Milford KiwiSaver Review

Milford KiwiSaver Review

Milford KiwiSaver runs 6 KiwiSaver funds open to new members, covering a wide spread of risk levels. At 30 June 2026 they held $15.88 billion for 223,003 investors. The funds run from risk level 1 to 5, so which fund you pick matters more than which scheme you are in.

Charges across the open funds run from 0.20 per cent to 1.15 per cent.

Over five years the Milford KiwiSaver Active Growth Fund returned 6.82 per cent a year while the Milford KiwiSaver Cash Fund returned 2.55 per cent a year, which is the gap between the top and the bottom of what you can choose from.

This review does three things. It sets out what the scheme actually contains. It puts every fund’s fee, risk indicator and return in one place, taken from the Government’s register. And it answers the question that matters most — whether what you get is worth what you pay.

How We Researched This Guide

Every number below is read from our own copy of the Government’s Disclose Register, which is the statutory source managers file against. It carries six open funds, all reported as at 30 June 2026.

We also checked the rules that underpin every KiwiSaver account — contribution rates, the government contribution, and default provider appointments — against Inland Revenue and the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment.

We are not recommending a move in either direction. The point of the exercise is to put the verified numbers side by side, so the decision rests on figures rather than on a brochure.

ValueHub's Trusted Providers

We've researched the providers below — here are our picks for this category.

Simplicity

★ 4.9 ★★★★★ (592 Reviews)

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Simplicity is a nonprofit KiwiSaver and investment fund manager charging 0.25% p.a. across all six KiwiSaver funds. 100% owned by the Simplicity Foundation, a registered charity. Over 190,000 members. Seven rounds of fee cuts since launch in 2016. Fifteen percent of management fees donated to NZ charities. Founded by Sam Stubbs (ex-Tower Investments CEO, Goldman Sachs).

The Quick Summary (60-Second Version)

Here is the short version before the detail.

• Milford KiwiSaver offers six open funds across a single scheme.
• Annual fund charges range from 0.20 per cent to 1.15 per cent.
• The cheapest option is the Milford KiwiSaver Cash Fund at 0.20 per cent.
• The largest fund by value is the Milford KiwiSaver Active Growth Fund, with $8.96 billion invested.
• The strongest five-year record in the range belongs to the Milford KiwiSaver Active Growth Fund, at 6.82 per cent a year.
• The weakest five-year record is the Milford KiwiSaver Cash Fund, at 2.55 per cent a year.
• The funds hold $15.88 billion in total across 223,003 investors.

What You Pay, and What You Get For It

Milford KiwiSaver charges an annual fund charge, and there are no separate membership, contribution, establishment, switching or termination fees recorded for its KiwiSaver scheme. The charge comes out of the fund’s returns rather than being billed to you, which is why most members never see it leave the account.

Percentages hide the real cost, so here it is in dollars. On a $50,000 balance, the lowest charge here, 0.20 per cent, is about $100 a year, and the highest, 1.15 per cent, is about $575. On $100,000, those figures double. Double the balance, and you double both.

What the Charge Costs at Different Balances

A fund charge is a percentage of your balance, so the dollar figure moves as your savings grow. The table below shows the cheapest fund, the dearest fund, and a middle one from the range, and what each charges at three balances. This is the certain part of the equation: the fee is charged whether the fund rises or falls.

The real effect of a fee is not the one-year figure but what it removes from a balance that would otherwise have compounded for decades. Small percentage differences become large sums over forty years of contributions.

The Kinds of Fund in This Range

The register groups every fund by type, and the type tells you more about the risk than the name does. Milford KiwiSaver spans 5 of those groups, which is what sets how much choice you actually have.

The risk indicator runs from 1 to 7. It measures how much the fund’s value has moved in the past, not how good it is. A 6 or 7 is not a warning; it is a statement that the fund is expected to fall further in a bad year, and it belongs in a portfolio you will not need to touch for a long time.

Milford KiwiSaver Plan — the funds

Charges across the open funds run from 0.20 per cent to 1.15 per cent. The strongest five-year figure is the Milford KiwiSaver Active Growth Fund at 6.82 per cent a year, and the weakest is the Milford KiwiSaver Cash Fund at 2.55 per cent a year.

What the Funds Actually Hold

The register also discloses each fund’s split between growth assets, such as shares and property, and income assets, such as bonds and cash. More than the fund’s name, that ratio tells you how it will behave when markets move.

The spread runs from 0% growth assets in the Milford KiwiSaver Cash Fund to 100% in the Milford KiwiSaver Aggressive Fund. The conservative end will scarcely move in a poor year; the aggressive end will fall sharply with share markets and rebound just as sharply. Which suits you depends on when you need the money, not on which has performed better lately.

