’s statement. Patterns only show up over time – a fee that’s drifted up, a contribution that stopped, a return that’s lagging. Consistency can help turn a statement from a filing chore into an early warning system.

Your super statement, section by section

Statements vary in layout between funds but they all carry the same core sections. Here’s what each one means and what to check. Your fund may group the information slightly differently but the information should essentially be the same.

Opening and closing balance

These two figures bookend your statement. The opening balance is what your account was worth at the start of the period; the closing balance is what it’s worth at the end.

The difference between them is the story of your year – and every other section explains why it changed.

Check: Is your closing balance higher than your opening balance? If not, read on to see whether this was due to investment markets, fees, low contributions or a mix.

Contributions: employer, personal and government co-contribution

This section lists the money that went into your super from the following sources:

• Employer contributions: the Super Guarantee (SG) contributions your employer must pay on top of your wages, set at 12% a percent of your Qualifying Earnings (QE), which for most people will be the same as ordinary time earnings (OTE) or what you receive for your ordinary hours of work. This may often be your largest contribution line.
• Personal contributions: anything you added yourself, whether from after tax pay or salary sacrifice.
• Government co-contribution: if you’re a lower income earner and made eligible personal contributions, the government may have added a co-contribution, subject to income thresholds and limits.

Check: Did your employer’s contributions arrive and do they look right for your earnings? It’s worth querying missing or smaller than expected SG payments – first with your employer, then the ATO.

Investment returns and earnings

This shows how your invested money performed over the period – the earnings (or losses) credited to your account after investment fees and tax. Super is invested in assets like shares, property and fixed interest, so this figure moves up and down with markets. It should go up in a year when returns are positive and may be negative if markets are volatile.

The net return is what your super earns after investment fees and tax are taken out. It’s the figure that actually compounds in your account and the one worth comparing between funds and years.

Check: The return on your specific investment option, not just the headline fund number.

A negative year isn’t automatically a problem – but a string of returns that are well behind comparable options is worth investigating.

Fees and costs

This is another section it’s worth paying attention to. In it, you’ll typically see:

• Administration fees: the cost of running your account.
• Investment fees and costs: the cost of managing your investments.
• Transaction or activity based fees: charged when something specific happens.

Fees are often shown as both a percentage and a dollar amount.

On a typical MySuper option, total fees in Australia commonly sit around 1% of your balance per year, though this varies widely by fund and option. The bigger your balance, the more a small percentage difference matters in dollars.

Check: Add up the total annual fees in dollars. Do they feel proportionate to the value you’re getting? Lower isn’t automatically better – but unexplained or rising fees are a red flag.

Insurance premiums and cover

Many super accounts include insurance – typically life, total and permanent disability (TPD) and sometimes income protection, with premiums deducted from your super balance.

Your statement should show the cover amounts and what you’re paying for them.

Check: Are you covered for the right amount and is it cover you actually need? Insurance inside super can be valuable and cost effective. But if you have more than one super account, you may be paying for duplicate cover you can’t fully claim on – and if you no longer need cover, it’s quietly eroding your balance.

Important: Never cancel or close cover without understanding what you’d lose – you may not be able to get it back.

Your investment option(s)

This tells you where your money is actually invested: a single ready made option (such as a balanced or MySuper default option) or a mix you’ve chosen yourself.

Each option carries a different level of risk and expected return.

Check: Does your option match your stage of life and how you feel about risk? Many people are in the default option without ever having chosen it. That may be fine – but it should be a decision, not an accident.

Beneficiaries (who gets your super)

Super doesn’t automatically form part of your Will. Your statement shows who you’ve nominated to receive your super if you die and whether that nomination is binding or non-binding.

Check: Is your nomination present, current and valid? Life changes – such as marriage, separation or children, may mean an old nomination is out of date.

While many people overlook this section, it’s one of the most important to keep up to date.

What to check on every super statement

If you do nothing else, run this quick check each year.

7 point super statement check

Section	What to confirm
Balance	Closing balance vs last year – and why it may have changed
Contributions	Employer SG arrived and appears to be correct
Returns	Net return on your option, over time, vs comparable options
Fees	Total annual fees in dollars are proportionate
Insurance	Cover is correct, appropriate and not duplicated elsewhere
Investment option	Matches your life stage and risk profile
Beneficiaries	Nomination is present, current and valid

Red flags: signs it’s time to act

Some information is worth noting; sometimes, it’s a signal that doing nothing is costing you. The following may be a sign it’s time to review your super:

You’re paying high or hard to explain fees

If your total fees seem to be high for your balance or you can’t work out what you’re paying for, it’s worth comparing your fund’s fees against others on a like for like basis. Over decades, fees can be one of the biggest controllable factors that may be slowing the growth of your money.

You have more than one super account

Changed jobs over the years? You may be holding several accounts – each charging its own fees and, often, its own insurance premiums. Having multiple accounts is the single most common and most fixable leak.

You’re paying for default insurance you don’t need

Default insurance is automatically added to many accounts. It can be a good thing – but if you’re paying for cover you don’t need or duplicating it across funds, it’s draining your balance. Review it deliberately rather than letting it run on autopilot.

Your net returns are lagging comparable options

One weak year isn’t a verdict. But if your option’s net returns sit consistently behind options with a similar risk level over five plus years, that’s worth a closer look.

Your details or beneficiaries are out of date

An old address, a former name or a beneficiary nomination that no longer reflects your life are all quick fixes that matter more than they seem, especially the beneficiary nomination.

What to do next

Spotting a red flag is the easy part. Acting on it sensibly, without losing something you’ll regret, is what counts.

Compare fees and net returns, like for like

Before judging your fund, line it up against others on net return for options with a similar risk profile. Most options provide net returns over one, three, five, seven and ten years, if not longer.

You can also compare total fees in dollars for your balance.

Make sure you compare accounts with the same risk profile and feature level: balanced accounts with balanced accounts, growth with growth and MySuper with MySuper.

Check your insurance before you close anything

This is the one to get right. Insurance cover inside your existing fund may be cheaper or easier to qualify for, than new cover – and once you close the account you may not get it back.

Always confirm what cover you hold and whether you can replace it, before you switch or consolidate.

Consolidate to stop paying duplicate fees

If you’re holding more than one account, bringing them together stops the duplicate fees and premiums, just complete the insurance check above first. You can find and consolidate accounts through the ATO via myGov or with your chosen fund.

Update your beneficiaries and contact details

The lowest effort, highest importance action on the list. Make sure your nomination and details are current – most funds let you update both online in minutes.

Read your statement, then make it work harder

Reading your super statement thoroughly is the beginning of understanding how your super is performing, rather than the end.

When you know what you’re paying, how your money is invested and whether you’re holding more accounts than you need, you’re in a position to be able to take action, if necessary.

Understand your fees, check your insurance and consider bringing your super together so it’s working as hard as you do.

Source: Colonial First State