ANZ vs Simplicity KiwiSaver NZ — Bank Giant vs Low-Cost Index (2026) | MoneyBalance

ANZ and Simplicity represent opposite ends of the NZ KiwiSaver market: one is the country’s largest bank with millions of customers and a full-service fee structure; the other is a not-for-profit index fund provider charging the lowest fees in the market. This comparison is one of the clearest in NZ KiwiSaver.

Disclosure: MoneyBalance may earn a referral fee from some providers linked on this page. This does not influence our analysis.

Quick Comparison: ANZ vs Simplicity

Feature	ANZ	Simplicity
Investment approach	Active/blended	Passive index
Structure	Commercial bank	Not-for-profit
Default provider (2021)	No	Yes
Growth fund fee	~1.06%	0.31%
Growth fund 5-yr return (indicative)	~7.2%–7.8% p.a.	~8.2%–8.8% p.a.
Admin fee	No	No
Ethical fund	Yes (ANZ Responsible Growth)	No
Banking app integration	Yes (ANZ goMoney)	No
Profits	Shareholders	Back to members + charity

The Fee Difference in Dollar Terms

ANZ’s growth fund charges approximately 1.06% per year. Simplicity charges 0.31%. That’s a fee gap of 0.75 percentage points.

On a $100,000 balance:

Balance	ANZ fee (~1.06%)	Simplicity fee (0.31%)	Annual saving with Simplicity
$30,000	$318	$93	$225
$60,000	$636	$186	$450
$100,000	$1,060	$310	$750
$200,000	$2,120	$620	$1,500
$500,000	$5,300	$1,550	$3,750

A member with $200,000 in ANZ is paying $1,500/year more in fees than they would with Simplicity. Every year. With no guarantee of better returns to show for it.

Performance: Simplicity Leads ANZ After Fees

This is the key point that often surprises members: Simplicity’s passive index fund has outperformed ANZ’s actively managed fund after fees over 5 years.

5-year after-fee returns (growth funds, indicative to December 2025):

Simplicity Growth: ~8.2%–8.8% p.a.
ANZ Growth: ~7.2%–7.8% p.a.

Simplicity has outperformed ANZ by approximately 1.0 percentage point per year after fees.

This is the passive investing thesis in action: ANZ’s fund managers may generate some gross outperformance over the index, but after deducting ~1.06% in fees, the net return to members is worse than Simplicity’s simple index approach at 0.31%.

On $100,000 over 20 years:

ANZ at 7.5% p.a.: ~$425,000
Simplicity at 8.5% p.a.: ~$493,000
Difference: ~$68,000

Why ANZ Has So Many Members Despite the Fee Disadvantage

ANZ is New Zealand’s largest KiwiSaver provider for structural reasons:

Auto-enrolment history: Before the 2021 default review, ANZ received a large share of default enrolments. These members have often never actively reviewed their choice.
Banking relationship: Millions of New Zealanders bank with ANZ. Convenience and familiarity drive inertia.
Marketing presence: ANZ invests heavily in KiwiSaver marketing and has a large adviser network.
One-app convenience: KiwiSaver visible alongside everyday banking in ANZ goMoney is a real (if overvalued) feature.

None of these are investment reasons. They are distribution reasons.

When ANZ Makes Sense Over Simplicity

The ANZ Responsible Growth fund is genuinely useful for members who want ethical/ESG screening without leaving the bank ecosystem. Simplicity does not offer a dedicated ethical fund.

Convenience matters to some members — particularly those who find KiwiSaver more manageable when it’s visible in their banking app. For less-engaged members, staying in ANZ and actually monitoring the account may produce better long-term member behaviour than switching to Simplicity and ignoring it.

Short-term members who are less than 3 years from withdrawal (first home or retirement) may prioritise stability over optimising for a small fee difference — though the fee argument still holds.

The Case for Switching from ANZ to Simplicity

If you’re:

In ANZ’s standard growth, balanced, or conservative fund
More than 3 years from retirement or a first home purchase
Not specifically needing ANZ’s Responsible Growth fund
Comfortable managing your KiwiSaver through Simplicity’s separate portal

…the case for switching is strong. The combination of lower fees and better 5-year performance makes ANZ hard to justify for most members.

How to switch

Go to simplicitynz.co.nz and complete the membership application (takes 5–10 minutes)
Choose your fund type (growth, balanced, or conservative)
Simplicity notifies IRD; the transfer from ANZ is automatic
Total process: 10 working days

No investment is sold during the transfer — your units are moved across. See our switching KiwiSaver providers guide for full details.

What If You Want Active Management Instead?

If you want to leave ANZ but aren’t drawn to passive indexing, Milford offers active management with a better 5-year track record than ANZ and fees in the 0.85%–1.05% range — still cheaper than ANZ’s growth fund, with meaningfully better returns.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Simplicity safer than ANZ? Both are regulated KiwiSaver schemes supervised by the FMA. “Safety” in terms of scheme security is equivalent. Simplicity’s not-for-profit structure doesn’t affect the regulatory oversight or member protections.

What happens to my ANZ KiwiSaver if I switch to Simplicity? Your balance transfers to Simplicity within 10 working days. The switch process is seamless — no action required from ANZ. Your contribution history, enrolment date, and eligibility for first home withdrawal are unaffected.

Will I lose the ANZ KiwiSaver app if I switch? Yes — you’ll manage your account through Simplicity’s website instead. Simplicity’s online dashboard is clean and functional, though it doesn’t integrate with your ANZ banking app.

Is Simplicity the best option after ANZ? Simplicity is the cheapest. For 5-year performance, Milford and Generate have also outperformed ANZ after fees. The “best” alternative depends on your priorities: lowest cost (Simplicity), highest recent returns (Milford or Generate), or ethical focus (Pathfinder).