Reading the Returns

The figures are net of fees and after tax. Every return shown is net of the fund charge and after tax. The strongest five-year average here is the Milford KiwiSaver Active Growth Fund at 6.82 per cent a year, against a range of 2.55 to 6.82 per cent across the open funds.

The one-year and five-year columns should be read as a pair. One-year figures across these funds span 2.00 to 9.69 per cent, and five-year averages 2.55 to 6.82 per cent. A good year says more about the market than about the manager; a five-year average is the harder and fairer test.

Where a fund has only a short record, none of this can help you, and that is a real limitation rather than a technicality. The longer the published record, the more of it is evidence rather than circumstance.

The table that follows gives each open fund’s full published record. Where a fund is new, the longer columns are blank, and that absence is itself information.

Where Milford KiwiSaver Sits Against the Alternatives

On entry cost, Milford KiwiSaver is the 3rd cheapest of the 29 managers in our KiwiSaver table, with its cheapest fund charging 0.20 per cent. The cheapest manager charges 0.03 per cent and the dearest starts at 4.26 per cent.

Cost is only one side of the ledger. The other is whether the return justifies it, which is what the five-year column is for. Neither number is predictive on its own, and a stretch that suits shares will always make the share-heavy funds look better than they are.

What You Put In, and What You Get Back

Contribution settings come from legislation rather than the provider, so they are identical across all schemes. The difference lies in what the manager does with the money afterwards, and that is where the fee begins to matter.

The default employee and employer rate is 3.5 per cent from 1 April 2026, and it rises to 4 per cent on 1 April 2028. On a $70,000 salary, 3.5 per cent is $2,450 a year from you, matched by your employer, so about $4,900 a year goes into the account before any return.

The Government adds 25 cents for every dollar you contribute, up to a maximum of $260.72 a year. To receive the full amount you must contribute at least $1,042.86 of your own money between 1 July and 30 June, and employer contributions do not count towards that threshold. If your taxable income is above $180,000 a year, you do not qualify.

Once the money is in, the fund charge applies to the whole balance rather than to each contribution. On a $50,000 balance, the lowest charge here, 0.20 per cent, is about $100 a year, and the highest, 1.15 per cent, is about $575. On $100,000, those figures double. That is the number worth weighing against the returns, because it is charged whether the fund rises or falls.

Questions You Might Have

Which fund am I in?

Your KiwiSaver statement, or the online account you use to manage your savings, will show which fund your money is invested in and how it is split if you hold more than one. Check it before anything else, because the fund decides both the return and the charge.

How much will I pay?

Charges across the open funds run from 0.20 per cent to 1.15 per cent. It comes out of the fund’s returns, not your bank account, so you will not see a separate bill.

Is Milford KiwiSaver a default provider?

No. The appointed default providers are BNZ, Booster, Westpac (through BT Funds Management), Fisher Funds, Simplicity and Smartshares, with appointments running to December 2028. Milford KiwiSaver is a scheme you choose deliberately.

Can I change funds without changing provider?

Usually yes. Most schemes let you move between their own funds, or set a different split, through your online account at no cost, and the change takes effect without affecting your membership or your employer contributions. You only need to switch provider if the scheme itself is the problem.

What happens to a closed fund?

If you already hold a fund that has closed to new members, you keep it and continue to pay the charge shown. Closing a fund stops new money coming in; it does not force existing members out, and it does not change your balance.

How much do I need to contribute to get the full government contribution?

You need to put in at least $1,042.86 of your own money between 1 July and 30 June to receive the maximum of $260.72. The government adds 25 cents for every dollar you contribute, and employer contributions do not count towards your $1,042.86. If your taxable income is above $180,000 a year, you do not qualify.

How much will I pay at the default contribution rate?

The default employee and employer rate rose from 3 per cent to 3.5 per cent on 1 April 2026, and it rises again to 4 per cent on 1 April 2028. On a $70,000 salary, 3.5 per cent is $2,450 a year from you, matched by your employer. You can choose 4, 6, 8 or 10 per cent instead.

Does switching to or from Milford KiwiSaver cost anything?

No. Milford KiwiSaver records no membership, contribution, establishment, switching or termination fees, and switching between KiwiSaver providers does not attract a fee in practice. You apply to the new provider, who arranges the transfer.

What Matters Most

Milford KiwiSaver is a manager with a moderate range of funds. The fee table above gives the current charge on every fund. The funds are few and easy to hold in your head.

• The Milford KiwiSaver Cash Fund is the cheapest way in at 0.20 per cent.
• The strongest five-year record is the Milford KiwiSaver Active Growth Fund at 6.82 per cent a year, and it carries the risk that produced it.
• Check which fund you are in before anything else, because it decides both the return and the charge.