Aware Super wins on scale, fees and long-term returns
Aware Super comes out ahead here mainly on the strength of its size. At more than double HESTA's funds under management, Aware Super can spread its costs across a much bigger base, and it shows: lower annual fees, a stronger 3, 5 and 10 year track record on its default option, and premium digital tools included as standard. HESTA isn't a weak fund by any measure, and it actually posted the better return over the most recent 12 months, but on the metrics that matter most over a working life, Aware Super is the more convincing choice.
Head to head
A merger story built for scale
HESTA has a five-year head start, founded in 1987 as the industry fund for health and community services workers, and it's stayed close to that identity ever since, merging with the smaller Mercy Super in 2022. Aware Super's roots go back to 1992 as First State Super, a fund for New South Wales public sector employees. What's changed the picture since is a run of major mergers: Health Super in 2012, then VicSuper and WA Super in 2020 (the point at which the fund took the Aware Super name), and TelstraSuper as recently as April 2026.
The result is that Aware Super now manages more than double HESTA's funds under management, $235 billion against $100 billion, and covers roughly 1.3 million members against HESTA's 1.05 million. Aware Super has also opened international offices, including its first in London in 2023, reflecting a fund now operating at a genuinely institutional scale. Size on its own doesn't guarantee better outcomes, but it does translate into real advantages: more buying power when negotiating fees, a broader in-house investment team, and the ability to access large-scale assets like infrastructure and private markets that smaller funds often can't reach directly.
HESTA wins the year, Aware Super wins the decade
Comparing each fund's default growth-style option tells a fairly consistent story. HESTA's Balanced Growth option actually returned more over the past 12 months, 9.46% against Aware Super's 8.54% on its Grow option. If you only looked at the most recent year, HESTA would look like the stronger pick.
Stretch the timeframe out and the picture flips. Aware Super leads over 3 years (10.46% versus 9.58%), 5 years (7.56% versus 7.21%) and 10 years (9.63% versus 8.29%). Since super is a decades-long investment, not a one-year sprint, that longer, more consistent track record is the more meaningful signal for most members.
Aware Super is the cheaper option, by a real margin
On a $50,000 balance, Aware Super's annual fees come in at around $452 a year, compared to roughly $512 a year for HESTA's default option, a $60 gap that compounds meaningfully over a career. Aware Super also includes premium digital tools as part of its standard offering, while HESTA's are more basic by comparison. Both funds offer comparable call centre hours and both include general advice at no extra cost, so the fee gap isn't buying you materially less support.
Choose Aware Super if
You want a fund with genuine scale, a longer track record of consistent returns, lower fees, and you're not tied to a specific industry. Aware Super is open to any Australian, not just those in a particular sector.
Choose HESTA if
You work in health or community services and want a fund built specifically around that industry, or the strength of its most recent year's return matters more to you than the longer-term average.
Performance and fee figures are based on each fund's default growth-style option (Aware Super Grow, Age 55 and under; HESTA Balanced Growth) for the period ending March 2026, sourced via SuperRatings Pty Limited. Funds under management and membership figures are approximate and current as at mid-2026. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance. SuperScout is a comparison service, not a financial adviser, consider your own circumstances before making a super decision.