Hospitality workers — chefs, bartenders, waitstaff, hotel workers, and tourism operators — typically deal with casual employment, multiple employers, and lower average balances. Hostplus is the default industry fund for hospitality and has built a strong reputation for performance.
The best super fund for hospitality workers needs low fees on smaller balances, easy-to-manage accounts (since workers often change employers frequently), and solid default investment options. Insurance should be affordable and easy to understand for a workforce that skews younger.
Top 5 Super Funds for Hospitality Workers
Ranked at a typical balance of $25,000. Data current as of July 2026.
9.00% annualised return over 10 years. total fees of $349/year (1.40% of balance) at $25,000. 1.8M members. $115B in assets under management. sector alignment: hospitality-workers, young-australians.
- Highest 10-year return among major funds at 9.0%
- 22 investment options — one of the widest ranges available
- Choiceplus platform for direct share investing
7.80% annualised return over 10 years. total fees of $266/year (1.06% of balance) at $25,000. 2.0M members. $85B in assets under management. sector alignment: young-australians, hospitality.
- Simple fee structure — flat $78 admin fee plus a percentage component capped at $600 a year
- Extended call centre hours including Saturdays
- Investment costs on the default Growth option have fallen at successive disclosure updates (0.63% to 0.56% in 2025)
8.90% annualised return over 10 years. total fees of $210/year (0.84% of balance) at $25,000. 3.4M members. $365B in assets under management. sector alignment: hospitality.
- Consistently strong long-term returns — top quartile over 10 years
- Low total fees relative to fund size ($367 p.a. on $50k)
- Largest fund in Australia with $365 billion in assets
10.04% annualised return over 10 years. total fees of $237/year (0.95% of balance) at $25,000. 2.3M members. $300B in assets under management.
- Second-largest fund in Australia at $300 billion — massive scale advantage
- Strong long-term returns — the lifecycle default's High Growth Pool has returned 10.0% p.a. over the 10 years to 30 June 2026
- Admin fee cut 1 July 2026 ($1.20 → $1.10 a week), with the asset-based admin fee charged only on the first $500,000
8.50% annualised return over 10 years. total fees of $224/year (0.89% of balance) at $25,000. 0.65M members. $130B in assets under management.
- Among the lowest fees of any major fund — $351 on $50k balance
- Strong 10-year returns of 8.5% — excellent fee-adjusted performance
- 16 investment options including sustainable and ethical choices
Fee Comparison at $25,000
How the top 5 funds compare on total annual fees at a $25,000 balance:
| # | Fund | Admin Fee | Inv. Fee | Total $/yr | Total % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hostplus | $129 | 0.80% | $349 | 1.40% |
| 2 | REST | $78 | 0.47% | $266 | 1.06% |
| 3 | AustralianSuper | $52 | 0.47% | $210 | 0.84% |
| 4 | Australian Retirement Trust | $57 | 0.51% | $237 | 0.95% |
| 5 | UniSuper | $96 | 0.43% | $224 | 0.89% |
Use our comparison calculator to see how these funds stack up at your actual balance and contribution level over 10, 20 or 30 years.
How We Ranked These Funds
Our ranking considers multiple factors relevant to hospitality workers:
- Fees: Total annual cost (admin fee + investment fee + indirect costs) at a $25,000 balance
- Performance: 10-year and 5-year annualised returns on the default MySuper option
- Sector alignment: Whether the fund has specific expertise or tailoring for this segment
- APRA heatmap: The fund's fee and return ratings on APRA's MySuper Product Heatmap
- Fund size and stability: Total assets under management and member numbers
No fund pays for placement. Rankings are based on publicly available data from APRA, ATO, and individual fund disclosures.
Read Full Reviews
- Hostplus Review
The super fund for hospitality, tourism, recreation, and sport.
- REST Review
The super fund for retail and fast food workers — one of Australia's largest by membership.
- AustralianSuper Review
Australia's largest super fund by membership and assets under management.
- Australian Retirement Trust Review
Formed from the merger of QSuper and Sunsuper — one of Australia's largest funds.
- UniSuper Review
The super fund for Australia's higher education and research sector.
Independent superannuation research · about the editor ✓ Fact-checked · updated July 2026
Source: APRA & ATO data