Knowing how your KiwiSaver is performing — and whether that performance is good relative to peers — requires more than just looking at your balance. Raw returns need to be compared after fees, within the same fund category, and over the same time period.
How to Read KiwiSaver Performance Data
Three things to always check:
- Compare like-for-like — growth vs growth, balanced vs balanced. A growth fund returning 12% isn’t outperforming a conservative fund at 6%; they’re different risk profiles.
- After-fee returns — gross returns are before management fees are deducted. The FMA requires providers to publish after-fee returns. Always use those.
- Time period — one-year returns are nearly meaningless. Use 5-year and 10-year returns for meaningful comparisons.
Approximate Average Returns by Fund Type (5-year to April 2026)
| Fund type | Approx. 5-year annual return |
|---|---|
| Aggressive | 8–11% p.a. |
| Growth | 7–10% p.a. |
| Balanced | 5–7% p.a. |
| Conservative | 3–5% p.a. |
| Defensive | 2–4% p.a. |
Approximate averages — individual providers vary significantly. Check Sorted.org.nz for current standardised returns.
Average KiwiSaver Balance by Age
If you want to know whether your balance is on track, compare against the IRD’s published averages:
| Age group | Approximate average balance (2025) |
|---|---|
| Under 18 | $3,000–5,000 |
| 18–24 | $6,000–9,000 |
| 25–34 | $20,000–30,000 |
| 35–44 | $45,000–60,000 |
| 45–54 | $75,000–100,000 |
| 55–64 | $110,000–150,000 |
| 65+ | $120,000–180,000 |
Approximate figures — medians are significantly lower than averages. See the full guide for detail.
Guides in This Section
- Best Performing KiwiSaver Funds NZ 2026
- Worst Performing KiwiSaver Funds NZ
- KiwiSaver Fund Performance Comparison
- KiwiSaver Returns 2025
- KiwiSaver 5-Year Returns NZ — Full Comparison
- KiwiSaver Returns by Provider NZ
- KiwiSaver Annual Returns History 2008–2025
- KiwiSaver Historical Returns — Key Events
- Average KiwiSaver Balance by Age NZ — 2026 Benchmarks